Sonoma Traintown

Train Town is a throwback to the times when people created things with patience and care. A scale-model miniature train showcase, Train Town stretches over 10+ acres of forest and lakes, with tons of miniature scenes tucked throughout. Kids go crazy for Train Town ~ I have been taking my own nieces and nephews there for generations; it is a sure thing, and good, clean fun. Mini hotels, shops, saloons and campgrounds peek through the trees as you ride in and out of sun, tunnels, and over the trestle. Halfway through the ride, the train makes a 20 minute stop at the quaint petting zoo, replete with sheep, goats, llamas, and sometimes bunnies. This is the site of the main mini town, all done in meticulous detail, including a chapel with stained glass windows and a fort. Train Town is very casual. There are picnic tables, and you can purchase plenty of snacks, even pink popcorn (!) for a trip back in time. more

Traintown sounds bigger than it is but definately a fun couple of hours for little ones. We went with friends this summer and since our kids were all between 2 and 4 it was the perfect age. They really enjoyed the train ride and going through the tunnels. The petting zoo was a bit meager and the animals looked unkept. If you are concerned like I am of petting zoos, be sure to bring your own purell there was none that we saw. The kids can put coins in the vending machines to feed the animals little pellets, so be sure to plan ahead and bring , once you are out there at the petting part there is no place to get them. The small rides were perfect for my little ones but I guess we had gone on an off day. Only 2 people were running ALL the rides, so there was lots of waits. The food selection wasn't great and we didn't find a kid friendly restaurant within walking distance but we will definately take our little ones again before they get too old. more

Traintown is a neat little park that would hold alot of appeal to parents of younger children. Any older than 8 or so I would think twice. There are some carnival type rides, and a miniture train ride that you can take, but there is not much else. I believe there is also a petting zoo stop if you take the train ride. Young children would get a kick out of the minature train and the animals, but it is not the type of place to make an entire daytrip of. I took a group of children ranging between 5 and 10 yrs old, the 5 & 6 year olds enjoyed it, but the older children grew very bored and restless after an hour or two. If you decide to take your children, you may want to investigate the surrounding area for other places and make a day out of this combined with another outing or two. more

We went here because we were going to be in the area and my son was on a train kick. HE loved it, and it is relatively cheap, but I distinctly remember thinking "THIS IS IT?". I would have been disappointed if I had made a special trip for it. The ferris wheel and carousel were nice, but again, I can find that at Pier 39 and at the local fair every year. more