the bellarine railway

We purchased this Train Driver Experience as a 30th birthday present for our son, it was certainly a present with a difference, something that could be shared and enjoyed by the participant and his guests. Particularly good for sons with sons. We had an amazing day, the staff and volunteers could not have been more helpful or informative. From the initial enquiry to the final booking there was lots of information and assistance and on the day everything worked like clockwork.I was able to take a picnic aboard to be shared amongst our guests on our journey from the historic Queenscliff Railway Station to Drysedale. The very competent staff were so obliging, stopping and starting the train at various points for photograph and videos. The experience actually took somewhat longer than anticipated so the picnic ( a last minute thought) was a really good idea, time was allowed on the return trip for a visit to the locomotive sheds which house lots of locos in various stages of restoration. Our two and a half year old got to get 'up close up and personal' with Thomas and has been "tooting" and talking about his hero train driver Dad for a couple of months now.Great value for money and such a unique gift idea - for people of all ages!

“Day out with Thomas the Tank Engine”Early start from Melbourne to the Bellarine Railway in Queenscliff for the 10:30am train ride with Thomas friends.. sorry i do not know their names... but well worth it.We had our 2 grandsons with us, 22 months & 19 months. Both the boys love Thomas the Tank Engine. They both have his books and watch him if they can.We pulled into a car park and straight away the boys could hear the toot toot.!!Before we boarded for the 40 minute ride the boys had a tattoo put onto their hand.. something they had not had before..They were excited to see Thomas on their hand, I knew it was going to be a fun day. Sir Topham Hat was at the station to greet everyone.. along with a lady & gentleman singing the Thomas songs.Thomas did actually take us for a ride in the Troublesome Trucks.. when we got back to the station The Fat Controller was there greeting everyone and we all had our pictures taken with him and Thomas.There was a jumping Castle that the boys had a jump on but i think they were a little to young for the maze and a few of the other things.We finished the day off with a walk up the main street in Queenscliff to grabbed a bite to eat the back to the car for the trip home..A good day had by all.. and 2 very tired little boys.

Had a wonderful trip on the Blues Train in December. Very well organised, lovely food, excellent music. Shame about the wines - $30 for a very, very average bottle of wine..........possible $8 in the bottle shop. Not sure what happened to the icecream promoised for dessert too.....????? The organisers are very attentive to disruptive passengers - one was ejected before he even got on and that's a good thing. Overall, an excellent trip.

A great family activity with wonderful old trains! Fantastic staff great scenery. . A must do activity when staying in the area. And if the kids love Thomas the Tank... even more fun!! Thanks for a great day!

We booked the "Santa train" for our 3 children aged 4, 8 and 18 months. I would recommend purchasing tickets to the special events early as they sell out very fast. Families were allocated a time with Santa either on the trip to Drysdale or the return trip to the Queenscliff station and it was all very well organised. We knew which carriage to board by the colour of our wrist bands. Snacks of water and shortbread cookies were handed out and then Santa boarded the train. He kept the kids occupied with Christmas carols and funny stories and then called each child's name to collect a gift. What impressed me most is the railway took the time to find out the age of each child and wrapped an individual gift for each child. There would have been over 30 children in our carriage and not one child had the same gift! When we arrived at Drysdale we swapped carriages and got to ride in big open carriages with bench seats. We were closer to the engine on the return trip and the kids loved hearing the train toot it's horn. Well done to poor Santa for keeping up his energy and fun despite being in heavy suit in 34 degree heat with no air conditioning.We would highly recommend to other families as a pre Christmas outing.

I like how the old railway station in town has been restored and re-purposed to be a tourist service. If only it went all the way to Geelong and not just to Drysdale. I like the old carriages and steam locomotives, although one day I would like to ride on the diesel rail motor or the Jazz Train. At a leisurely pace, we passed alongside cyclists bound from Geelong to Queenscliff, past vineyards, the long estuary and lake. From the station it is only a short walk to cafes, restaurants and accommodation. Museums and the cross bay ferry are not too far away. I am not sure whether the trains themselves would be wheelchair accessible, although the station is.

A nice old fashioned carriage sauntered through the peninsula countryside giving plenty of time to observe the wildlife, including the cyclists who over took us on a parallel track. I'm sure the mighty old steam engine in front could go a lot faster but probably not stay on the bouncy rails if it did. Great value and a good way to get to Queensclif for the ferry.

We went from Drysdale to Queenscliff. Then had lunch in Queenscliff and took the kids down the beach to look at the ferry to Sorrento and Queenscliff Harbour. They had a ball and it filled a whole day of the school holidays. On board the train were steam enthusiasts from England who had come just to ride on the train. The train ride is so interesting, through paddocks and along Swan Bay. Lots of friendly staff on the stations and toilets - basic but clean - important with young children! The kids loved the steam, the noise, then the rocking as the train rolled along through the countryside. A great day out for any age.

Three times a year the Bellarine Railway kits out the steam trains to look like Thomas the Tank Engine trains. There's a steam train ride, marshalled by the Sir Topham Hat, dressed up volunteers, continuous Thomas Engine episodes in the theatre. Excellent for young children.

Recently my daughters arranged for me to have another driver training experience on the BPR, this time on the diesels. A few years ago on my 60th birthday, they had given me this wonderful present of driving a steam train on the same railway (the Vulcan 0-6-0ST). The diesels did not disappoint, in fact it turned out to be equally exciting as the steam. My driver instructor Brian and his assistant Daniel, were a wealth of information and took great pains in making my experience as memorable and informative as possible. They even provided my wife, who is no rail enthusiast, with a little stool to sit at the back of the cab and watch the scenery unfold outside the cab windows. The morning was spent marshalling carriages and wagons and making up the train in the Queenscliff yard with the little Drewry shunter. After lunch, we boarded the Class X English Electric loco (ex Tasmanian Railways) and headed out to Drysdale, 18kms away, with a four car train. The line is mostly uphill and with the loco in notch 8 or 9, the deep throb of the 6 cylinder diesel seemed to reverberate across the countryside. The return journey of course was somewhat downhill and judicious use of the vacuum brake had to be resorted to, under the watchful eye of Brian, to keep speeds to manageable levels. We returned to Queenscliff shortly after four in the afternoon, a bit tired, but exhilarated from this wonderful experience. As we were walking away from the station, I turned to my wife and said "Back again another time?" She nodded straightaway in agreement. Thank you Brian, Daniel and Kathleen, what an experience that was!!

As a passionate steam enthusiast the chance to actually drive a steam loco was too good to pass up, and these guys didn't disappoint. Everything was incredible: oiling the engine, lighting the fire, marshalling the rolling stock, learning the controls, discussing engine design, learning the intricacies of the different components... and then getting out on the rails with full control of the engine. The supervision was there to keep things safe but not burdensome, and overall I had a memorable life experience that I will treasure forever. Thanks Lindsay, Brian, Leo and Kate, you have fulfilled a lifelong ambition :-)

We took our 12 yo grand daughter for a ride from Drysdale to Queenscliff. There was a magician on board, Dan the Magic Man, and he kept other kids amused on the 40 minute journey.We chugged across the countryside, ending at Queenscliff where we walked to the ferry terminal, enjoyed an icecream, and caught the train back to Drysdale. It was an excellent afternoon activity.

Having in my youth enjoyed the summer Sunday Excursion trains operated by the long gone (from Queenscliff) Victorian Railways around 1974-76, it was a pleasure to return to the now narrow gauge, mostly volunteer Bellarine Railway.The heritage Drysdale station is impressive, as is Queenscliff. Both are beautifully presented without being tacky. The path to the toilets at Drysdale could do with a little gravel spread on it to lessen the puddles - I was there on a rainy day - but that's a minor matter.The historic South Australian steam loco of the T class pulled our train of ex Brisbane, Queensland suburban cars (in which I also travelled up there, almost 2000 kilometres from Melbourne, in my fitter days).The volunteers were unobtrusive and pleasant.The workshops area at Queenscliff could do with a tidy up.All in all a great railway attraction.

Kids liked the train ride. Got to see things that we would never normally see while in the car. Good value for money and well worth the trip down to Queenscliff for the day.

Steam engines with faces are a big hit with the kids, and the train ride relaxing for parents. Plus bouncy castle slide/ double decker bus ride/ certificates. Not the cheapest day out but the railway's run by keen volunteers, so support all their hard work.