Train Birthday Party Ideas
For Kids Birthday Parties
To Keep You On The Right Track!

Photo courtesy of: Amy

To help you get into the train party frame of mind, we've put together links to the best party supplies:

Thomas The Tank Supplies
Thomas The Tank Party Supplies
Thomas Pinata & Supplies
Thomas And Friends Deluxe Kit-N-Kaboodle Kit
Thomas the Tank Engine Deluxe Party Kit


TRAIN BIRTHDAY PARTY INVITATIONS

TRAIN TICKET INVITATIONS - Design a blank 3 x 5 index card to look like a train ticket on one side and the party details on the reverse side. Embellish card with train stickers.

TRAIN PARTY INVITATIONS - Make a train out of various colored card stock consisting of 2-3 cars and join them together with ribbon. You can use train-shaped cookie cutters as a pattern. Decorate cars with train stickers, glitter, buttons for wheels, etc. Put party details on the reverse side and have them span across the various cars.

TRAIN POSTCARDS - Get some postcards that have pictures of trains on them and put the party details on the reverse side. Add on the front of the postcard a small word bubble that says: "Wish You Were Here", "All Aboard!", "All Aboarrrrrd!", etc.

TRAIN CONDUCTOR PHOTO INVITATIONS - Cut 8 1/2" x 11" shiny black card stock, or some other party color, into 2 pieces and fold in half. Using decorative scissors, trim edges of photo of your child in either train conductor or Thomas the Train costume, so photo is slightly smaller than the card stock. glue photo to front of invitation. Glue a word bubble to the front that says: "All Aboarrrrd!"

Using scrapbook paper in a coordinating light print design, (finished size will be 4 1/2" x 7 1/2", type or handwrite in calligraphy the party details. Using decorative scissors cut inserts and glue to inside of card stock. Decorate corners with train-related stickers.

EMBELLISH READY-MADE TRAIN INVITATIONS - Buy ready-made train invitations. Embellish with glitter, buttons, ribbons, sequins, etc.

The following wording is provided as a guide for your invitations:

All Aboard For A Train Birthday Party Celebration!
Party Train Boards At:
Party Train Returns At:
Meet At Dawson Station (use last name) Located At:
RSVP To: Conductor Mom (name) At (phone #)

Chuga-Chuga Choo-Choo!
I'm Having A Train Birthday Party And I'm Inviting You!
Bring This Ticket To Claim Your Seat.
Party Train Boards At:
Party Train Returns At:
Meet At Dawson Station (use last name) Located At:
RSVP To: Conductor Mom (name) At (phone #)

Be sure to tell everyone to bring their tickets in order to gain admittance. As the kids arrive, use a one-hole punch or a scrapbook punch to clip their ticket as they enter the party room.


TRAIN BIRTHDAY PARTY COSTUMES

Invite the kids to come dressed in theme-related costumes. For example, a train engineer could wear a classic striped cap, bib overalls, and a red bandana tied around their neck. A Thomas the Tank Engine, James the Red Engine, or Percy the Small Engine costume are other great options. If you're in the market for a Train Costume, here are a few to consider.

As guests arrive, give them each a train conductor cap, red bandana for their neck, and a whistle.


TRAIN BIRTHDAY PARTY DECORATIONS

Many color options are available with a train birthday party theme. Select any combination of red, blue, green, yellow, and black to bring your choo choo train party to life.

• Make a large sign for your yard to identify the "train station" for your guests. Use the first or last name of the birthday child and their age. For example, "Brown's Birthday Station - Track #5."

• Make a railroad track and lay it on the walkway to your home. Attach planks of wood the width of your walkway to long boards on either side to add stability.

• Lay a train track on your walkway using black electrical tape to create the tracks or draw them on with chalk.

• Make train birthday party signs out of poster board and hang them on the walls in the party room or attach to wood stakes, and insert in ground throughout your yard. They can read: "RAILROAD CROSSING"; "RAILROAD PARTY CROSSING"; "MEN AT WORK"; (Cut a big red circle, Glue big white "x" on circle, and add a white "R" on the left and right side of the "X"); "CAUTION TRAIN AHEAD", "RESTRICTED! BIRTHDAY WORKERS ONLY"; "DO NOT STOP ON TRACKS"; etc.

• Make a ticket booth for your guests to pass by in which they must give the ticket master (mom or dad) or conductor (birthday child) their ticket in order to gain entrance.

• Use disposable tablecloths in party colors and add black electrical tape, construction paper, or streamers to create train tracks running down the center of the tables.

• Place a train cup at each place-setting and then everyone may keep their cup as a favor.

• Twist streamers in party colors throughout party room.

• Place train balloons and curling ribbons in party colors throughout party room.

• Hang a birthday banner on one of your party room walls.

• Decorate ceilings with twisted streamers and clusters of balloons with curling ribbons in party colors.

• Create "canopy" at entryway by loosely attaching streamers to center of ceiling and at tops of 2 walls while making loops which create canopy effect. Allow each streamer to go to floor.

• Decorate archways or doorways with streamers for railroad workers to pass through.

• Sprinkle train confetti on the tabletops.

• Place a train pinata with balloons attached to it in the center of the tables.

• Hang train postcards from ceiling on streamers or curling ribbons.

• Set up a train to run during your train birthday party to add ambiance and keep everyone in the mood.

• Scatter brown sugar and beans on tabletop to serve as dirt and rocks. Create centerpiece with small toy trains, trees, railroad signs, etc.

TRAIN PARTY DECORATIONS FOR WALLS

• Decorate walls with train posters.

• Add traffic lights to create railroad zone atmosphere.

• Post "Keep Out" signs anywhere you don't want people to go into.

• Add personalized construction banner for birthday conductor.

PRINTABLE GAMES - Here's a great site for some fun Print & Play Birthday Party Games that would be a perfect party game add-on:

Printable Birthday Games Ages 3-5
Printable Birthday Games Ages 6-7
Printable Birthday Games Ages 8-9
Printable Birthday Games Ages 10+

Here's an entire page with nothing but Train Party Games and Activities, such as:

• Make a Train #1
• Make a Train #2
• Station Master Says
• Train Race
• Coal Toss
• Pin the Caboose on the Train
• Find the Train
• Red Light, Green Light
• Train Pinata
• Train Activity Stations

TRAIN SANDWICH - Make several peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and cut them in half. Spread a clean tablecloth on the food table. Make train tracks using celery and carrot sticks going across the entire length of the table. Place a toy train engine at the beginning of the tracks and line up the sandwiches (train cars) behind the engine. Add banana wheels to each car and secure with peanut butter.

CHOO-CHOO DOGS - Hot dogs.

ROADSIDE MUNCHIES - Serve chips, nuts, goldfish crackers, pretzels, or cookies served in new (clean) train cars.

TRAIN COOKIES - Using your favorite sugar cookie recipe, cut out train engine, caboose, and railroad crossing sign-shaped cookies. Decorate accordingly.

KID-FRIENDLY FOODS - The following foods are a hit with just about all children:

• Applesauce
• Carrots & Ranch dressing
• Chicken nuggets
• Crackers & cheese
• French fries
• Fruit - bananas, strawberries, grapes, apples
• Graham crackers
• Macaroni & cheese
• Pizza
• String cheese

A train birthday party lends itself nicely to several options for creating a train birthday cake.

CHOO-CHOO TRAIN CAKE - Use Wilton's 3-D train engine cake pan which snaps together to create a 10 x 6 x 4 inch deep cake. It comes equipped with complete decorating instructions to make a fun cake that everyone will want to board.

TRAIN CAKE - Use a train-shaped cake pan and decorate it according to the pan's directions.

MINI TRAIN-SHAPED CAKES - Wilton's mini train pan contains 6 molds to create individual train cakes, which means less mess and easy to serve. The pan comes complete with pictures and decorating instructions for 3 different trains. These little engines will have your guests shouting out, "Full Steam Ahead."

THOMAS THE TANK ENGINE BIRTHDAY CAKE - Make or buy a sheet cake and frost it white. Add an edible sugar art image of Thomas the Tank Engine or a train scene to make your cake look spectacular.

TRAIN BIRTHDAY PARTY SHEET CAKE - Make or buy a sheet cake and frost it white. Create a train track using black or red licorice. Add a plastic train set, along with a few plastic train-related signs.

THOMAS & FRIENDS BIRTHDAY CUPCAKES - Make or buy white cupcakes and pipe out frosting in green, blue, or yellow. Add a few swirls of contracting colored cake decorating gels and top with train pics or Thomas and friends cupcake rings.

TRAIN CUPCAKES - Cover a long piece of cardboard with foil. Make enough train cars using train cupcake molds as there are guests. Frost and decorate each car differently. Gel onto each car the guests' names. Pipe out black tracks onto the foil surface using frosting. Lay the train cars onto the tracks and have them slightly touching or pipe out a "hinge" to connect the cars to one another. Be sure to make the locomotive engine extra special for the birthday child.

Check out our visitor-submitted TRAIN CAKES photos and how-to tips.


TRAIN BIRTHDAY PARTY FAVORS

Send each of your little engineers home with a train printed favor bag or red bandana filled with train-related goodies. Things like:

• Train puzzles
• Train stickers
• Toy trains
• Train books
• Train coloring books and crayons
• The Little Engine That Could book
• Train Suckers, etc.

If you're interested in a favor set, the above train favor kits all contain various items. Things like an assortment of stickers, whistle, Wacky Whirler, cookie cutter, Playtime dough, are just a few of the items that might be included in these adorable favor boxes.


TRAIN BIRTHDAY PARTY IDEAS FOR PARTY SUPPLIES

Check out these great Train Supplies. Includes lots of fun options for partyware, balloons, tablecovers, favors, decor, and more!

Here's some fun Train Party Supplies for you to check out.

If you're in the market for a fun pinata in the shape of one of your superheros, here's a few options for a Train Pinata, along with options for partyware and decor!

Here's a great Train-Themed Deluxe Kit-N-Kaboodle Kit which contains just about everything you need.

Here's another great option for a Train-Themed Deluxe Party Kit which contains just about everything.

Train Birthday Party Ideas

Do you have some favorite train birthday party ideas? Do tell! Please share all your party tips and ideas for invitations, decorations, games, etc.