Based on the movie Polar Express, the Lionel Polar Express Train Set is very nice train set and a great gift for anyone that enjoys model trains. This is a great starter set that comes ready to run right out of the box. Lionel has come up with a winner and it is a very popular set year round (in addition to the holiday season mega popularity).

Lionel Polar Express Train Set

With beautiful craftsmanship and quality the Polar Express Train Set will become an enjoyment for everyone in the family. This train set is designed for children ages eight and older and is based on the Caldecott Award-winning book “Polar Express,” and the 2004 movie. The beautiful train set is pretty easy to put together, but parents should supervise at first. The pieces of the train set go together easily, from the linking of the locomotive and cars, to setting up the track. Even children under eight years old can enjoy the Polar Express while parents help them.

This toy is fun to set up and play with. A number of the parts are reassuringly heavy and durable, especially the transformer that powers the train. A small learning curve is required to learn how to drive the train, especially for electric train novices, but your kids will catch on quickly with your help. Learning how to drive the train both backward and forward may takes some practice. There are even small figurines that can ride atop the cars. However, these part are small and may get lost. These small pieces may also pose a choking hazard to younger kids.

If you like you can add the smoke fluid that will allow the locomotive to emit puffs of smoke as it chugs along. There is also a very realistic-sounding steam whistle. The transformer is heavy and solid, with a big throttle that’s easy for little hands to operate and throttle the engine.

You will find the train runs very smoothly around the oval track. At 60 inches long and 40 inches wide, the track is not that big, but you can make larger by purchasing more track pieces that are sold separately from Lionel. You will enjoyed the old-fashioned quality built into the train set’s well-crafted pieces, as well the design details such as interior lighting, retro styling, and a working headlight that will make the Polar Express come alive in from our your child’s eyes. The train will puff smoke and makes whistle sounds that are realistic as the train makes its way around the oval track.
Here is what comes in the Lionel ready to go Box1 die-cast steam engine; 1 coal tender; 2 coach passenger cars; 1 observation car; 1 CW-80 transformer; Santa’s Bell; 4 articulated movie characters; 1 bottle smoke fluid; 40- x 60-inch oval track (with 8 curved sections; 3 straight sections; 1 power terminal section); and instruction book.

Lionel Polar Express Model Train Set

Product Features

• Transformer controlled forward, neutral, and reverse operation
• Locomotive has operating headlight and puffing smoke; air whistle in the tender
• Locomotive features die-cast metal locomotive body and frame, powerful
• maintenance-free motor, two traction tires, and separately applied metal handrails
• Operating couplers on rolling stock and on rear of tender
• Passenger cars feature interior lighting and silhouettes in windows