Tanfield Railway Reviews Summary

Experience & Atmosphere

Pros:

• "A great little heritage line, little 4 wheel carriages and industrial locomotives gives a different feel to other heritage lines."
• "Exciting to travel on a line with such a long history."
• "Visited for the North Pole Express experience and what an experience."
• "What a lovely day out! Only just discovered this little gem existed."
• "Great journey on the Tanfield railway."
• "What a fantastic little railway."
• "A wonderful day out, working steam trains, a lovely ride."

Cons:

• "A bit upsetting about the other stations being vandalised and the rail track being a short journey."
• "One draw back was the cafe at tanfield east. The queue was not large but the time it took to be served was unbelievable."
• "Quite expensive for a short train ride, but the seats are so uncomfortable you wouldn't want to go much further."
• "It was a good train journey but I find it a bit overpriced for a 20 minute round trip."
• "Disappointing not great information about opening days."
• "The downside is that on more than one occasion when I have visited here it has been blighted by the noise of scrambling bikes in nearby woods."
• "Don't know what has happened to this cafe. Food today was inedible."

Staff & Volunteers

Pros:

• "All staff were welcoming and engaging with us all."
• "Staff are lovely and make a real effort to make sure the place looks festive and special for the children."
• "The volunteers do a great job looking after the visitors."
• "Very enthusiastic volunteers run the place."
• "Staff really friendly and a very nice Santa."
• "The staff are so friendly and helpful especially Dorothy who was most welcoming as were the two ladies at the cafe, customer service par excellence."
• "Absolutely fantastic day out, never before have I met such an enthusiastic, knowledgeable and helpful bunch of volunteers."

Cons:

• "Such a waste of time doing nothing, next time I return, they need to do better training, seems they only cared for specific people and it's disgustingly :("
• "Was really looking forward to going on the steam train which was a treat for my mentally handicapped brother. Arrived and no one present telephoned the phone number provided got through to answering machine."

Facilities & Services

Pros:

• "Free parking. Great little coffee shop and lovely staff."
• "Good Public transport connections to and from the attraction with bus stops right outside the main entrance."
• "Parking at Marley Hill is free of charge."
• "Footpaths along side the track makes it good place to take photos and for walks between stations."
• "The cafe is nice and the food lovely and cheap to buy."
• "Clean toilets, picnic area."
• "Refreshments are reasonably priced and there are toilets (including disabled) at both stations."

Cons:

• "Cafe service was a little slow at the site we were at (the one with the sheds and main station) however the trip fully made up for this."
• "There are cafes in the carriage shed (hot food but no cold drinks) and St Andrew's station (cold drinks, no hot food the day I was there)."
• "Cafe service was a little slow at the site we were at."
• "Only thing I would suggest is a bit more of a range of hot snacks."
• "Watch out for uneven cobblestones in front of the disabled toilets at Andrews station!"

Value & Pricing

Pros:

• "Great value for money. Priceless for the kids."
• "Good Day out and train rides are reasonably priced."
• "Had a brilliant time on Halloween ghost Train yesterday, so much attention to detail and reasonably priced."
• "Refreshments were included in the ticket price."
• "Train ride with afternoon tea, fabulous experience the sandwiches were so fresh and the cakes and scones were to die for."

Cons:

• "Only small steam train near Gateshead. 18.00 for one adult and one pensioner."
• "Quite expensive for a short train ride, but the seats are so uncomfortable you wouldn't want to go much further."
• "It was a good train journey but I find it a bit overpriced for a 20 minute round trip."
• "I found the cafes reasonably priced although the wooden toy train did set me back a little but nevermind."