Thomas the Tank Engine is Rolling into Kohl Children’s Museum this Fall

All aboard! Thomas the Tank Engine is rolling into Kohl Children’s Museum and he’s bringing exciting train activities for families with him. From Oct. 5, 2024 through Jan. 5, 2025, kids can meet some of their favorite steam engines and enjoy hands-on activities inspired by Thomas and his friends at the museum’s newest special exhibit, Thomas & Friends: Explore the Rails!

As a 90’s baby myself, I’m a big Thomas the Tank Engine fan. I visited Kohl Children’s Museum to get a sneak peek of the new exhibit and can’t wait to share my experience with you!

This article was recently updated on Oct. 7, 2024 by Chicago Parent’s Assistant Editor, Nikki Roberts. The update included adding her review of visiting the new Thomas the Tank Engine exhibit at Kohl Children’s Museum. Questions? Please reach out to nikki@chicagoparent.com.

Thomas & Friends: Explore the Rails! at Kohl Children’s Museum 

• Oct. 5, 2024 – Jan. 5, 2025
• Address: Kohl Children’s Museum, 2100 Patriot Blvd., Glenview
• Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.; Sunday-Monday, 9:30 a.m.-1 p.m.
• Best for: Ages 2-7
• Cost: $20

Thomas & Friends: Explore the Rails! features sets from the Island of Sodor where families can play pretend and meet their favorite train characters. Throughout the exhibit, kids can participate in interactive activities where they will problem solve, sort shapes and practice STEM-focused skills as they help Thomas and his friends solve problems and complete challenges. 

Upon entering the exhibit, visitors are greeted by Thomas, and I saw many kids excited to climb into his cab and try out all of his bells and whistles. Percy is also present in the new exhibit, and kids and parents can work together to fix his wheels and fill his engine with water and coal.

While I saw plenty of fun Thomas-themed activities, from a conductor dress-up station to a ticket booth set, the most popular attraction by far was the large train table. Kids, parents and grandparents were building their own railroads and cruising the rails with their favorite Thomas characters; it brought back special memories of my younger brother and I playing with our own train set when we were little!

The exhibit also has Thomas memorabilia, including original books and toys, that parents and OG Thomas fans (like me!) can enjoy. 

Things to do at Thomas & Friends: Explore the Rails!

• Climb aboard and explore all the bells and whistles inside Thomas’ cab. 
• Cruise the rails and play at a massive Island of Sodor train table. 
• Help Percy fix his wobbly wheel using kid-sized rods and bolts. 
• Prepare trains for departure by filling them up with coal, water and luggage. 
• Play pretend at the train station ticket office. 

More things to do with kids at Kohl Children’s Museum 

We can’t wait for Thomas & Friends: Explore the Rails! to arrive at Kohl Children’s Museum, but the museum also offers 17 other permanent exhibits where kids can enjoy imaginative play, test their problem-solving skills and learn about the world around them. After your family’s train adventure with Thomas and his friends, check out some of these other fun exhibits.

• Assemble massive building blocks, Duplo blocks and Magna-tiles at Build It, a hands-on exhibit where kids can explore creativity, patterns and engineering principles. 
• Splash around at the Water Works water playground. Kids can play around with water pressure, jets, waterfalls and more. 
• Play pretend at a grocery store, a veterinarian office or a café.  
• Make some noise at Ravinia Festival Music Makers, a melodious exhibit with traditional, unusual and exciting ways to get creative with music and artistic expression.
• Count the turtles you can spot at Turtle Rock (hint: there’s four Southern Painted Turtles swimming around in this live animal display).

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