We purchased this Avta 32" x 48" Train Table with 120 Pc. Train Set almost a year ago and gave it as a combined holiday/birthday gift for when my son turned 3 years old. After doing lots of research on different train tables available and becoming completely overwhelmed, I decided it would be perfectly fine (my kid could care less) if he had a generic table and then separately purchased him some specific Thomas the Tank train car and engines to play with. So, I was thrilled when I found this train table and set for under $100. I purchased it for $89 at a local Aldi store shortly before the holidays.

Getting it Home
Ok, I saw it in the flier and headed to the local store to pick one up and was thrilled because I got the last one that they had. A friend of mine was too late to the game and called several Aldi's but they were already out of stock. So, if you see this deal - get it fast because it will go quickly. I just saw this come out recently in an Aldi flier again this year for pretty much the same table and trainset so I'm guessing its a seasonal deal.

This trainset comes packaged in a box that is too large to fit in a shopping cart and very well may be too large to fit in your car as well. I transported it home in a Subaru Outback wagon but it required me to put the rear seat down flat. Plus, its heavy. I was lucky enough that a very kind young man who worked at the store lifted and loaded it in for me, and then refused to take my tip! When I got it home I had to keep it in my car and wait for my husband to get home and unload it for me because not only was the box too big for me to lift but it was quite heavy too.

Assembly
I made my husband put the actual table together and it was my job to put the tracks on it, etc. We decided to do this after our son was in bed so as to surprise him and present him with a finished product. Good idea! If you get one of these, do assemble it first before giving it to your child. Assembly took at least an hour. Since it was a year ago I'm foggy on the details but I do recall several curse words were exchanged along the way. Of course, looking back on it now if I asked my husband about the assembly process I am sure he'd tell me "oh, it was easy!". It does come with step by step directions that include visuals, which is a very good thing!

When put together you have one very adorable 32" X 48" train table that stands about 18 inches off the ground. Perfect for little kids who love trains - I'd say 2 or 3 years old at the youngest and upwards from that. In order for me to play I have to sit at the table but my son prefers to stand at it and be able to motor around from all sides. Avta offers this table in a white version as well as a bright primary colored version (pictured). The sets are identical except for the finish of the table. The one we have is the white laminate version which was the only one left in the store at the time, but probably is what I would have selected anyways. Our table is quite basic and doesn't have bins or drawers on it. I'm aware there is an Avta table out there that comes with 2 storage bins, but that's not the one we have. My solution to this is actually to use those large flat clear plastic storage containers (like what you'd use to store holiday products in, under the bed, etc). We have 2 of these bins and keep them under the table filled with track, trains, and accessories and they get the job done just fine.

The 120 piece trainset
The set that is included with this table is actually quite nice and includes lots of pieces. The pieces are all wooden and are compatible with other lines like Brio, Learning Curve etc. We've added to my son's set with some other track and have not encountered many compatibility issues. I have found that some pieces fit together better than others, but we've had as much of these minor setbacks occur between 2 pieces of brand-name track as with this generic set - go figure.

The set includes a wooden train and some cars that attach with magnets, train station, 2 plastic mountains, a turntable, a working crane, trees, people, a bridge, cars, houses, lots of track including straight pieces, curved pieces and hill pieces and the blocks to elevate them. The playboard has water, land and roadway scenes on it. There are initial instructions and a layout provided that uses most of the pieces and takes up the entire table but that lasted on our table for oh.. about a day (actually more like 10 minutes) before my son rearranged it. This was fine with me because I found the suggested layout a bit precarious and it had to be balanced just so or the pieces kept sliding off the mountain - then again, maybe I had it set up wrong.. quite possible.

Durability
We've had this train table and set now for a year and its still going strong. Some things to mention would be of course that though this is a table its not meant to be stood or sat on. My son has done this (he went through a climbing phase) and ours suffered no damage. However, the fact remains that the playboard is just a thin piece of woodboard and not meant to withstand too much weight.

A few pieces of our track have gotten broken but I'm not sure if they got stepped on or forced together. I consider this type of stuff to be expected from a 3 year old kid, really - and am not heartbroken. Plus, I'll be completely honest with you that I can't really tell the exact track pieces that came with this set from ones we've added to it (some Learning Curve, Brio and a Discovery Toys set), so I'm not quite sure which ones exactly suffered the minor casualties.

I am very thrilled to tell you that this train table withstood a big family move a few months ago, interstate and in a big moving van. It did just fine and my son is loving having his table set up in his room now instead of in the middle of my family room. Ok, I'm loving that too!

Overall
I have to say that of the many "big gifts" my son has received this is one where I can say we did it absolutely right. This table and starter set are tons of fun and didn't break the bank. Lets face it, once your kid gets into Thomas or Brio, the products are expensive and an investment. I feel better having saved on the table to go out and purchase him individual Thomas cars or Brio pieces that he is specifically interested in. Bear in mind that our trainset is not "purist" and die hard fans of one line of trains or another might not approve. (Whatever!). All that matters to me is that my son loves it, continues playing with it creatively and enjoys the challenge of setting it up and re-setting it up in a new way from time to time. If you have a little one who enjoys trains and you are looking for an afforable table and starter trainset then definitely consider this one!







Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 90
Type of Toy: Trains
Age Range of Child: 3 to 5 Years