miniature railway Archives

Over the past six years or so we’ve been making regular visits to Brookside Miniature Railway with our son. Several months ago we read their announcement on Facebook that after 38 years of service they would be closing.

Brookside Miniature Railway was located at Brookside Garden Centre in Poynton and it seems the new owners of the garden centre gave the railway notice to quit. The last day trains ran on the line was Sunday 2nd September 2018. We visited for one last time to ride the rails and say goodbye to this wonderful little railway.

Saying goodbye to Brookside Miniature Railway

Brookside Miniature Railway opened in 1980 and was a great place to visit if we wanted to do something fun, which needed next to no planning and could be done pretty cheaply. You could buy a ten ride ticket for £12 and the whole family could have a few rides for not much money.

The great thing about Brookside Miniature Railway was that the route was pretty interesting. It went through lots of tunnels, over bridges, alongside streams, around a vintage fun fair and through the grounds of the garden centre itself. There was always something new to look at, and each season through up new and interesting things to admire. The Santa Specials were also legendary, though we never managed to book on one – they really were that popular!

Saying goodbye to Brookside Miniature Railway

We did have my son’s fourth birthday party there, which was probably my favourite of all his birthday parties. Everyone had two rides of the train, party games and table heaving with party food. The kids loved it almost as much as the parents.

We were very lucky on the last day that we arrived later on in the afternoon. There were queues to get on the platform and queues to get on the trains. We had two last rides on the last two remaining trains. Ben and I stopped to watch the very last ride and wave them off; then we were given the chance to ride half way around the track on the Union Pacific Locomotive. We climbed aboard for its final journey to the shed for the night, before it finds a home at another miniature railway.

We got off and my son sobbed “I’m going to miss this place” and he’s not wrong. We’re going to miss it too. It’s been a regular part of our family fun times together. I bet thousands and thousands of people have enjoyed spending time on the greatest little railway in Cheshire these last 38 years.

Saying goodbye to Brookside Miniature Railway

Goodbye Brookside Miniature Railway, we’re missing you already! Thanks for all the wonderful memories.

Watch this video of one of the last trains to run at Brookside Miniature Railway –

Having a small boy who loves steam trains means that we get to spend a lot of time around them. As wonderful and majestic as they are, generally they’re not cheap. One of our favourite and budget local days out is to visit Brookside Miniature Railway in Poynton, Cheshire.

The Brookside Miniature Railway is about 20 minutes drive from our house, and a ten ride ticket costs £12; meaning our family of three can have two journeys together, then Mummy and the boy, then Daddy and the boy get a ride. I think that’s pretty good value.

Big fun at the Brookside Miniature Railway, Poynton

Each ride is 5 minutes of chugging around the track on a steam train (or sometimes the Diesel engine). The track winds around the garden centre grounds, over bridges, through tunnels and past a traditional fairground (it stops here if the fair is open, but you don’t have to get off). The line is decorated with railway memorabilia including station signs from all over the UK and other engines and trucks.

Big fun at the Brookside Miniature Railway, Poynton

It’s a very pleasant and pocket-friendly way to while away a few hours with a junior train enthusiast. There’s a cafe nearby and as it was very, very hot we had some ice creams. There’s a train themed playground too, complete with a real steam engine to explore.

We go there quite a lot and it never seems to get old. Brookside Miniature Railway is a day out we all enjoy and it won’t break the bank either.

UPDATE: September 2018. Sadly the Brookside Miniature Railway in Poynton has now closed and their engines have found homes at other miniature railways across the UK. The last day was very sad, we went along for one last ride which you can read about here. I also filmed our last journey which you can watch on YouTube here.