west coast railway heritage park

I visited the heritage park on a whim with my girlfriend on an impromptu jaunt to Squamish. We didn't know what to expect for sure, but thought it would be good as we relied upon Tripadvisor reviews, which are generally decently reliable. There was an event in the roundhouse which mean that it was off limits and therefore this review is exclusive of that space.Descriptions that I read on the website made me think that this was a park of restored rail cars for train enthusiasts. Train enthusiasts must love trains, right? Not at this park, it seems. Instead of a collection of authentically restored train cars (like the museum in Cranbrook is trying to be), this is instead a collection of train cars renovated to be museum spaces for what seems to be for committee members to display their trinkets and describe the history of rail in British Columbia. There is a mishmash of nicely restored buildings, large volume of train cars displaying trinkets, a few 1990's cleaned up passenger cars (not much different from today, believe me), a few unrestored cars, and one single restored mail car that you can venture into.This park screams of design-by-committee, as it is not at all cohesive or organized, and most cars can barely be described as restored .If you are interested in a bunch of rotting trains and trains renovated to be long exhibits of railway trinkets, come check it out. If you want to instead experience railway transportation as it once was, there are better places to visit within 750km.

I took my kids on this adventure.I opted to pay the extra money and get the First Class seats for us. We arrived and were escorted into the First class waiting area which was nicely decorated then we proceeded to Coach 1 where we were greeted by the conductor who looked just like Tom Hanks in the movie. We were escorted to our seats promptly. During the duration of the ride we were served hot chocolate and some chocolate cookies while the Hot chocolate song was playing. We were also given some collector mugs to take home. The ride itself was quite slow as they had to stop and flip a few switches which wasn't a huge deal. The train itself is great but my only complaint is this. I came from over 2 hours away for the 1 hour ride which was shortened y some inconsiderate people who there late and whoever decided to wait for them.Making a whole train full of people expecting a 1hr long ride, wait an extra 15 minutes for someone who cant be decent enough to show up on time seems rude itself.

My wife and I went on this trip with some friends and found it to be a very pleasant way to share a holiday experience. The staff were very nice and helpful with questions about the trip and the history of the train. The commemorative Polar Express mugs were a nice surprise and a reminder of the experience. Hopefully in the future the trip will be expanded to include more Christmas or polar themed features.

Each year my sister who is from Vancouver Washington and I take our Grandkids and other members of our family on a Christmas outing. We chose the Polar Express this year based on the web site and past reviews. In all we purchased 16 tickets at a cost of $40 dollars each. The tickets were first class and did not have discounts for seniors or small children. My sister bought 11 tickets and I purchased the other 5. We arrived to find out we would be in separate cars and there would be no way to accommodate us together as the cars were sold out. Very disappointing to the small cousins who wanted to be together. They appologized and said next year they will post something on the page explaining you need to phone to accommodate groups. Although my sister purchased all 11 tickets at one time her group were not together in the car and were sitting randomly. The ride itself was boring nothing to see except a hobo character and we were stopping and jerking to switch tracks. The ride was to be 1 hour but we started late by 10 minutes due to the cars being sold out and arrived back within the 50 minutes. Would recommend some changes to this group. Decorate the trains and area to make it feel like Christmas as there was not a Christmas feel to the train ride or area you are viewing on the train. The enjoyable part for the kids was the roundhouse which had the miniture train and Santa. Unfortunatley the hour wait was too much for our 4 kids under 4 so we did the miniture train viewed the miniture train set upstairs and where on our way. Would also recommend Santa be on the train so every child gets their gift that is mentioned on the web page. Other things not mentioned on the web site is the $5 parking when you arrive and the train is actually diesal not steam. We will not recommend this to friends or family or attend in the future. Thanks

My wife and I shared a wonderful experience with some of our family including 4 grand kids on Sunday, Dec 7.What a great way to get you all in the Christmas Spirit. I have already mentioned and recommended this to some of our friends for Christmas 2015.The staff were great and in character. I would recommend that you watch the Polar Express movie before boarding the train. Thank you and Merry Christmas BA

I purchased a Groupon for admission for four into the West Coast Railway attraction. My husband and I drove to Squamish with the grand kids in tow. However, when we arrived, we were told that the usual attraction was not available and that the site was taken over by the special event of the Polar Express. Their website does not state this and indicates that the attraction is available every day except New Years and Christmas. It would be extremely helpful to have a monthly calendar available on the website. When I asked when the "regular" attraction would be available, the person at the ticket counter could not provide a specific date. This facility is maintained and operated by volunteers. Consequently, they deserve praise for keeping it running. However, there are glitches, as stated above. We opted not to purchase the Polar Express tickets, which at $27 and $35 per seat can add up for a family of four or more. All seats are priced the same. It would be better to provide a child's price, I believe. Most of the children I saw were quite young. There was some gouging going on - $5.00 to park and, ridiculously, $2 to walk through the coal compartment of the Royal Hudson. We were allowed to go into the Roundhouse which had been beautifully decorated with lights and miniature trains. Obviously a lot of work for the volunteers to create. The young grand kids got to visit with Santa and Mrs. Clause and the seniors dressed as elves, staffing the event, were very pleasant. Because we did not opt to purchase the Polar Express tickets, we could not go on the miniature train in the Roundhouse. Visiting the Roundhouse was enjoyable and, definitely worth what I paid for the Groupon, but I wish that communication about what is occurring at the Railway was clearer and that the Polar Express option was less expensive.

While staying at Whistler we made the hour long bus trip down to Squamish to visit this railway heritage park. We were not disappointed.A number of carriages were open for viewing the exhibits set up inside. This park features a roundhouse housing a big locomotive and two carriages.Outside is a number of locomotives, carriages and other railway equipment including a snow plough. There is a mini railway to ride for the kids and the older ones as well.We spent over three hours in the park but could have spent longer.If travelling by Greyhound bus to Squamish to visit the park you need to get a taxi from the Squamish Greyhound depot. Staff at the depot will ring for a taxi. The cost is between $8 and $10. The park is open from 10am to 5pm dailyThe Rocky Mountaineer train does not stop at Squamish.

Went there on a whim and what an awesome, interesting museum! I`m a fan of staged museums with plenty of artefacts in their relevant historic setting, and this is one of those! So much to see, you`ll easily spend good 2-3hrs there.

This year I actually went there twice: in May and June - Both my husband and I love history preserved through this museum. The museum is actually a huge railway yard with many train carts from different era parked there, and a big building that housed Royal Hudson Locomotive and other trains such as the one that superintendent and his family used to travel on, and the train carts that crews lived and worked. The giant repair shop is still working to restore some of the trains - it is cool to learn that one of the heritage cart is still used on Rocky Mountaineer's Sea to Sky Climb from Vancouver to Whistler. My personal favourite was the train that served as post office-It is fascinating to see those mail sorting system inside the train. Another train that hosts many posters dated back to early 20th century about attracting European immigrants to Canada - pushed by Canadian government, railway companies and steamship companies worth visiting too - my friend told me her grandpa came to Canada and made Manitoba his new home and started this line of family tree across the Atlantic - all because of those advertisements!The admission was quite reasonable and the surrounding - Squamish town was quite pleasant to visit, we went to Howe Sound Brewery to taste many craft beer afterwards~

Even if trains are not your thing, this is attraction provides lots of interesting facts about the region and the railway.Some excellent exhibits and even interactive (you can be a train driver).Easy to locate with good facilities.

The guide we had was excellent and gave us a real history lesson in what the conditions the miners had to work under from years past to the present. We saw the equipment that was used and a film of the miners at work and also showed us samples of the ore. You could also pan for gold.

This attraction really surpassed expectations - it is clearly work in progress but really nice team running the place. Shop could be better. Small railway really worth it for small kids. So for a few hours’ worth it. Quite nice to be able to wander around the old carriages at will. Nice model railway in one of the carriages. Recommend and good value.

We spent a couple of hours at the museum in August. It had a small collection of locomotives and train cars from about the mid 1900s. We would have liked it better if there were a locomotive or two from a much earlier time, and if more of the train cars were refurbished inside instead of just the exterior. But, considering this is primarily a labour of love, we thought they were doing an outstanding job.

This is a great place to look at old trains and train equipment. The replica round house contains the engine of the Royal Hudson Steam train and several vintage cars and train cars. They have some Bud Cars which were self-propelled passenger cars that used to go from North Vancouver to Lilloett in the old days. They also have a miniature train that circles the park.

I found this museum completely by accident from some directional signs in the Brackendale area of Squamish - and was completely dumbfounded. The place is top drawer! Laid out in a park-like setting, the brand new roundhouse serves as both museum and event facility, housing the Royal Hudson steam engine and two beautifully restored rail cars. Outside, rail buffs must go nuts over the great selection of vintage equipment. I liked the exhibition space that's been made from four interconnected rail cars where the atmosphere is set with background sound like the clicking of a morse-code key - message printing out on a monitor so you can understand what you're hearing. The "station house" contains historical photos and is also set up as an event space. I especially enjoyed the heritage house from the period of the 1930s. With no kids in tow, I didn't bother with the mini-train, but there were some very excited little ones lined up for a ride. The admission price was fairly ambitious at $15 for adults - though the $40 family rate would be a help - no doubt the result of chronic underfunding for heritage sites. The park and all the facilities were beautifully done, clean and well maintained (by dedicated volunteers) and everyone I talked with was friendly and helpful. This is pretty much a must-do for history and railway fans.