Head Back in Time on the Mary Valley Rattler Steam Train

Do you want to feel like you are living in the past? Or maybe, like me, you have a steam train-obsessed kid.

Are you looking for a fun day date? Or an adventure with friends?

Check out the Mary Valley Rattler Steam Train for a fun day out near Brisbane.

When my youngest turned 6, my parents gifted him a train ride. They don’t live in Australia, but they wanted to gift an experience and picked the steam train as they know how he feels about trains.

His other grandparents wanted to come along. While they live close to Gympie, where the train station is, they have not yet ridden on the Mary Valley Rattler.

Keep reading to learn more about our ride on an old steam train.

Mary Valley Rattler Trains

There are special event train rides and regular service rides. We chose to ride a regular service steam train.

While the special events look like fun, there weren’t any we could do near Z’s birthday.

For adults, their murder mystery train looks like fun. Mary Valley Rattler also offers wine-tasting and food experience tours.

Adults 18+ are also able to “Ride with the Driver” and ride in the front of the train in the same cab as the train driver. Only available on Sundays, Ride with the Driver includes morning tea, a briefing before the train journey, accessories such as a vest, pin, and cap, and lunch with the crew.

For kids, there is a Halloween train ride as well as a Christmas train ride.

Onboard, you have the choice of purchasing meals. There is a cheese plate available for purchase, which is waiting for you when you board the train.

There is also the choice of purchasing a picnic basket lunch. We chose to pack a lunch and, of course, bring lots of snacks.

The Train Station in Gympie

We arrived early, as you’re told to check in 45 minutes before departure.

The station has a store, cafe, and a small museum. After checking out the store and museum, we went to the cafe, Rusty Rails.

The scene is really set the minute you walk into the station. The cafe has a man playing old tunes on a piano. We ate breakfast before arriving, but we ordered coffee and sat down to enjoy the music.

When the train arrived, we went outside to watch it pull into the station. In addition to the piano playing in the cafe, there was a man playing music on the platform.

All Aboard the Mary Valley Steam Train

From what I could see, there are 4 kinds of seats.

The front of the train (on the way there, as the front of the train changes heading back) is what looks like 1st class seats. Most of the groups were of 2, with one or two groups of 3 or 4. The seats were individual and faced a table. The tables all had cheese platters on them.

Behind that car, there were seats for groups of 6. They had nice cushioned benches and partial walls.

The front of the train was definitely nicer than the back, but we were happy with our seats.

Next came seating in groups of 4, and then the last few cars had seating in groups of 6. That is where we were.

Some volunteers come around and talk to you during the ride.

We could faintly hear narration over the intercom, but the train ride was loud, and we were not able to follow what was being said.

At the beginning of the ride, there are a lot of houses. It was fun to see the number of people on their porches, balconies, cars, and standing in their yards who were waiting to wave at the train. Some people even followed the train and waved to us multiple times!

After a while, the houses become further and further apart, and there is farmland.

At one point, we saw a house that used to belong to my husband’s uncle!

Just like on an airplane, there is a cart with drinks and snacks available for purchase.

There are also people who come through in case you are interested in making a reservation for lunch at Rusty Rails upon returning around 1 p.m.

The ride to Amamoor Station is 1 hour. The train moves slowly, and it is a bumpy ride. We asked the volunteer how fast it goes, and he said there is a max speed of 25 kilometers per hour. Had we driven between the two stations, the car ride would have been less than 20 minutes.

Amamoor Station

The Mary Valley Rattler arrives at Amamoor Station around 11 a.m. We saw people with picnic baskets set up their picnics at the nearby tables. Most people walked across the tracks to watch the engine change directions on the turntable.

There was a small band playing at the gazebo next to the cafe. There is a general store across the street.

We watched the steam engine change direction and then sat down to lunch.

There is a small bar in the station at the side of the train disembarking, as well as a few photo opportunities. For bathrooms and everything else, walk over the tracks to the other side of the train.

The Ride Back to Gympie

The ride back on the Mary Valley Rattler is just about the same as the way there, but my children’s favorite part about the ride was the saxophone player who was walking through the cars from the back to the front of the train.

After the train turned around at Amamoor Station, our car became the front of the train. When the saxophone player finished his song and realized that he was in the last car, he continued playing and played a few songs for us.

Just like the way there, going back to Gympie took about an hour.

All in all, the experience is 3 hours long.

Rusty Rails Cafe

The Station had a lot of people there upon our return. We thought there might be another train ride, but they were just there for lunch.

Rusty Rails Cafe is open daily for breakfast and lunch. Even if you are not going on a train ride, it is worth checking out.

Things to do Near Gympie

• Ginger Factory
• Ziplining at the Big Pineapple
• Rainbow Beach
• Cooroy with Kids
• Mary Cairncross Scenic Reserve

Mary Valley Rattler Steam Train FAQ

You May Also Like

• Spirit of the Outback Train from Brisbane to Longreach
• Trains near Brisbane
• Brisbane Bushwalks and Discovery Centres
• Day Tours from Brisbane

Pin for Later