Hotham Valley Railway — Attraction in Dwellingup

We had a fabulous experience on the Hotham Valley Railway High Tea Train. The booking process was easy, and we felt lucky to snap up tickets as they sold out so quickly! Lots of parking with no issues at the departure point, plenty of toilets available too. Easy check in process. Make sure to arrive early so you have plenty of time to sort yourself out. Set seating for the high tea. A little bit squishy, with hard seating so you may want to bring a cushion if this bothers you - we didn't mind any of the above at all. The standout point of the day were the amazing volunteers - David and Vince. They were short staffed for the day but they did not let that impact our experience. They were friendly, professional and attentive. We received a welcome drink, tea/coffee - the bar was open too; and an assortment of finger sandwiches, scones with jam and cream and other sweet treats. It was fantastic. The train has toilet facilities and there is some space to stand on the platforms and watch the beautiful scenery go by. It can get a little warm in the dining car but the windows are able to be opened, and you're free to move around. Highly recommend the high tea experience - I hope this becomes a permanent part of the...

I don't know what I expected, but I think I expected more. Siri took us there but all we saw was the information centre. The railway was behind the info centre. They would not let people use the toilets and told them to go across the road. One kid was nearly wetting himself, and they still told them to go to the other toilet. That boy could not make it and ended up going on the ground! Poor boy! I'm surprised they don't have toilets there for the public. There was no information at the train station, and it was basically follow the leader. Everyone there was confused about boarding and were boarding without showing their tickets and having to find the person to scan the tickets. The ride was very relaxing going through the bush. It would be great to have sculptures along the trail. When we got to our destination, Etmilyn. It had 1 sign and 3 tables with chairs attached and bush. It had a circuit walk around the tables. While people got off, they re-hitched the train to the back for the trip back to the train station. Coming back, a part of the track had broken. We had to wait a few minutes for them to fix it. The first two pics are our...

I wouldn't recommend this. OK let's start from the beginning.

The seats are quite small and uncomfortable, and because they pack the trains you'll be pretty squashed in. They could do with some cushions or something because you'll feel every single bump.

It's a diesel train..... It's not environmentally friendly and it smokes.... A lot. You'll be breathing fumes the entire trip. There were quite a few nauseus people on the train, including myself. I really hope they get an electric version at some point. Or at least sort out the exhaust system.

We did the Forest Train with the walk at the end, The walk at the end is very rushed, so you don't actually have time to enjoy it. They could do with putting some tables and chairs in this spot too for the elderly,

It's pet friendly which is nice, but because the train gets packed your pooch won't have a lot of room, our dog was also not feeling great with the fumes. Poor bugger.

If I was a tourist I'd probably do it to say I've done it, but I wouldn't recommend this to any locals. Maybe in spring when the wildflowers are out? But the rest of the year there isn't...