Didcot Railway Centre Steam Days

About Didcot Railway Centre Steam Days

Travel back in time to the golden age of the Great Western Railway and savour the sights, sounds and smells of steam as you explore this 21-acre living museum with trains dating from Victorian times to the 1960s.

Steam trains will operate on at least one of the centre’s two demonstration lines, allowing you to take unlimited rides. On many days, the second line will be running too and may feature a pioneering diesel railcar, a heritage diesel locomotive or a small branch line steam engine. Check our Locomotive Roster to see what we expect to be running on the date of your visit.

Pick up a colourful Centre Guide, explore this 21-acre living museum and unearth almost two centuries of railway history. Get up close and see them at close quarters.

Stroll through the original 1932 Engine Shed and see magnificent preserved locomotives – find 5900 Hinderton Hall, climb onto the footplate and listen to Archie, the driver, and Stan, the fireman, prepare their loco! Listen out for the sounds of a working engine shed and see if you can hear Stan fetch his supplies from Jonah, the storeman.

See surviving track from Brunel’s Broad Gauge, discover painstakingly restored buildings, coaches and wagons and learn more about the development of railways and how they changed everyday lives.

There’s a chance to get hands-on in The Signalling Centre, where you can find out how trains have been controlled through the ages. Descend into a shelter* built to keep Didcot’s enginemen safe in WWII and experience an air raid or immerse yourself in the varied collection of fascinating, smaller artefacts in the museum.

Don’t miss the carriage display with coaches dating from Victorian times to the 1940s that evoke bygone eras. See the VIP Saloon reputed to have been used by General Eisenhower during the preparations for D-Day and later used in the GWR Royal Train.

Children can also make tracks to the outdoor play area or dress up as a station master*. You can relax over lunch or enjoy a snack in the refreshment rooms, and don’t forget to pick up a souvenir in the gift shop. The modern trains running past the centre complete the picture and mean you can experience over 180 years of railway progress in just one day.

Tickets

Ticketing information

• Didcot Railway Centre will be open at 10.30am, with the last entries at 2.30pm.
• You are welcome to stay until close at 4.00pm.
• Please have your original e-ticket ready to show the staff. 
• Please also bring your membership card if you’re a member or your carer’s ID if you have booked a carer’s ticket.
• On arrival at Didcot Parkway Station, please show your ticket to GWR staff, who will let you through the barrier. Walk through the subway and straight ahead into the original steam age subway that leads to the centre.
• Head up the stairs to the Railway centre entrance.
• On arrival, please show your tickets and collect a Site Guide.
• We suggest you alight from the train at the centre’s Oxford Road station at the far end of the site and explore the centre. You can walk back through the centre, return on a later train or change trains and travel back on the Branch Line.
• You can step across the tracks around the centre, but do not cross the fences onto the demonstration lines. You can only do this at the Museum — never on other railways.
• Please do not climb down into, or jump across, the inspection pits.
• Children must be supervised at all times.
• Please listen to the briefings from staff, and please do ask questions.
• Well-behaved dogs on leads are very welcome.