FUNCTIONS & CONFERENCES

Planning your next function?

The Blues Train hosts a variety of functions, including corporate events, birthday parties, weddings, anniversaries and our incredibly popular Christmas parties.

You can book your own train (minimum 120 people) or, for smaller groups, have your function on one of our existing dates (no minimum numbers apply, but book early to avoid disappointment; each carriage holds 52 people).

Birthday celebrations

Blues Train functions can be held during the daytime or evening and catering can be tailored to suit your special occasion.

We have lots of 30th, 40th and 50th birthday parties! We have even had a 60th!

We have hosted a huge number of birthday parties on existing trains and some people even hire a whole train for big occasions, such as 50ths – the ultimate baby boomer birthday party. Some people book a whole carriage (52 people) for the night while others just jump into the party atmosphere with another group. 

For details on booking The Blues Train for your next birthday function, see our Booking your tickets page.

Special occasions

Planning a special occasion? The Blues Train is the ideal venue for all types of get-togethers, from wedding anniversaries and school reunions to engagements. We have even been booked for a wake!
 
Our hospitality and catering for your events is of a very high standard and is sure to enhance your special night.

Please note: NO HENS OR BUCKS NIGHTS

For details on booking The Blues Train for your next special occasion, see our Booking your tickets page. 

Christmas functions and parties

We have hosted numerous successful christmas functions for organisations including Geelong Otway Tourism, Scothmans Hill, Quicksilver, Sands Print Group, St John of God Hospital, AXA Insurance, Lion Nathan Victoria, Bronson Sheet Metal to name a few. We get all kinds of businesses for staff parties and end-of-year breakups.

There really are no boundaries to the type of business we host -- from an optometrist with four staff, to a printing company with 100 staff -- we get them all! That’s why so many companies come back to the Blues Train year after year for their end-of-year Christmas party.

Just make sure you BOOK EARLY.

Corporate conferences, meetings and functions

We can provide a conference venue with a difference as well as a range of corporate incentives.

Conferences and conventions we have hosted include the Ulysses Club, BMW Australia and the Victorian Body Corporate Managers Association. We were also proud to be part of the product launch of the new Scania Trucks (pictured), where we entertained 300 of the delegates on special morning-tea Blues Trains while their partners test-drove the new trucks.

Our running times and catering options are flexible for whole-train bookings.

For assistance in planning conferences and conventions in the Geelong Otway area, contact Business Events Geelong. Business Events Geelong also produces a comprehensive Planning and Incentives Guide; you’ll find us listed in the guide.

For detail on booking a corporate function see our Booking your tickets page or Contact us.

Weddings and receptions

We have hosted a number Blues Train weddings.

The first was a full wedding where The Age music writer Patrick Donavan and his wife Sally (pictured right) were married on the platform. Then they and their guests enjoyed drinks, delicious finger food and entertainment on the platform before boarding the train for more musical entertainment, dancing and the more 'lively' part of the event.

Our second was a wedding reception only for PJ and Jacqui (pictured left), which featured the moving train with great acts and also some roving performers entertaining guests on the platform.

We have also run a wedding for Paul and Jessica Ryan, which included finger food and a trip to Suma Park platform with two bands and champagne followed by a formal reception at the Vue Grand Hotel that evening.

We now offer Blues Train wedding packages with Queenscliff's Vue Grand Hotel. Contact Connie Trathen at the Vue Grand on 03 5258 1544

Event catering

The official Blues Train caterers have catered for literally hundreds of functions and numerous weddings. We are very happy to discuss all the details of the menu for your special event or function and our caterers can offer a range of delicious choices, from finger food, to sit-down full-course meals.

The T-Bar - drinks and bar tabs

The T-Bar, operated by the Blues Train, is run from the bar carriage at the rear of the train. It is open for business at the commencement of the event, while guests gather on the platform and have their meal, and then again at each stop - while patrons are swapping carriages, they restock their drink supply.

We stock a range of wines, beers and premixed spirits and we can organise a bar tab to suit your function style and budget. (Please note that scheduled Blues Trains have a fixed drinks list.) See our current drinks lists and prices.

Running a bar tab

Organising your office outing? Putting together a celebration for that special someone? We're here to help make this a simple task.

If you have a large group and wish to purchase some drinks on their behalf, you can organise to put some money behind the bar (by prior arrangement only).

For this, we require four weeks' notice, as we allocate a dedicated staff member to serve you. The money is payable in cash at the beginning of the night. (We will advise you during the night on the status of your credit and you may or may not wish to put extra funds behind the bar if required.)

As a guide, we suggest $30 a head (plus GST) to cover beer, wine and soft drinks. For those wanting spirits included as well, we suggest $35 a head (plus GST). For an 'open bar', we suggest $40 a head (plus GST). Wristbands are provided (at cost) to all of your group members so they can be clearly identified.

Please note we practice responsible serving of alcohol at all times. If a patron is intoxicated upon arrival, they will not be permitted entry. Putting money behind the bar in no way guarantees service of any patron. Some of our groups start the function on beer, wine and soft drinks only and open the bar to mixed drinks later in the night on the advice of our bar manager or the promoter, Hugo T Armstrong.

To enquire about setting up a bar tab, Contact us.