I heard from a friend that wooden toys are better for babies than their plastic counterparts? Is there any truth to this? That wooden toys facilitate better tactile learning?

Yes, wooden toys are healthy and timeless. They not only last you longer than plastic toys, but they are also safe for the environment, they are biodegradable and good quality wooden toys don't contain chemicals such as PVC that you'll find in most plastic toys. In addition, paint-less wooden toys are often cheaper and such toys are a great tool for kids to learn. Wooden blocks are especially helpful to get your kids to learn shapes, sizes, or anything they can imagine. Often simple wooden toys are better for learning than flashy, noisy plastic toys as they allow creativity. I'd most certainly recommend wooden toys, as opposed to flashy plastic toys.