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January 2024 by Erik Sandvold
A great place to visit
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December 2023 by David Pederson
This was the largest museum I have ever been to. I had no expectation before coming. I thought the place might be OK to see.I visited the inside portion, which was very interesting. Volunteers were on hand to demonstrate operating a steam engine, and I almost thought, "I could drive this engine in an emergency."Next, I went outside to look at the round table. While there, a volunteer was working outside, and he offered to show us more rolling stock and another steam engine in a large shed. It's very cool to be so up close, and the size of these is huge. He mentioned that there was a lot of car and engine restoration in the other direction, not part of the tour, and if we were lucky, a volunteer in that area might show us around.As I headed toward the exit, someone was exiting the office, and we were asked how we liked the place. "Fine! Uh, any chance we can peek at the repair spaces?". And then we were among old dismantled steam engines and ancient cars. There was too much to write about here. Sheldon Cooper would would have been envious of us.There is a lot of magic here. I am considering what it would be like to spend time here as a be a volunteer. I think I caught the train bug.
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December 2023 by Kathy Panciera
We were there for Railroading Day. In depth tour and hands on activities. We had a blast and learned a lot.
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November 2023 by Pat Marcy
Took the grandkids....very interesting place!
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November 2023 by Alex Sneed Miller
This is a small museum dedicated to old school trains. Lots of fun for little kids. Our toddler liked it a lot and we could have spent hours wandering around and watching the model railroad.You do not need to only purchase a ticket in advance and you don't necessarily need to only go during the time your ticket is for.There's also a lot of content for adults too (think traditional museum exhibits, history, and of course trains. They have events throughout the year for different themes (Santa Claus, Halloween, etc).
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October 2023 by Trevor Miller
Wish I could give this place a zero. I booked for the Haunted Roadhouse ride. Supposed to come with a one hour ride, smores with a hobo, trick or treating, etc. Come to find out, I got none of those. On top of that, I was trying to book for Osceola. Website does not state that the ride was in St Paul until after you get the confirmation email. That should have been an immediate red flag from the start but went along with it. Come to get a disappointing experience. I talked to the manager about everything that I paid for that never got provided and she said that was for a different train which is up in Osceola. I demanded a refund for getting lack of the services that I paid for, but she wouldn't budge. Had to go to my bank to dispute the charge. Avoid this and go to Duluth cause the St Paul location gives you maybe a 5 minute ride. On top of that, they'll make excuses to not give you a refund regardless if they provide their services or not. This place steals your money.
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October 2023 by M. Doucet
I'm not sure why this isn't called the Minnesota RAILROAD Museum because it didn't seem to have anything to do with other forms of transportation. The space though is nice enough, with interesting self-guided displays and activities, plus real trains to explore and friendly all-volunteer staff with limited expertise on the exhibits.Big dirt parking lot. While there is a bicycle rack ON the patio, the street bike paths and sidewalks nearby end before the entrance so be careful! Also don't visit with a wheelchair unless you've got somebody to push you up all. those. ramps. I recommend the red cap/porter exhibit!
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September 2023 by Kathryn Swanson
We loved this museum. But the website is a disaster - Good luck figuring out what is (and isn't) included in a membership. Our last experience was disastrous - trying to figure out the membership benefit for a the mysterious "coach" seat. Which is and isn't available on all trains and changes depending on who you talk to. There was a 75% increase in the cost of our favorite train ride Pumpkin Express in the last few years, it is now more expensive then a Day out with Thomas. There also was a 25% increase in their membership fees. Overall I don't think leadership cares about the inconsistencies and I had an overall annoying conversation with their office manager. Also if you bring your littles be careful, they need to secure a few of their railings inside there was one that was rather loose (with a good drop to the lower floor).
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June 2023 by Kris Kasprzak
Great museum with lots of trains and memorabilia from the beginning. One of the volunteers had some great stories to tell. I highly recommend visiting this place
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April 2023 by J Schupeffer
Not as big as I would have liked, but some very knowledgeable folks there. Best part is getting on some of the trains themselves.
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January 2023 by Travel Girl
Absolutely loved this place and can't wait to visit again in the future. Everyone was incredibly friendly and so welcoming. Me and my husband got to take a charming caboose ride given by two friendly ladies who were more than willing to explain everything to us and even offered to take our picture before we even asked.The model trains inside were very impressive and could see all the hard work put into it. They put in extra details such as king Kong, a DeLorean in its cave, snoopy and several others to make it fun.At the end of our visit a few gentleman went out of their way to make sure we got to visit the restoration area where they were very genuine and took quality time to explain everything and answer any questions.Me and my husband think it would be really enjoyable to volunteer here!
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November 2022 by Vanessa Johnson-Storlie
Great place to take the kids and learn about trains. You can walk through some great cars and imagine what it was like to travel by rail.
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October 2022 by Koken Abe
The most popular "Fall Colors Train" tickets were sold out a few weeks ago, so we chose the "Train Ride to Marine on St. Croix" instead. It turned out to be a smart choice since the trip was amazing. My hub and I had a great time enjoying the gorgeous view, so glad we captured the autumn foliage along the St. Croix river area this year?P.S.Bring a bottle of hot coffee for yourself since some sections may be chilly - they made the whole trip a total difference!
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July 2022 by Britni Russell
We had so much fun at this museum. There is just enough to do that it’s not boring at all but not too much overload (for those with overloadable toddlers). The caboose ride was our favorite part and watching the model trains! Highly recommend.
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January 2022 by Max Luck
The museum was great and I got to see no. 328 and me and my dad got to go in the cab of no. 328 and the guy who volunteered there had a lot of information about steam locomotives and the projects in the museum.