Don't Miss these Two Train Exhibits

The Polar Express is gone for another year, but there are two model train exhibits you can see in San Francisco.

Golden Gate Express – Conservatory of Flowers: This second annual train show created by the Bay Area Garden Railway Society and hosted at the Conservatory of Flowers has a unique San Francisco flavor. Not only do the model trains go by San Francisco landmarks, the set itself is made partly of recycled items. Look for wine corks, cheese graters, a computer keyboard and more. As for city landmarks, you’ll see City Hall, the Chinatown Gate, the Transamerica Pyramid, Ferry Building, the Palace of Fine Arts, and Ghirardelli Square. The fog rolls in twice daily, at 11:15 a.m. and 4:15 p.m. The exhibit runs until April 10, 2010. It's at 100 John F. Kennedy Drive.

Randall Museum: While kids love watching this model railroad work, adult enthusiasts will go nuts. A variety of trains run through tracks winding around — and through — mountains, over bridges, by McDonald’s, through towns, by burning buildings and though miniature industrial areas. The Golden Gate Model Railroad Club operates the trains in the basement of the Randall Museum, where it’s been since 1961.

While the rest of the museum features a myriad of non-train exhibits, it just opened Riding the Rails, a scale model of a caboose that kids can climb on. In the works: an urban rail exhibit with famed San Francisco buildings – you’ll be able to move streetcars on the railroad tracks. While the Randall Museum is open Tuesday through Saturdays, the model railroad is only open on Saturdays, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. 199 Museum Way.

See my review of the Randall Museum here.