According to them, this is North America's largest model train museum, quite a sight to behold. There are tons and tons of rooms, each with several separate tracks. Adult tickets are $13, with discounts for children, students, elderly, etc. It's not crowded at all. Though I have no interest in trains, the intricacy of the models is seriously incredible and it was very memorable.

I really wanted to love the San Diego Model Railroad Museum but I ended up just being a bit bored and disappointed. While there is a lot to see, when we went it seemed that many of the displays were barely operating with just one train, or under refurbishment or the trains were going incredibly slow. I can imagine that some people might enjoy this more but as a casual model train enthusiast it just seemed somewhat anticlimactic. They do have lots of friendly (and some not so friendly) volunteers that will be happy to talk to you about what they are working on. There is a nice sized gift shop that is mostly kid oriented.

What a spectacular downtown visit of childhood and fun for all! We toured and watched for an hour finding new things and hidden "innuendos" throughout! Love trains as a kid and this is a hidden gem 💎 to enjoy for as long as you want! The store is filled with toys, trains or publications to purchase and a complete layout of 2 full rooms to walk around and enjoy the scenery, flashing lights and pure artistry and creativeness at its best! The flashing lights, moving trains and storm from above brings out all alive and wanting to see more! 👀 A blessing to visit on a whim and enjoyment throughout! Kids and adults will appreciate! Great job in "Old San Diego Downtown!" 👏 Enjoy the photos and look closely! 😉

I love the San Diego Model Railroad Museum. It is so much fun to see the artist at work! And they take their craft VERY seriously. This is a must for train and model lovers. All children will enjoy this place. I love watching them work the trains!!

My kid LOVED it here. Tons of details on the models, and the makers were busy at work while we visited. My one complaint is that it’s not really designed for young toddlers. My son is very tall for a 2 year old and even on the little platforms to climb up he was barely at eye level with the trains. I had to continually hold him up for almost the entire two hours we were there, so it was a bit more tiring of an activity for me than I was expecting! We also loved exploring Balboa Park for the morning before the museum opened.

What a fantastic place to geek out over model trains! I absolutely loved all of the displays, even the ones that showed sections in progress. The people involved here do incredible work. There are so many details built into every scene.

Interesting museum with fascinatingly intricate minatures, this place delights children and adults alike. From the tiny chickens to the working steam engines on the moving trains, it's like being a giant walking along stretches of various scenery. It's definitely worth the visit.

I always forget how much fun I have when I go to the railroad museum. I highly recommend this for adults and children. They always put crazy scenarios in there. I'm not sure how else to explain that. There are different areas to explore so make sure you visit everywhere. We had a blast!

The visit took me back to my childhood. My dad and I used to have 2 O-gauge trains. It was a great hobby, but later in life, I didn't have the space to pursue it. This museum gives hobbyists an opportunity to build train layouts in multiple gauges. Lots of realistic models of various SoCal areas, along with bits of history. Well worth the visit.

We had no idea this treasure existed and it turned out to be our favorite visit of the day. From viewing a few historic pieces, you can enter massive model train diorama's including trellis bridges across giant gorges, rolling plains, or historic downtown railyards. We were there around Halloween and they had a thematic area set aside being invaded by huge (scale size) Spiders, Rats, and various other various monsters.

This is one of the must visit places inside Balboa Park, especially with young kids !! They have replicated the exact rail roads, stations and different terrains with different types of rail engines. Give 2 hours of type to it if you have kids ! Too much engineering went into creating and maintaining this model there. You can see some nice gentleman taking care of the trains and tracks regularly. Souvenir soap was overpriced compared to other places but rest everything is perfect !

Very interesting to see all the model trains, how they operate. Everyone who works there are very friendly & love to give you the history. I'll visit again

A great museum with multiple layouts! HO is the biggest. Also an N guage, O guage, Lionel 3 rail and a small garden layout in the back. Fun ace. Even s play room for the kids!

This place was way cooler than I expected 😂 Great for kids from what I witnessed and fun for adults too! It’s really amazing the level of detail they put into the small world of trains.

Very fun for adults and kids, shotgun Tom Kelly was there too! Take lots of photos, they come out awesome!

My kids loved it! Located in the basement so you take an elevator down from street level. Alot of intricate work displayed. My school age kids enjoyed the scavenger hunt looking for hidden details in each diorama. Our toddler just enjoyed the moving trains and all the vehicles and lights. Takes about an hour to tour about four hallway/rooms. Volunteers are running their trains and working on repairs, ready to answer your question.

You have to go here if you visit balboa park with your little ones such a neat and awesome place

Let me just say the the only exhibit that was worth coming was the La Mesa Model Railroad Club, but that was great. I only stayed there during the four and a half hours I was there, walking with one really nice teenager who was running a train. We were talking about our modeling mistakes, worst quality models, and just altogether having a great time. The only problem with the La Mesa Club was that the town of Tehachapi wasn’t visible to the general public. However, it made up for that with great scenery over the rest of the layout.

Fun filled place for young kids and train enthusiasts. Brings up good memories of younger days.

excellent exhibits run by dedicated volunteers

So much fun regardless of age! Great stories unfolding all around you. You can spend hours marveling at every detail these wonderful craftsmen put together.

Pretty cool. They have modeled trains running in different terrains. The outdoor train is super cute. They even decorated a little town. Good for kids but kind of boring for adults. I went out in 20min.

Really interesting, obviously a passion project for many people. Entry was included in the Balboa ticket for entry to many places. Definitely worth popping in.

No amount of words can capture how much effort and love was put into this museum. The amount of detail and attention put into these models is so rich. Please go here if you have time in San Diego, this is a cant-miss destination.

This place is absolutely phenomenal. One of the best gems of San Diego. It is an equal attraction for three family generations visiting the museum all together! Plenty of railroad history, faithfully recreated in HO scale!

The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is located in Balboa Park and it’s the only accredited model railroad museums in the country. The museum showcases the history of railroading across Southern California. When visiting the museum ask for the Scavenger Hunt sheet at the front desk and search for items on the list throughout the museum. There are many interactive trains with interesting information that staff in the museum are more than happy to share. There are so many tiny modeled towns, trains and farms. The museum was very interesting but my little one did get a little distracted after a while because my son is more of a hands on child and began running around and jumping. As for my 8 year old daughter, she was not very interested in the small trains either. I suppose if your children love trains and are more of the visual learners then this museum is perfect! This Summer The Model Railroad Museum Exhibit, Circus Trains, is full of fascinating and colorful model trains, railroad cars, and animals.

This museum has been around for decades, and it's a beautiful sight! We went on a free Tuesday as San Diego residents. I actually appreciated the unfinished atmosphere as it is possible to see the process of how they are constructing a model of the California Tehachapi line, which was a vision of the founder. The volunteers are passionate and helpful and are clearly knowledgeable of their craft. We thoroughly enjoyed it!

Absolutely amazing, I could spend months here just exploring every nook and watching the trains do their thing.

Hubby and I assumed this would be an in-and-out in 3o minutes kind of thing. Thirty minutes turned into 2+ hours, and could have been longer if we weren'tso tired. Spoke with a gentleman who told us that all the setups were completed by four area clubs, each having their own space to design, build and maintain. Was able to see parts in all stages of the building process, showing photos of real life tracks, bridges and surrounding terrain to completed hills painted and all between. Did you know that train engines are computerized? Lots of wiring and computers keeps the trains going around. That, and the club volunteers, both young and old, fussing and fiddling to determine the reason when a train stops in its tracks. The miniature set-ups with trees, buildings, people and animals is also great fun to check out. You never know when you're going to spot something a bit on the hilarious side! Don't miss the Halloween trains! Something tells me that there's a few women that helped decorate this room! Would love to see their Christmas display!

Straightforward, but delightful local museum dedicated to the model railroading hobby, with a dash of San Diego history mixed in. The dioramas were intricate and well-assembled. The museum could benefit from a remodel, but some of the outdated features gave it a nice patina. We loved the smaller room filled with Lionel train sets!

My son adored coming here. We couldn't get him to leave. The staff were super friendly and knowledgeable. It's way larger than you would imagine. There's a lot to see. If you like trains or models, it's a must see.

10/10 highly recommend. The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is basically a 3-D "Where's Waldo" attempt to peek out crime and punishment in a small-sized world. With running model trains! The looping display trail will leave you wondering at the end: where does art end and life begin? The museum is kid-friendly, but don't bring them if you are raising them on tik-tok; this event is best enjoyed on max level concentration.

So neat!

A 100% must see in my opinion. The love and care they put into such amazing displays was something I thoroughly enjoyed and something I think everyone should check out.

I love miniatures because of the level of detail contained within them. This museum did not disappoint. Not only was it way larger than expected, but the storytelling within the models was outstanding. You could sit here for hours and find new things to look at. Definitely recommend coming here if you're in Balboa Park.

Absolutely loved the place. If you are visiting Balboa Park you must visit the museum. All of us adults and children were delighted with the installation.

This museum has a lot of potential however many of the trains were not moving and many more were under serious construction. A lot of our trip was walking between the few displays that were fully functioning. This was disappointing but we hope to go back once there's a little more to look at.

Decent sized model railroad exhibits. They have spent some time making landscapes that reflect California's natural beauty. Especially the central valley. Some history via sheets posted on the glass. Lots of staff available. Fun thing to do in Balboa Park.

Husband loved it I wish the signs were low instead of on the top

Wonderful collection of different scales of model trains and and the guys that run and build the dioramas love their jobs and it shows in the quality of their work!

Its a great place to see three rail model trains and country scenery / railroads and small town scenes in miniature form.

Fantastic model railroads!! Several gages. Good viewing for little kids, who love the trains and funny and nostalgic town displays for grown ups. Spent 3 hours there with my 6 year old, because we had to finish the scavenger hunt and go to the gift shop. He loved the blinking emergency rescue scenes too!. Highly recommend for all ages

My husband loves trains and we've been wanting to come here. We always take walks in balboa park and we passed by a sign for the museum. It's to the left of the photography museum on the same level as the cafe. It's not a huge museum we finished the loop in about 20-30 mins. Gift shop available as well, really small. Adults are $13.50 per ticket. The train models are so well done! Every little detail from the hair and clothes were spot on in a miniature scale. It was incredible to see their work. Met some of the train model engineers, they are so excited about their work. My favorite section was the Christmas train set. They had bows and Christmas decor all over. The trains also burn oil and have steam coming out. It was so cool to see! Definitely worth coming if you love model trains!

It was a nice experience for my lil ones. I did think we would be seeing actual retired trains. But still a good experience.

Amazing place to spend a few hours and enjoy a valued hobby of many

It made me turn into a kid again

Several huge layouts featuring various gage model trains. Features local sites built to the scale of the trains in the layout.

I love it. Many train to look at. Discount for veteran

Always a good time.

3 yr old had a blast

I like this place better

Well worth the admission price to see all of the train layouts that have been put together - these people have spend a lot of time on them. A few bits of history added in but it’s more like going over to somebody’s garage and looking at their layouts. Great for kids as they have “step ups” for them to get a better view. A leisurely stroll through the displays only takes an hour or less.

Model Trains and large layouts say yes to to the San Diego Model Railroad Museum.

What a great place for the entire family! Multiple displays show the range of what model railroading is all about. You can ask questions of the volunteers that man the different displays and they are only to happy to discuss their passion! While you are in Balboa Park, please take the time to check this museum out!

Large variety of scales and eras with some very prototypical trains. Lots of details that are still in progress and really show how much work goes into everything on the layouts

The museum was clean and organized. All of the staff was friendly and happy to answer any question from kids or adults. The different types and styles of model trains were visible and on display. It was enjoyable for kids of all ages

Beautiful museum. One can spend 2 hours here. They have different exhibits for different types of train tracks. My toddler loves Thomas and the friends exhibition. Staff was friendly and answered the questions. And museum visit is free for San Diego county residents on first Tuesday of the month.

Miniature heaven !!! Must visit place in Balboa Park . Best model rail road museum, perhaps biggest in the world they say.. it’s huge with Great attention to details .. with so much history.

An awesome, awesome place! Definitely a "museum" to check out if you have any interest in model trains. There's a "toy trains" section that's almost magical with all the trains and the incredible dioramas they've created.

Celebrates a bygone era of US railways. My expectations were not met but glad I had the opportunity to visit.

I think it is an awesome place to visit. I am a model train buff so it is a great place to visit. Stayed until we had to leave at closing time.

Extensive display of model railroading, clearly involving many dedicated craftsmen and historians. In addition to the many completed operating displays, others are under construction. This place is huge.

Excellent museum, excellent work done in recreating landscapes and railroad models of different places.. spent 2 hours and was well worth the time.

Awesome place to go with your kid or on a date. The attention to detail on the models is amazing

It's a good place for railroad fans. The diorama's are very artistic and life like. They have Easter eggs through out. The trains unfortunately are not always visible since they spend a good chunk of time behind the areas visible through glass. You have to trace and predict the route of the train to make sure u can follow it. Kids can loose interest pretty quick this way. All in all its ok but u gotta love trains.

Really unique museum with many model trains. We enjoyed our visit very much. It was also decorated really nice for xmas. On the second floor you could see how they built the models. Perfect and enjoyable for the whole family.

The landscape is detailed, but not a lot of trains to see. Model fans might enjoy it, but certainly not for kids.

We are regulars at the SDMRM thanks to their fantastic layouts and frequent events. Wish there were more swap meets each year!

Nice museum

Fun experience!

The Admission Price is due to Cost: San Diego have become Expensive Initiatively. Rent & Electrical Bill have Sky Rocket over the yrs. As well as their Insurance bill. Most are Volunteers. A few people maybe on the Payroll, Part Time Only!

A very nice place to visit.

I enjoy the miniture hobos depicted in the train yards.

It was beautiful and amazing how small the locomotives are

Beautiful trains! Amazing detail!

It is a fun place.

Best model railroad ever.

Beautiful! My little boy loved it!

For the train lover

if you love model railroading, this is the place to see!

Great.

Very nice layouts. All scales.

The largest model train museum in the country, however although they have a limited budget the whole place could use a bit of spit shining. Still a great place to go if your into that. Word of advice if you got a bad knee like me there's actually an unadvertised elevator past the stairs and cafe.