The Danbury Railway Museum is a cool museum dedicated to the history of the railroads in CT and New England. It is located inside the fully-restored Danbury Union Station, built in 1903. Here's the scoop on this unique CT museum: The museum is open Saturdays and Sundays only, from 10AM to 4PM. One thing is for sure, you won't get lost trying to find the place, because all you have to do is look for the giant Uncle Sam statue! This statue, standing 38-feet tall, is tallest Uncle Sam in the world, and was once located at the Great Danbury State Fair, until the fair closed in 1981. There is a sizable lot for parking on site. You'll start by walking into the old train station building, where tickets are $7 each. Once inside, you can take a look around at the various artifacts, photo displays, model railroads, and other locomotive memorabilia. I thought the model train sets they had were super cool! There's also a play area for kids. The one thing I will say is that there seemed to be a lot of "clutter" everywhere... random boxes near the displays, etc. I think that takes away from the displays, and that storing these items out of sight would give the museum a nicer feel. After looking around the building, you can go out the back door into the rail yard, where you'll find over 70 pieces of railroad rolling stock. There was a staff member who showed me around the yard, and gave me a little history on each of the pieces that were on display. He was very knowledgeable and friendly. Note that this museum is volunteer run, which I thought was cool. Even though the museum boasts 70 pieces or rail road stock, not all of the pieces are available to see, as the museum selects a few pieces that are rotated in and out throughout the year. And, at least when I went, not all of the pieces that they had on display were open to go inside. The couple that were open were seriously cool though! My favorite was the mail car, which was used to pick up, sort, and transport mail back in the day. The staff member told me that from April-September, the museum offers train ride tours of the rail yard, which are about 30-35 minutes in length. After seeing all of the trains up close and personal, stop in the gift shop before heading out! Overall a pretty cool and interesting museum, and for $7 it's well worth it! read more

See all

Went to their christmas event. It was super cute they definitely put their heart into it. It was super easy to drop off the present to the elfs so your kiddo.got a gift from Santa read more

My family and I took a ride on the First Gift Express this past weekend and we had a wonderful experience. Customers are instructed to bring their own pre-wrapped personalized gifts for Santa to distribute to their children. My wife discreetly passed along our sons' gifts when we arrived. The train station is all decked out with Christmas decorations as well as a model railroad display. While waiting for our train, we all enjoyed some cookies and hot chocolate while watching "The Polar Express". Dressed in our best Christmas pajamas, we all had a fun time riding the train through the rail yard as we spotted all of the various decorations. Our sons were delighted to see the Clauses and were so surprised to receive their first gifts: a model car kit for our older son and an Elmo smartphone for our older son. I myself received a lump of coal from Santa. He was nice enough to exchange it for some edible chocolate coal, under the condition that I get back on the "Nice List" by Christmas. read more

See all

as a train enthusiast, this is a very quaint and informative museum. it was very interesting to see different train models and there was a display where you could step on a pedal to move the model trains yourself which I found entertaining. read more

Danbury Railway Museum - Museums Near Me - Danbury, Connecticut

See all

What a cute place during the holidays! Never been before, but a friend asked me to join her and her family for the holiday train ride this weekend and we had so much fun! Trains were decorated very cute. I LOVED how my daughter got to meet Santa and how personalized it was. Knew her name, gave her a gift, Mrs Claus took photos, gave my husband coal , it was not rushed nor too crowded. The system they have is amazing. Free hot chocolate and cookies was also a really nice touch. And everyone who worked there was the sweetest! I highly recommend for any family with young children. Will 100% go again next year read more

Danbury Railway Museum - Decorated train - Museums Near Me - Danbury, Connecticut

See all

We had a really incredible experience at the railway museum. We had family visiting from out of town and had a very large party, they were super accommodating and kind. The staff definitely like their jobs, they were knowledge and fun to be around. 10/10 experience if you have any interest in local history and railway stuff. read more

See all

"I'm worried about you I'm worried about me Our love has turned into A runaway train" (Rosanne Cash) We were walking around the rail yard checking out the scores of locomotives, passenger cars and cabooses spread across the property as if we were in a zoo. I ended up chatting with a gent as we both gawked at a massive locomotive. And my right hand to God, he told me he had driven all the way from Michigan just to visit the Danbury Railroad Museum. It might not be the biggest or best maintained museum you'll see, but you'll be hard pressed to find one that treats its subject matter so reverently. After we checked out the inside museum, we boarded a train ($3) for a short trip to the ten-acre rail yard and were free to walk around and look at their impressive collection. One very cool thing we saw was their "turntable", where a locomotive was able to reverse its direction by spinning around on a giant tracked turntable! I want to give a big shout-out to the volunteer staff that acted as our tour guides and train conductor for the ride from the museum to the rail yard. This is a must see for any railroad fans in your family, regardless of their ages. read more

See all

Such a sweet experience for your kids. I everyone was super sweet. My nephew loved the trains displays and play area they have while you wait for your train ride. So many old trains for him to look at he was in train heaven. I definitely recommend. read more

Nice way to spend a Fall evening. Enjoyed the hot cider, donuts and s'mores by the fire. Enjoyed the artifacts especially the menu/prices from the old dining cars! Great for families and kids (can get quite loud) but that's what kids do. Reasonable prices and staff is on it when it comes to safety. Had a nice snack for discount at the diner. Will recommend to others especially those with kids. Thanks! read more

What a great place! Really fun museum with plenty of train memorabilia and rolling stock. I love how they redid the old station and have relics of the railroads that met here. There are several smaller model train sets that the kids (and some adults like me!) will enjoy watching. There are a couple of displays pertaining to "Strangers on A Train" which had some scenes filled here. Great movie based on a terrific book! The locomotives, parlor cars and other rolling stock have a nice area for display right across the tracks. I love the old steam engine and there are some nice CN cars too. The day I was there, three docents were roaming the trainyard and they offered a host of information and could answer any questions you had. I love trains and train stations and train related things. I'm a fan. read more

See all

A great place for train enthusiasts. It is not a big museum, inside there are some train diorama, photos, artifacts. It's soothing to see old relics from bygone era kept for future generation. Outside you can walk around freely to see the old trains, many in poor condition. You can step inside some of the train (caboose and USPS train). There are in process of restoring old station. Can't wait to see it finished. $7 for non CT resident. read more

See all

I visited this place on a Christmas weekend, spending $60 on three tickets for their "Snow Clipper" train. I had presumed that the excursion would've been a few miles roundtrip along some of the museum's alternate track, and seeing at least some decent scenery along the way. The excursion wound up being one diesel car that went about a thousand feet, stopped, then slowly did a crawl back towards the station, where I had a chance to look out my window and see two "hobos" huddled together over an open flame, while under what looked like a queen sized flat sheet was flapping in the wind to keep them cover. I was surprised/waiting for the bed sheet to catch fire, because it would've been the only excitement on this ride, which lasted maybe 30 minutes. The ticket prices were an outright ripoff. The rest of what little my ride had left involved me looking out my window at a collection of abandoned railway equipment that was in rusted, rotted disrepair, a vintage Pullman car with smashed windows, and other items that had graffiti on them. Outside of the few operating model train layouts that are inside the station, there is absolutely *nothing* to see or do here. Even the complimentary ginger snap cookies I had with their hot chocolate were hard as a rock. Good grief, Charlie Brown. Spend your money elsewhere. read more

Insanely affordable at $7 for the museum and $3 for the train ride. Inside, there are videos, a bunch of train memorabilia, and a few working model train layouts in different scales. Nothing too extensive (don't be surprised if you're done in a half hour), but nice stuff to look at. Outside, the train ride lets you ride in a passenger car, caboose, or even in the engine (limited space, must sign waiver). After the trip you get to explore various train cars, cabooses, and engines up close. Best done on a cooler day toward the beginning of the day. Very enthusiastic hosts. read more

See all

This place is such an amazing museum. The volunteers are so informative and the trains are so cool!! Got to see the old train move along the tracks. It was such an amazing site. When you go ask for Peter. He will tell some amazing stories that must be heard. All in all an amazing trip. My boyfriend and I will definitely be going back. read more

See all

Wow, why the hate? I'm 23 and I thoroughly enjoyed the historical equipment in the yard and the stuff contained in the museum. The facility is well maintained and restored, and the collection of things on display were interesting. I thought it was well worth my $6 admission. I'm a railfan, so I'm probably more interested in the stuff on display than the average Joe, but still. The models were pretty impressive as well, and I'm not a huge fan of model trains. I hope people realize that rail museums like this one are not funded by anyone and usually rely on donations for restoration projects - so yes, there's a lot of beat up rusty equipment on display in the yards, which I'm sure they would immediately fix up in a heartbeat if they had the funds to do so. If I had a kid, I probably would pass on the train rides here, because it's the "railyard local", RMNE in Thomaston and the Valley Railroad in Essex are much better suited to that sort of thing. Personally, I'm glad that they have 2 New Haven FL-9's - the New York Central engine, 2013, is an old New Haven one as well, Metro-North merely painted it in the NYC scheme back in the late 90's, early 2000s for an anniversary celebration of the New York Central railroad. This facility is full of history about the railroads that ran in the area and has a lot of interesting stuff on display. read more

An OK Hangout Place for Kids. Loved the model trains and kids were excited. Lot of history regarding the trains and the station by itself. Wish this place had more marketing and innovated to gear towards tourism to attract more visitors. $9 was a little more for what was offered, wish the actual train ride was a little more than just few minutes. The turn table was only operational in summer, so that's a loss. read more

Danbury Railway Museum - Toy Trains - Super Excitement for Kids - Museums Near Me - Danbury, Connecticut

See all

I don't live too far away so I try and get to the museum about once a year. Not much changes from year to year but I do think it's worthwhile from the stand-point of supporting the work they do. This past time may have been the most interesting time because the Diesel was open and best of all - the volunteer hanging out in the drivers seat had actually driven that model train for 15+ years. He was great. VERY informative and loved all the questions my 11yr old and I had. My ONLY critique would be the next time I went. My little guys still get in for free but next year it would be $50 for all of us. The museum is pretty cool, and we're usually there for 45-60 minutes, so I'd probably go a lot less often if I'm paying that much...but if you're in the area and like trains it's worth a stop. read more

This place is pretty cool. My boyfriend and I spent a few hours here checking out the old trains, tracks and museum. You can actually go on board a bunch of the old trains (just to view). There is also a train ride you can take for an extra $2 (a grand total of $7 per person). It will take on a running train down the railway a bit and over to the water pump house. Then you get to take a spin on the turntable! Very awesome. They employees are all volunteers and some of them are retired railway workers. They are all very passionate, knowledgeable and willing to answer any questions you might have. If you like museums, this one is awesome! read more

Pumpkin Patch train is a ripoff! Although the museum is nice, they charged $9 per person for an 8 minute ride which consisted of going forward then backing up. Also, the train advertised was a steam train and what they used was a diesel, which my 5 year old nephew immediately pointed out. I wish they had been honest. Do yourselves a favor, if your kids like trains go to Essex for the steam train. You may not get a free pumpkin but you'll get a real train ride. read more

Absolutely great place. Went with my kids and they loved it too. $7 entry is perfectly fine, access to the museum itself as well as the rail yard where you can wander in and amongst some relics. Very nice gift shop and all around good time. Highly recommended. read more

This museum has (1) operating trains that you can ride on, (2) models and (3) memorabilia. Plus, for Manhattanites, it's very accessible; just take Metro-North to Danbury, and the museum is at most a few hundred feet, if that, from the train station. I'd recommend a ride in the cab of the locomotive if you do the train ride (and you should); it's only $10 and the volunteer who operates it, at least when I went, was very friendly and informative. I spent an hour at the museum. Downtown Danbury is just across the street; it's a quaint and attractive town. read more

We took our two kids, almost 2 and 3 1/2 years old, to the Easter bunny train ride. The ride was OK, just back and forth through the railyard. I expected to see the Easter bunny during the ride but he/she was seated in a separate, cramped railcar. Our kids were too scared to get within a few feet of him/her. The kids had an OK time, but we thought that the experience could have been much better with minimal effort. Many of the trains in the railyard seemed completely rusted through. The museum had model railroad setups that looked at least 10 years old. Most of the other patrons of the ride were overweight, tattoo'ed, hockey shirt/shorts wearing people. Nothing against it and the volunteers were obviously railroad aficionados, but the whole experience was a downer. We will not go back. read more

A small, ill maintained place that has a few old and dusty train models running in the dark, a few pieces of trash from old train stations haphazardly displayed in a dirty building, and a hand full of rail equipment decaying in the junk yard. Worst of all, the staff is rough, impolite, and downright viscous one of them yelled at me at the top of their lungs for not following his instructions when he had never even spoken to me. A royal piece of junk! read more

My son is obsessed with trains - not Thomas trains (we haven't really introduced Thomas yet), but trains in general. We went on a whim for the Santa event. It was wonderful. The volunteers clearly love what they're doing, the train displays and model trains were really fun, and the walk through the railyard was fascinating. A very charming place. The train ride itself is short - only a few minutes - so if you're looking for an adventure, this is not likely to be the place for you. If you're looking for a place to view and appreciate some vintage trains and train paraphernalia, definitely a great place to visit. Perfect for families with young kids. read more

Entertaining for a two year old for about 30 mins. The ride through the train yard was decent. Not the highest recommendations, but if you have done the aquarium, the childrens museum, the stamford mall ... this is probably next. read more