Museum of American Railroad

Definitely a rip off. Most of the model trains were not running. It was very small and our 4 year old train fanatic was unimpressed and done in 5 minutes. $30 for 5 minutes of a very small room with hardly any train activity. We've been to quite a few railroad museums in Texas and I would not recommend this one.

This is a really neat model train display place in Frisco discovery center. There is a tour option, but that wasn't an option when we finally had gotten to try it out. It is for sure for someone in your life that loves trains and train models. It can be a quick little visit if not doing the larger tour of things outside and inside, we stayed about 30/40 minutes. They give you a little clipboard with a scavenger hunt, kids and adults, that really helps kids especially take more time to look at all of the things in the display. The folks working, along with the two or three other customers that were train people, there were very informative, helpful & nice to my youngest as he was the only kid there. Plus, for me make a day out of it and plan on going to the video game museum and/or the little learning play area in the same center. Especially based on the amount of time we spent there and the length of time we had taken to make the drive out there, so with our visit we did the video game museum cause my youngest loves both things. There is also a performance space there if there happens to be a show the same day, but the day that we went there was some sort of recital for a school or possibly a stringed instrument players contest.

This will be a great place as they continue to build. Be sure that you know what is available before you make the decision to go. The inside portion of the museum is an amazing model railroad that was built by a local oil and gas barron as a family collection that upon his death the family gave to the museum. If is wonderful that it has found a home because it is amazing and it would be sad if if was lost or sold off in parts. Be sure to ask the staff to tell you all about the parts of the model railroad, because each part represents a different portion of Texas, New Mexico or Arizona. There are do many hidden details in the model that you really need to take a couple of walks through it to catch some of the finer hidden figures. They do have a sheet with a scavenger hunt on it to help you know what you should be looking for.I was lucky and got there just in time to pay a little extra and go out and see the rolling stock. The museum has a great vision for what it will be in the future but they are still building, but making significant progress. On the tour, we got to walk through 2 Pullman cars, and climb up into the engineer's seat of one of the steam locomotives. The rest of the tour was walking amongst the tracks and looking at the cars from the outside. Our tour guide was very nice and seemed very knowledgable, but spent a lot of time speaking about draining and ongoing construction plans. I would have preferred even more about the trains.It will be interesting to watch this museum grow. Money will be the key to their growth, so if you want to have a neat experience give them some encouragement by visiting and help them raise their visitation numbers so that they can apply for more grants and continue to build on their vision.

Took family trip to Frisco and Train Topia. We had no idea what we were going to see but we had been at that museum before for the video game section. As you enter, you'll get a clipboard with a checklist to find clues on the layout. These railroads and landscapes were donated to the museum owners. The scenery represents the original owners journey throughout the Southwest. Our family spent a good time finding some of the marks and it was good family bonding. The adults cost $10 and kids $5 so its a good time for the cost.

If you love model trains this is worth seeing. It was the life work of a man who built an incredible railroad layout. It is a throwback to the 1950's and 60's with a drive in theater as part of the design.We took the grandkids and they were bored in a few minutes. That was probably a waste of money but we all had a good time. There are a couple of Thomas the Train layouts set up for the kids so they were kept busy while grandma and I looked at the amazing layout.I have seen it and do not need to go again but I am happy I got to check out this one of a kind model railroad.

My son loves trains. My husband loves miniatures. This place was made for us. The amount of detail on this exhibit is impressive. Really a labor of love. The staff was really knowledgable about the display and the story that the creator told with it. My husband and I loved looking at all the scenes while my son loved switching back and forth between the kid's train table and looking at the main display. We were there for over an hour, so well worth the $8. And my son is 2, so he was free. I spoke with a European couple while we were there. They had been to a number of similar exhibits all over the world and said that this one was one of the best.

Major let down!Overpriced. 15 minutes is more than an adequate amount of time to see the entire display. Maybe even 10.

this is a model train exhibit. The exhibit had great detail and was very thorough. There is also a lot of neat Easter eggs hidden thro the exhibit. Cheri and Mike also my the experience very wonderful!

It calls itself a Museum, but it's just a late train set. Pretty cool, if that's what your expecting, but if you call yourself a Museum you'd expect displays and artifacts showing the history. This wasn't it. We spent $20 for 5 minutes. Not thrilled.As to their claim of having a bunch of rolling stock, they won't let you see it unless you happen to be available for a tour. They gladly took my $20, and when I inquired that "This is it?" he simply responded that it was.

What an awesome experience for our family. It was my two year olds birthday, and he's in love with trains. His joy and excitement was never ending. Our guided tour was fun and informative and traintopia was even better. To see a mans legacy left behind to this place for others to enjoy was pure bliss. Knowing one man built all of it was so hard to believe. Thanks to the folks who volunteer in the museum, giving their time to others by offering the love and information they have learned over the years. Here's many pictures of our little trip I hope you all enjoy and go support this place.