Spanning over 27,000 square feet of trains, trestles, and tracks the The San Diego Model Railroad Museum (SDMRM) is located in the heart of Balboa Park.  SDMRM features both indoor and outdoor exhibits and programming for all ages.

Their mission is to research, collect, preserve and present the heritage of American railroading using educational programs, displays, toy trains, and scale models of California railroads. At every twist, turn, and tunnel we spark curiosity while developing educational programming that includes education milestones like critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving. Our exhibits transform little engineers into modelers who tinker with engines and lay down track to build and transform something from nothing.

Ronda Fox
Ronda Fox
21:59 14 Jul 24
My son loves this museum. He loves seeing all the cute scenes and watching the trains go around the tracks. I just wish there were more steps for kids. I have to pick him up a lot, and it's not easy on my back.This is one scene in the museum.
Kevin de Szendeffy
Kevin de Szendeffy
04:30 06 Jul 24
Just a wonderful little museum! I had passed it way too many times and I'm so glad I checked it out. Well worth the cost of admission on its own.
Mr Osok
Mr Osok
14:21 17 Apr 24
Definitely more than just model trains. They give you the history of the railroads in California while using the models as functional displays of that history. Great work. ?And to keep people on their toes, they add lots of fun things to the displays. Finding Bigfoot is always fun.
Eunice
Eunice
08:21 15 Apr 24
We came at around 1PM on a Tuesday, and it wasn't too too busy. With a student ID, a ticket cost me $10/ea. The staff are really friendly and will explain interesting facts for you. There was so much to see, and observing the little details in the model trains was so much fun. I must also note, though, that there are also many areas still under renovation. There are two floors to the museum. Our favorite part was the room with the easter themed trains. They had an interactive scavenger hunt and gave out free eggs with chocolate in them, which was awesome. The museum was great overall, and I'd probably recommend it for train enthusiasts and kids.
Thomas Stees
Thomas Stees
06:26 06 Apr 24
Fun mini train museum. Spend about an hour here. Very impressive models and scenery. The tehachapi loop is cool to see on a small scale.
Alexandra Wong
Alexandra Wong
23:40 25 Feb 24
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!
Tejas Dhilip
Tejas Dhilip
02:07 28 Dec 23
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.
Reed B
Reed B
19:54 19 Dec 23
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.
Peter Matusov
Peter Matusov
16:12 05 Dec 23
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!
Graham
Graham
19:27 22 Oct 23
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.
Tim Salikhov
Tim Salikhov
03:38 18 Oct 23
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.
Ivan Kalinin
Ivan Kalinin
04:47 27 Aug 23
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.
Dominic Fawver
Dominic Fawver
03:36 04 Aug 23
Friendly staff and club members. Beautiful displays showing the skill and passion of many model train enthusiasts.
Shawn Buster
Shawn Buster
03:20 20 Jun 23
We did the San diego city card. Highly recommended to visit so many place as you visit San Diego. This is one of five museums the wife and I visited on this day. Cool place to take the kids.
Ruth Jones
Ruth Jones
20:20 22 May 23
A wonderful hidden gem located in the heart of Balboa Park. The incredible displays are intricate and full of memorabilia. The volunteers do an amazing job of recreating facades and small town America. You will not be disappointed if you want to travel back in time!
Mei Lee
Mei Lee
11:37 15 May 23
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!
Izzy Chang
Izzy Chang
22:37 26 Mar 23
Went here with my partner who is a lover of trains. So much fun to see the displays. I am a big fan of miniatures too! Fun for the whole family, with a scavenger hunt to keep kids entertained. Also a toy train area with small toys incorporated with the trains. And a button to control Thomas the Tank Engine! Some of the viewing windows seemed a bit tall for young kids, so you may have to lift up the little ones. Would have appreciated more postcards and other merchandise featuring photos of the trains themselves. Overall, a very fun place to visit and I would highly recommend it!
RedBullKC
RedBullKC
16:57 06 Oct 22
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! ?
RDL
RDL
21:57 30 Aug 22
So much work and detail. A huge and incredible layout. The trains and the planning and the beautifully detailed landscape make this is a must-see even if such a hobby isn't your cup of tea. I have a modest train layout at home that is of course comparatively tiny, but it still required numerous months to finish and a lot of work. So, when I walked through this museum and saw its size I couldn't imagine the money and man hours required ... Highly recommend.
Eric Yang
Eric Yang
21:44 14 Aug 22
Would absolutely recommend coming here if you are in Balboa park. Tickets are pretty cheap, and there's several floors of things to look at. There's a ton of really cool artifacts, fossils, taxiderm, and life-size replicas of all sorts of animals. One of the coolest exhibits was this section with preserved jars of animals, like two headed snakes, big toads, and other weird animals. The place is also not crowded. Probably one of the best museums here, apart from the air and space museum and the model railroad museum.
Swapna Ajay
Swapna Ajay
16:22 11 Aug 22
Good miniature collection of trains , other vehicles and buildings; and a vast layout of tracks . However, half of the trains were not working or moving. Overall, just an okay experience . The top level of the museum didn't have anything much. Most of it was half done/ undone or under construction . My kid and I were not really impressed. We were in and out in 15 minutes. I have seen better stuff in other countries. This was kind of disappointing . However , I appreciate the effort put in setting it up.
Empire Sheds and Design Toews
Empire Sheds and Design Toews
17:34 28 Jul 22
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.
Lissa Newton
Lissa Newton
03:58 25 Jul 22
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.
Penny Lane_18
Penny Lane_18
05:20 12 Jul 22
Wasn't sure what to expect but ended up loving it!! The small details are absolutely amazing. I highly recommend grabbing the scavenger hunt paper on your way in; it was a super fun addition and we really got into trying to find them all.
Michele Kira
Michele Kira
20:37 05 Jul 22
I didn't want to go, but went with family that did. Best 2.5 hours of the day! Displays are amazing and the people that run it are so fun! The details are incredible!! Be sure you grab a scavenger hunt paper at the ticket booth and look for everything.
Brandon Seth
Brandon Seth
02:52 29 Jun 22
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!!
Joseph C
Joseph C
00:49 09 Jun 22
For me, this is the best museum in Balboa Park. This museum has several train layouts. I know they have N, HO, O, and once in a while (weather permitting), the G outdoor layout is operational. I’m not sure if they have a Z scale layout though. If they do, it’s probably too small that’s why I haven’t seen it ? This museum is so massive it has 2 levels. It has several exhibits, it even has a night time exhibit you have to see to believe. The staff and volunteers are awesome too. They are knowledgeable and helpful and they will try to answer whatever questions you may have. Another great thing about this museum is the quarterly swap meet. I’ve been to the last one and they had a lot of used and some new train stuff at very good prices. For those who are not interested in the quarterly swap meet, they have a souvenir shop inside the museum that sells many cool train and train related items. SDMRM is a great museum, it is definitely one of the best spots to see here in S.D.
Elisa Coates
Elisa Coates
22:05 15 May 22
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.
Joshua Baakko (Model Railroad Tips)
Joshua Baakko (Model Railroad Tips)
15:33 07 May 22
So I'm growing gravely concerned over the actions of the museum staff, board of directors, and mostly so the senior club members & boards of the clubs located here.I've heard though many channels (and legally this is all hearsay, but I trust my closest model railroad acquaintances), that club staff is extremely hard to deal with to include:- Permanent bans for missed clubs dues payments- Bans related to false accusations- Complete elimination of youth memberships and youth clubs- Outright theft of members' trains "due to late payment of dues"- Stonewalling former members, thus not allowing them to rectify the situation and becoming members in good standing- Months upon months delay processing membership checks, sometimes in excess of 6mo causing the bank to deny the paper checkHonestly. Go once, experience the museum, then don't go back. Continuing to patronize implies that you condone the clubs' treatment of their members, who provide you the museum patrons with the trains you wished to see operating on the club layouts in the museum.I've never been a member and I don't ever intend to, because it's not a welcoming environment. I did however operate the Lego layout one holiday season and there wasn't a friendly face there, other than all the smiling kids...
Maro Terry
Maro Terry
04:28 12 Feb 22
We visited this museum for our 2.5 year old and she enjoyed watching all of the trains coming and going. She was about 37" tall and some of the stairs they built for viewing were too short so we had to hold her up to be able to see everything. She's doesn't like to be held up but instead she wanted to climb up the stairs (viewing platforms) so it was a bit tough when she would throw a temper tantrum.
Beth Cato
Beth Cato
16:18 19 Jan 22
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.
Spencer
Spencer
17:47 12 Jan 22
Grandson is like a mini Sheldon. Loves model trains and wants to touch them all. Great place to take him and my wife was impressed with this place too.
Matt Levey
Matt Levey
04:14 05 Jan 22
Really cool and the kids loved it. What would make it better would be some sort of guided path with relevant descriptions and history. There are signs and some history but seems random and easy to walk past. Could be more organized for non- model railroad enthusiasts.
JudyNV
JudyNV
23:23 02 Jan 22
Very nice museum in Balboa Park, not to be missed. It must be twice as big as it was in 2004 when we last visited. Not just for kids. Anyone who appreciates craftmanship has to be in awe of all the work that has gone into creating this model of various actual RR layouts around California. It would be very difficult to spend less than an hour here - most will spend nearly two hours and love every minute of it.
shawn moore
shawn moore
00:43 20 Dec 21
Our kids had a blast here. The holiday room is a lot of fun. If your kids like trains they will enjoy it here
girish agarwal
girish agarwal
09:00 07 Dec 21
Wonderful exhibit of the historic and current rail roads and trains in the US. The trains running across the museum are great to watch... The entire place can be viewed in 20-30 mins but you can spend much longer if you wanna dig deeper into the details... Great addition to the San Diego Go City pass. Can quickly cover this before going to the Zoo as it's close by...
Linda Jarzynka
Linda Jarzynka
17:28 01 Dec 21
Loved it! The displays are so intricate you can feel the passion these people have for their hobby. Need 1-2 hours to see it all
Roy Bolton
Roy Bolton
03:44 06 Oct 21
Great model railroad museum. The men who build and operate the trains love to share their knowledge. Very interesting. Great for kids.
Keith Wall
Keith Wall
05:33 07 Sep 21
I’ve never seen anything like it. The amount of detail that was put into the models is mind blowing. If you love model trains or just want to see something a little different, this place is worth the price of admission. I’d go again, if given the opportunity
Isaiah Richardson
Isaiah Richardson
13:13 19 Aug 21
Absolutely amazing experience for my family, especially the kids.The environments are stunningly detailed and the passion of the members really shine through. Everyone was eager to point out hidden treasures and answer any question.
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