Model trains take over three buildings at the InfoAge Science and History Museums in Wall Township this December. The 2026 Holiday Model Train Display and Christmas Spectacular runs on three weekends: Saturday and Sunday, December 5 and 6, December 12 and 13, and December 19 and 20, from noon to 5 p.m. each day, at 2201 Marconi Road.

The show is presented by the Garden State Central Model Railroad Club, a nonprofit founded in 1963, and it fills the museum campus inside the Camp Evans Historic District, the former Army Signal Corps site that InfoAge now preserves.

What is on display

The club brings in several layouts just for the holidays and sets them up alongside its own permanent HO scale layout, which members are still building. Visitors can run Lionel trains themselves on hands-on layouts that mix new and vintage models. A separate club museum room has push-button layouts plus artifacts from the history of model railroading and from the coal and steel industries the hobby often recreates. The club says its Z scale display has been getting extra attention ahead of this year's show.

Holiday decorations go up across the campus, and visits with Santa are part of the program. A museum store sells snacks and gifts.

The Garden State Central Model Railroad Club has been building and showing layouts for more than 60 years. The show is family oriented, and the mix of hands-on Lionel trains, push-button displays and detailed scale layouts gives younger visitors something to operate and older ones something to study up close.

Tickets, and a cheaper way in with a toy

Standard admission is $15 for adults and $10 for children ages 5 to 12. InfoAge offers discounts for seniors and active military. Children 4 and under are free under the museum's regular admission rules.

The show also runs a Toys for Tots rate: bring one new, unwrapped toy per person and admission drops to $8 for adults and $5 for children. The toys go to Toys for Tots for distribution during the holidays.

Every ticket covers the full campus, not just the trains. InfoAge has more than 20 museums and exhibits in six restored historic buildings on 34 acres, with collections that include military vehicles, fire trucks, vintage radios, historic computers and shipwreck artifacts.

Timing a visit

The trains stop at 5 p.m. sharp. The club suggests arriving after 3 p.m. if the layouts are the only goal, since crowds tend to thin late in the day. To see the rest of the museums as well, plan to arrive before 2 p.m. and allow two to three hours.

The train displays are spread across three buildings joined by ramps and paved paths, and all three are wheelchair accessible. The campus has accessible parking spaces, including van-accessible spots, and staff at the gate can point out the accessible entrances.

Getting there

InfoAge sits on Marconi Road in Wall Township in Monmouth County, and parking on site is free. For anyone coming by rail, the closest stop is the Belmar station on NJ Transit's North Jersey Coast Line, with a short rideshare or car service trip from the station to the museum.

Before December, the campus keeps its usual schedule of noon to 5 p.m. on Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays. Questions about the train show can go to the museum at 732-280-3000 during open hours, and the club posts a full FAQ on its train show site.

The first day of the 2026 show is Saturday, December 5, at noon, with the last day on Sunday, December 20.

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