All aboard! New York City’s favorite holiday tradition is back, and it’s bigger than ever! After more than three decades, the Holiday Train Show continues to delight as New York City’s favorite winter adventure. Visit this season to see nearly 200 landmarks made entirely from natural materials, including two new miniature masterpieces for 2025: The Delacorte Theater and The Whitney Museum of American Art.
You’ll never forget your first time entering the Holiday Train Show under the glow of the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory. Marvel and watch as model trains zip through a breathtaking miniature display filled with iconic New York landmarks. Each building is meticulously handcrafted from natural materials like leaves, seeds, twigs, bark, acorns, and even cinnamon sticks, creating a magical celebration of the city in botanical form. Outside on the Conservatory Lawn, a glowing mountainscape awaits, brimming with even more trains, holiday lights, and picture-perfect moments.
The New York Botanical Garden’s Holiday Train Show sparks joy across generations—and remains one of NYC’s most beloved ways to celebrate the holidays. It’s a magical sight, and a winter wonderland unlike any other!
A Natural Wonder – Train Show Architecture
Each building is meticulously handcrafted from natural materials like leaves, seeds, twigs, bark, acorns, and even cinnamon sticks, creating a magical celebration of the city in botanical form. Applied Imagination, the mastermind behind the production, meticulously reconstructs the exteriors of iconic New York buildings using organic matter. Fallen sticks and leaves are repurposed as structural elements, while plant-based resin undergoes a remarkable metamorphosis into glass. It’s magical to discover these miniature masterpieces.
New for 2025 – NYBG Holiday Train Show
This year, the Holiday Train Show welcomes two brand-new botanical replicas to its ever-growing collection:
The Delacorte Theater
Visitors will love to discover the botanical replica of the newly reopened and beautifully renovated Delacorte Theater, the beloved longtime home of The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park. It’s featured within a charming Central Park scene that also includes the Gothic Arch, Belvedere Castle, and Bethesda Terrace.
The Whitney Museum of American Art
Another debut this year is the botanical recreation of the Whitney Museum —an architectural icon of modern design. This miniature beautifully captures the museum’s striking asymmetrical façade and tiered terraces, all meticulously crafted from natural materials.
These new additions join other miniature replicas in the show— including the Empire State Building, Brooklyn Bridge, Grand Central Terminal, and the Coney Island Wonder Wheel. Each one is a testament to the artistry, whimsy, and creativity that make the Holiday Train Show such an unforgettable experience.
Trains to Discover – NYBG Holiday Train Show
There are lots of trains to discover! More than 30 G-scale model trains and trolleys hum along the nearly half-mile track. The Garden places a couple of familiar train friends within the scenes. Can you find them? It is a fun seek-and-find delight for children and adults alike. Don’t forget to look up—bridges come together to create an aerial display of trains soaring overhead.
For Little Conductors
Calling all mini conductors! NYBG Holiday Train Show is magical for all ages. Kids will especially love searching for Thomas the Tank Engine. Outside, young engineers can discover an adorable ladybug-shaped trolley car that they can power themselves with the push of a button.
Be sure to make tracks to the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden for drop-in train-themed fun! Little conductors can explore the brand-new Treetop Walk, create (and take home!) mini evergreen swag, play with large train toys, cozy up with evergreen-themed books, and so much more.
Holiday Train Nights
Experience the Holiday Train Show in a whole new light! See the exhibition illuminated during Holiday Train Nights—lively after-dark celebrations where you can sip seasonal cocktails and mocktails under the glass of the warm and twinkling Haupt Conservatory. Bop along to holiday classics sung by performers, enjoy sweet and savory bites for purchase, or hop over to the “Bar Car”—back this year with a 21+ bar at the Hudson Garden Grill Patio.
The New York Botanical Garden Holiday Train Show
WHERE: 2900 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY.
GETTING THERE: Getting to the New York Botanical Garden couldn’t be easier! Head to Grand Central Station and take the Metro-North Railroad Harlem Line to the Botanical Garden Station—it stops right across the street. It’s just a quick 20-minute ride from Manhattan.
WHEN: Now through January 11, 2026.
TICKETS: Don’t miss the train! Purchase tickets HERE.
All images courtesy of New York Botanical Garden, unless otherwise noted.
