A close look at MS Coast museum’s holiday lights event and its plans for a big expansion
If exploring the world’s largest model railroad museum after hours is on your bucket list, now’s your opportunity.
On Thursday, TrainTastic will be kicking off its second annual Holiday Lights event— the model train museum’s after-hours holiday celebration.
The event will run nightly from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. every Thursday through Saturday from Dec. 5 to Dec. 28.
Visits with Santa Claus, a special holiday model train set up and holiday crafts are some of the things guests can expect during the event. The highlight, though, is the outdoor setup which decorates the outdoor train — which guests can take a ride on — and the surrounding area with more than 2 million twinkling lights.
Visitors can also enjoy hot chocolate and cookies during the event, take photos in the photo booth and enjoy the holiday decor, including a giving tree. The whole museum, including all the model train exhibits, will also be open for guests to explore.
The cost is $25 per person, whether child or adult, but a $5 discount for Holiday Lights is applied with the purchase of a general admission ticket. So visitors can come during normal hours and stay for Holiday Lights and get a discount.
The museum’s normal hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Tuesdays to Saturdays and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sundays. General admission for adults is $15, children under 18 is $12 and children under 24 months are admitted for free. A special rate for military is available for $10 and seniors 65 and older can enter for $12.
From one building to the next
While Holiday Lights is in only its second year, holiday celebrations are not new to the Coast’s model train museum.
In 2023, what was called the Mississippi Coast Model Railroad Museum relocated from 504 Pass Road to 615 Pass Road and rebranded as TrainTastic. Before the move, the museum held an annual holiday event called Snowyville.
Now the museum, which was 7,000 square feet in its previous location, offers 44,000 square feet of model train related exploration, including more train layouts, educational opportunities and workshops.
On permanent display at the museum’s center is the highlight: a massive replica of the Mississippi Coast with model trains crisscrossing it. The model, while being a lot more mountainous than the very-flat coast, features highlights from the various cities including the bridge to Bay St. Louis, mansions in Pass Christian, the Mississippi Aquarium and the Biloxi lighthouse as well as places that are important to the museum’s founders, Richard P. Mueller, Jr. and Glenn Mueller, Sr., like the Domino’s Pizza locations they founded under the RPM Pizza, LLC franchise.
“This isn’t just a children’s museum,” said Glenn Mueller, who serves as TrainTastic’s board president. “There’s something here for everybody. There’s over 30 layouts at every scale, every era. And we’ve got a lot of Christmas themes.”
What’s coming to TrainTastic in 2025?
According to Glenn Mueller, big things are in store for TrainTastic in 2025.
“We’ve got another 6,000 square feet right next to us that we’re going to be expanding into,” he said.
TrainTastic’s expansion will start in June. According to Glenn Mueller, all of the museum’s current model train layouts will be upgraded or expanded in some way and he wants TrainTastic to be able to host more events. The museum’s outdoor facilities, which are currently home to a small passenger train, will also be upgraded.
Glenn Mueller says the exact plans are still in progress, but he hopes to honor the vision of his brother and TrainTastic co-founder, Richard Mueller, who died in January.
According to Glenn Mueller, Richard left two pages of plans before he died.
“Fortunately, he was able to see TrainTastic open and operating for about six months until he passed away,” Glenn Mueller said.
This story was originally published December 5, 2024 at 11:15 AM.
