One of the most magical traditions is now open in the Bronx: The New York Botanical Garden's 30th Holiday Train Show, which has nearly 200 miniature versions of familiar New York sights, made of leaves, bark, seeds, berries, acorns, and other bits of flora.
There's the Statue of Liberty, the Manhattan Bridge, a Staten Island Ferry, a bevy of skyscrapers (1 World Trade Center, the Chrysler Building, the Empire State Building, and the O.G., the Woolworth Building), Radio City Music Hall, Bethesda Terrace and fountain, and Coney Island landmarks, as well as replicas of NYBG buildings, like the Enid A. Haupt Conservatory and the LuEsther T. Mertz Library Building. There are also now-demolished buildings across New York City getting some representation, too.
And then there are the trains: Over two dozen G-scale model trains and trolleys run along a half-mile of track throughout the show. According to the NYBG, "American steam engines, streetcars from the late 1800s, and modern freight and passenger trains travel along overhead trestles, through tunnels, and across soaring bridges such as the Brooklyn Bridge and George Washington Bridge."
The displays are created by Applied Imagination, which specializes in "botanical architecture" that marries together the intricately designed pieces with the toy trains.
The train show is on display through January 23rd, 2022. The NYBG also has an evening light show, NYBG Glow, which is open on certain nights. More information here.
