Holiday Flower and Train Show

The Missouri Botanical Garden brings back its Holiday Flower and Train Show at the Emerson Conservatory this winter, running from November 14, 2026, through January 2, 2027. It's one of those St. Louis traditions that marks the start of the season, and this year it's all about the Victorian era.

Inside the conservatory, model trains wind through festive displays of poinsettias and other seasonal plants, with miniature Victorian structures dotted along the way. The layout stretches to 900 feet of track, and the trains are G-scale, so they're large enough to see the details as they roll by. The holiday installations share the space with the conservatory's permanent collection of Mediterranean species, so you get the seasonal stuff and the year-round greenery in one go. The engines do occasionally have downtime when they need repowering, but there's plenty of track to keep things moving.

The Garden is in the Shaw neighborhood, right next to Tower Grove Park, and this is just one of the things they do throughout the year. If you're a regular, you probably know the others: the Japanese Festival, the holiday Garden Glow, the Whitaker Music Festival, and a steady stream of plant shows and art exhibits. The Emerson Conservatory is reached through the Jack C. Taylor Visitor Center at 4344 Shaw Blvd, so that's your starting point.

Logistically, it's easy to fit in. The show runs daily from 10 AM to 3 PM, and the model trains run from 9 AM to 3 PM daily, as well as nightly during Garden Glow. It's closed November 26 and December 25. Admission is included with daytime Garden admission and with admission to Garden Glow. And if you live in St. Louis City or County, you can get in free on Wednesdays and Saturdays from 7 AM to noon with proof of residency.