The651.com

With the Holidays in full swing, you have one last weekend to visit one of the most unique Holiday attractions in the Twin Cities, Santa’s Train Shop at the Jackson Street Roundhouse in Saint Paul. This annual event concludes December 17 and 18, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The historic Roundhouse is all decked out for Christmas, and offers a great lineup of activities for kids, and adults, including appearances by the man himself, Santa Claus. In addition, you can ride on board the Christmas Train; one of the museum’s working trains decorated in the holiday spirit that travels along the tracks that run along the grounds of the Roundhouse. The Greater Midwest Lego Train Club and New Brighton Connection Model RR club have a fantastic model train set up that mesmerizes and fascinates children. Plus, there’s music, kid’s crafts and refreshments.

The Jackson Street Roundhouse is a part of the Minnesota Transportation Museum, which also operates the Osceola & St. Croix Valley Railway in Osceola, WI and the Minnehaha Depot in Minneapolis. The Roundhouse is a former steam engine maintenance facility for the Great Northern Railway. Not only is it an amazing museum of railroad history in the Upper Midwest, but it is also a working restoration facility, with volunteers (many of them former railroad workers) laboring on historic and vintage locomotives.

Admission to the museum is $10 for adults, $8 for students (5 to 15 years old) and seniors, and $5 for kids 5 and under. There is an  additional charge for pictures with Santa. The Roundhouse also has a gift shops with unique items available to knock off a couple of names from your Christmas list.

For more information on the Jackson Street Roundhouse and the Minnesota Transportation Museum, visit mtmuseum.org.