Akron Children’s Museum pairs model trains with aviation for family weekend

One of the best ways to turn a kid into a train fan is to put model railroading in front of them where it feels alive, not distant. Akron Children’s Museum is betting on that with Akron Express Rails & Runways, a family weekend built around model trains, aviation and hands-on play in downtown Akron.

The event runs April 25-26 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day and brings in model train exhibits from the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad and the Burning River N Society. That pairing matters because it gives the hobby a public stage in a children’s museum, with interactive model train stations, rails-and-runways play time, STEM activities and make-and-take crafts instead of a static display behind ropes.

The train side has real local weight. Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad says it is a nonprofit excursion railroad dedicated to preserving and restoring vintage railcars and locomotives for future generations to enjoy. The National Park Service says the Cuyahoga Valley Railway served as the primary rail transportation source in the valley from 1871 to 1915, which gives the weekend’s rail theme a direct link to Northeast Ohio history, not just toy-store nostalgia.

MAPS Air Museum is widening the lane with a flight simulator, and that crossover is smart. MAPS says its simulator collection includes Link Trainers, the first true flight simulators, and says more than 500,000 U.S. pilots were trained on Link simulators. For a child, that kind of hands-on machinery can make the leap from watching a train roll to understanding how systems, controls and engineering work in the real world.

Akron Children’s Museum will also open more than 25 exhibits during the event, with little visitors getting full access to the museum alongside the train and plane programming. The museum’s event page lists member admission at $10 for children and $8 for adults, with non-member tickets at $12 for children and $10 for adults. Parking is available in the O'Neil’s/State Street Parking Deck for $2 with validation, and deck parking is free on weekends.

Little Roaming Railroad rides through Lock 3 Park add one more rail hook for families who want to stretch the day into a downtown outing. Akron Children’s Museum hosted a similar train-focused Akron Express event in 2025, and this year’s rails-and-runways format feels like the next step: a practical, approachable entry point where a future HO or N scale modeler may first discover what makes trains worth building, collecting and running.