All aboard: Make memories at Gardens by the Bay’s Christmas Train Show

NEW YORK/SINGAPORE – Singaporeans will soon experience the magic of one of America’s winter traditions: a Christmas Train Show.

Imagine model trains chugging along rail tracks that wind through luminous landscapes, crossing bridges and passing by miniature versions of American monuments.

Look for fun twists when the show opens at Gardens by the Bay on Nov 23. The miniature landmarks nestled within the plant-filled winter wonderland of the Flower Dome are crafted from natural materials like leaves, bark and twigs.

This is the second edition of the Christmas Train Show and it is bigger than its 2024 debut, with some 20 whimsical model trains taking turns to wend their way across 145m of tracks.

It is a journey across cities and continents, from New York to Nyhavn. The cultures of the United States, Denmark and Singapore are showcased, with G-scale model trains being the cohesive theme binding the three disparate landscapes.

In the US section, the majestic Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco stands sentinel over icons like the Statue of Liberty and New York’s bustling Grand Central Terminal, all crafted from botanical materials such as leaves from the forest floor.

The Denmark display highlights scaled-down, brightly coloured townhouses straight out of Copenhagen’s popular Nyhavn district. The best part? The waterfront scene, as well as a towering 4.5m-tall Christmas tree near the entrance, are built entirely of Lego bricks.

Spot Denmark’s classic black and red locomotive, as well as a lightbox carousel spinning six of author Hans Christian Andersen’s most famous fairy tales.

To celebrate SG60, the local display honours beloved spots like the Dragon Playground, heritage shophouses, Supertrees and the Merlion – all made of recycled wood by local carpentry studio Roger & Sons.

Weaving through the Singapore scenes will be a specially commissioned miniature replica of an MRT train with a red and white livery, created in collaboration with SMRT Trains and Singapore Railways.

Almost 7,000 plants, including over 50 varieties of winter greenery like holly, mistletoe and poinsettias, as well as 50 varieties of festive Christmas trees and four 7.5m-tall luminaries, set the scene for a warm, jolly and scenic outing for the family.

Mr Ong Kian Ann, Gardens by the Bay’s chief operations officer, hopes the show will be more than just a pretty backdrop. With heartwarming local touches, he sees it as the perfect stage for families to make lasting memories together.

“I hope parents use this as a platform to tell the Singapore story to their children. Through the familiar landmarks in the display, parents can spend quality time bonding over the experience and start conversations with their children. Such an experience is something children will keep in their memories,” he says.

In the long run, he is dreaming bigger. He hopes that generations of visitors who first experience the train show as children will later return with their families as adults, in the same way that American families create Christmas traditions.

Turning nature’s scraps into icons

For three decades, the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG) has delighted visitors with its Holiday Train Show, a spectacle of G-scale trains zipping through a landscape of natural botanical models.

G-scale, or garden-scale trains, are among the largest and most durable model train systems.

Gardens by the Bay will be bringing some of that holiday cheer to its Christmas Train Show.

The Straits Times was invited for a six-day trip to New York City, along with a Gardens by the Bay team, to explore how the beloved American tradition of Christmas train shows has inspired Singapore’s.

When ST took a peek behind the scenes at the NYBG on a crisp autumn morning in November, the team of artisans and model train experts from Applied Imagination, a botanical architecture studio, was setting up the elaborate landscapes in its conservatory and outdoors.

The festive display is steeped in the nostalgia of the early 1900s, when trains were a means of transportation to reunite families during Christmas.

Model trains later surged in popularity and grew into large-scale exhibitions across the US. Visiting such displays became a cherished festive tradition for families.

Once the NYBG set-up was completed, a smaller team of eight made its way to Gardens by the Bay to work its magic on the display over five days in mid-November.

Gardens by the Bay is the first venue outside the US and Canada to showcase these models. The 2025 edition will include models of American gardens, including the United States Botanic Garden in Washington, DC; the Biltmore House and Conservatory in North Carolina; and the Climatron glass dome in Missouri.

Led by Applied Imagination’s chief executive Laura Busse Dolan, whose father Paul Busse dreamt up the idea of using Mother Nature’s scraps to create miniature masterpieces, the artisans set up the American segment of the display, from landmarks to historic gardens to wintry scenes.

With 42 botanical models, the 2025 show will feature the largest such collection displayed beyond the US and Canada.

One challenge lay in transporting these ornate, intricate works of art from the US to Singapore. To ensure they would arrive safely, each model had its own specialised crate to keep it in place.

Each miniature was sculpted using dried plant material and could take anywhere from 200 hours to an epic 3,000 hours to complete, says Mrs Busse Dolan.

An artisan’s work starts with research. Later, a lightweight foam core is used to create the base structure. Once done, layers of decorations using different plant parts are meticulously stuck on, using specialised hot glue. A final coating of polyurethane preserves it.

From cacao pods to pine cones to nut shells, the range of material used is limited only by an artisan’s imagination.

“All the material on the different models are applied by hand, piece by piece. We try to find materials sturdy enough to last,” Mrs Busse Dolan says.

For instance, the Statue of Liberty wears a dress made of palm leaves and holds a torch crafted from a dried pomegranate. Moss hides and blends the seams, making the transition between materials less noticeable.

Where are these materials found? Most are harvested from the forest floor, not live plants, says Mrs Busse Dolan.

“When trees drop their seed pods at certain times of the year, we will go and forage for those. All the bark that you see on the models is from downed trees in the forest that have, sadly, died – but we’re giving them a new life through these models,” she adds.

There are exceptions, when harvesting is beneficial to the plant.

For example, willow – which grows naturally in Kentucky, where the company is based – has root systems that grow back stronger and quicker when cut. This helps to prevent soil erosion.

The Golden Gate Bridge on display, for instance, uses willow extensively.

Two signature models at the Christmas Train Show – the Statue of Liberty and the Grand Central Terminal – are returning from 2024 on loan from the NYBG.

Its vice-president for exhibitions and programming, Ms Joanna Groarke, is thrilled that the concept of train shows has travelled to Singapore.

“We are all invested in each other’s success and to bring the show to Gardens by the Bay is a wonderful opportunity to share a little bit of what we are doing here with new audiences,” she says.

Timeless magic of trains

Behind the scenes of a Christmas Train Show are teams of experts meticulously ensuring that the rail tracks are laid properly and cleaned diligently, so the trains run smoothly.

In Singapore, Mr Thomas Bhat, a train modelling enthusiast and expert, has been preparing for the Christmas Train Show for more than six months.

The Germany-born Singapore permanent resident was instrumental in developing the model SMRT train, including getting the chassis and body 3D-printed. The 59-year-old also laid the tracks and ensures the trains glide smoothly.

He hopes visitors will enjoy seeing trains from different countries, including Switzerland, the US and Germany.

Over at the NYBG in the US, Mr Bill Clark is part of the team that maintains and troubleshoots the trains and engines.

Known as “The Train Guy”, the 78-year-old has decades of experience maintaining model trains.

When ST visited Mr Clark at his home in New York, the model train hobbyist and enthusiast showed his collection of about 100 freight cars, passenger cars and engines, as well as a model railway landscape project which he started working on in the 1970s.

He recalls a time when almost every child owned model trains.

The former high school teacher has been helping out at the US train shows since he retired more than 20 years ago. Maintenance and troubleshooting are vital parts of his job.

He often resolves problems like trains repeatedly getting stuck in tunnels, which happens when changing room temperatures cause things to expand and contract, loosening non-soldered parts.

Yet, there are unique rewards to the job.

In 2024, he received an envelope from a three-year-old who had visited the NYBG. All he saw were some squiggles. Then he spied a note from the boy’s father, saying: “He wanted to tell you how much he loves the trains.”

For Mr Clark, watching a model train is like tending a captivating aquarium – it is timeless and relaxing. “You just sit there for hours watching, you know?”

The timeless appeal of trains will be what connects the storyline for the show as they weave through the plants, says Ms Melissa Tan, Gardens by the Bay’s deputy director for conservatory operations, who was the lead designer for both editions of the Christmas Train Show.

Overseeing the creative direction, planting design and execution of the display inside the Flower Dome, Ms Tan ensures plants complement the creative works of art, from the miniature botanical models to the recycled wood replicas.

Part of this is about making sure the plants and artworks do not compete for attention. “We have to pay attention to the scale, by using baby ferns and not having big ornaments near the miniature models and trains,” she says.

As Mrs Busse Dolan sums it up, trains inject magic into Christmas displays.

She says: “Trains are what bring the whole thing to life. There’s joy and wonderment in the miniature models, and these trains and the excitement that they create is unlike anything else.”

Something for everyone: Five highlights of the show

1. Step into a life-size, vintage black-and-red Danish steam train cabin. Walk through, grab a seat and take pictures with the Danish landscape as a backdrop.

2. Look out for a lightbox-style carousel featuring six of Hans Christian Andersen’s beloved fairy tales, including The Ugly Duckling. The illustrations appear in different layers, as a nod to how, as a struggling artist, he created paper cuttings to entertain people.

3. In the American section, watch tiny trains zipping through candy-coloured cottages in the playful Santa’s Village.

4. Lego lovers will be enthralled by the 4.5m-tall Christmas tree, 6.5m-long Nyhavn village and a Christmas room scene built of the colourful bricks.

5. Check out the variety of works by artisans, from the botanical models to the wooden replicas of local landmarks.

Book It/Christmas Train Show

Where: Flower Dome, Gardens by the Bay, 18 Marina Gardens Drive
When: Nov 23 to Jan 4, 9am to 9pm daily
Admission: From $8 for residents
Info:

str.sg/BKmz