All Aboard! Illinois’ Best Holiday Train Rides for Families in 2025

Looking for the best holiday train rides in Illinois to take your kids on this Christmas? Here are three you need to check out and book before they sell out!

Holiday Fun in Illinois

The Christmas season will be here before you know it, and if you want to treat your family to some of the best holiday experiences Illinois has to offer this year, you have to start planning NOW.

My kids love everything about the holiday season, so my husband and I try to pack as much Christmas fun as we can into our calendar each December.

We've already penciled in a weekend for cookie baking and holiday light drives. We've got the dates saved for parties with friends and family. Our trip to visit Santa is planned, but there is one new thing we want to add to this year's itinerary: going on a holiday train ride

Best Holiday Trains in Illinois

Honestly, any train ride that features Christmas lights, carols, cookies, and Santa will be a big hit with my family, but which one should we go on first?

I found a Kidlist article that included a bunch of fun holiday experiences happening throughout Illinois this year, but there's one big problem: Many of those experiences are already sold out!

Here are three rides people rave about that still have tickets available...for now.

Happy Holiday Railway – Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Illinois

This 40-minute holiday ride is $25 per person ((ages 2 and up) and features visits with Santa, hot cocoa and sweet treats, Christmas carols, and even an animated light show!

Fox River Trolley Museum Santa's Trolley Express in South Elgin, Illinois

This train runs November 29–30 and December 5–21, and tickets are $38 per person and every rider, regardless of age, needs to have a ticket.

Holiday Express at Blackberry Farm in Aurora, Illinois

The Holiday Express will hit the tracks at Blackberry Farm starting December 6 (Sensory-friendly rides on December 5), and run every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday through December 21.Tickets go on sale November 6 at 9 a.m. and will NOT last long.

If any of these this holiday ride experiences sound perfect for family, do not wait to buy tickets. It will sell out, and you will be sad you missed it!