The Railway Museum is huge, spread across a South Building and North Building with four floors packed with full-size trains, hands-on work experience zones, historical exhibits, restaurants, and a gift shop. Outside, you'll also find interactive attractions and an air-conditioned dining car where you can eat in comfort.

Since you've made it all the way to the Railway Museum, you might as well explore every single floor! But to help you plan, we've picked out the three must-see zones (or Stations) that deserve extra time on your visit.

Step into the first-floor Rolling Stock Station and you're greeted by a full-size train right in front of you! At the very front sits a steam locomotive from 1871, followed by a line-up of retired trains spanning the Taisho and Showa eras all the way to an original-model Shinkansen. Walking through the carriages in order feels just like stepping into a giant time machine for trains.

Some of the train cars are open for visitors to step inside and sit down in carriages from different eras. With wooden walls and floors plus retro upholstered seats, a few cars even have screens outside the windows showing scenery whizzing by, making it feel like the train is really running. It's a lot of fun!

It's not just great for kids either. Our editor once brought along some older relatives, and the retro carriages were a huge hit with them too!

The biggest highlight of the first-floor Rolling Stock Station is the C57 steam locomotive, built in 1940. You can pose for photos right in front of the engine (there's even a self-service photo booth nearby), and every day at noon and 3pm, don't miss the turntable show.

The massive turntable holding the C57 locomotive rotates the entire train a full 360 degrees, accompanied by a booming whistle that makes the show a feast for both your eyes and ears. Whether you watch up close from the first floor or look down from the second-floor walkway, get there a little early to grab the best spot!

How exactly do trains work? What secrets are hidden in the rails and overhead lines? And what do all those station staff actually do all day?

This zone turns all these questions into fun, easy-to-understand exhibits. There are plenty of hands-on activities to try, and you can even pick up a special card to scan and save your results as you go, making for a fun souvenir of your visit.

Behind the hands-on zone, you'll find a railway crossing exhibit where you can safely get an up-close look at how it works. You can even press the warning button, the one you'd never dare touch in real life, and watch the warning lights flash in action!

The story of Japan's railways is really a snapshot of the country's modernization. This gallery uses a wealth of precious documents and artifacts to trace how the railway system evolved through the decades.

In the 'History Station' exhibit, perfectly recreated ticket gates and ticket counters are divided into five distinct zones by era, with vintage fare posters still on the walls. The nostalgic atmosphere makes you feel like you've traveled back in time, and as you wander through the exhibits, you'll get a glimpse not only of railway history but also of everyday life from the Meiji era to the Showa era (1870s–1990).

There are also small interactive displays here that let you see for yourself how trains switch tracks or how carriages connect to one another. By the time you finish exploring, you'll have a whole new appreciation for how far railway technology has come, from bulky old computers to today's incredibly precise control systems. It's fascinating stuff!

One thing you absolutely cannot miss at the Railway Museum is its huge range of hands-on experiences. These “only here” activities are without a doubt some of the biggest highlights of any visit.

There's no shortage of experiences to choose from, including a mini train you can actually drive yourself, and the hugely popular D51 steam locomotive simulator, the only steam train driving experience in all of Japan paired with a moving simulator carriage! Not only is the dashboard a faithful recreation, but the vibration and sense of realism while operating it are second to none.

(Quick tip: this experience is extremely popular, so it's best to enter the Museum Raffle App as soon as you arrive! More on that later.)

There are also conductor and train driver experience classes and more. Some require an app lottery, while others just need you to line up, and some are paid while others are free, so be sure to check the details before you join in!

Out in the outdoor area, you'll find the super cute and surprisingly realistic Miniature Driving Train. They might look like the little trains at a kids' amusement park, but these are a different story altogether!

Running along real tracks, the mini carriages are modeled after trains like the Yamanote Line, the Narita Express, and even the Resort Shirakami sightseeing train from Aomori. You can't choose which carriage you'll ride, so part of the fun is seeing which design shows up in front of you!

Once the staff finish their briefing, you're ready to roll! Operating the mini train is surprisingly simple: just use a single lever to move forward and slow to a stop, then press the announcement button when you reach each platform. Driving your own little train and stopping at platforms like Manseibashi and Iidamachi, with the scenery unfolding along the tracks, is a blast even for adults. (*The experience lasts about 6 minutes.)

Just keep in mind that you'll need to enter a lottery through the "Museum Raffle App" after entering the museum. If you win, head to the boarding area and pay a 600 yen experience fee. Don't forget to download the app if you'd like to take part!

If you want to try popular attractions like the D51 Simulator or the Miniature Driving Train, you will need to enter a free lottery using "The Museum Raffle App." To make your day go smoothly, we highly recommend downloading the app (available on iOS and Android) before you arrive!

Here are the rules for the raffle:
・You must be inside: You can only apply after 10:00 AM on the day of your visit, and your phone's GPS must be turned ON to prove you are physically inside the museum.
・One entry per device: You can only apply once per program per smartphone, and winners are chosen randomly.
・Turn on "Retry": If you get a blue "Failed" screen, don't panic! Go to the app settings and turn on "Receive" for Retry notifications. If slots don't fill up, you might get a second-chance notification 20 minutes before the program starts!

If you absolutely must try a specific simulator and don't want to risk the lottery, you can buy guaranteed "Reservation Tickets" at the ticket machine at 7-Eleven convenience stores! These are sold from 7 days up to 1 day before your visit. They do cost a premium fee, but they allow you to experience top attractions without entering the raffle at all.

With so much to see at the Railway Museum, you could easily spend the whole day here, so of course great food is part of the experience too. The dining options here are all connected to trains and railways in one way or another, so let's take a look!

Here you can pick up specialty ekiben (train bento boxes) from all across Japan! The most popular by far is the Shinkansen-shaped bento. Once you've finished eating, the beautifully designed box makes a great souvenir to take home, and there's even a Railway Museum exclusive design, so don't miss it.

Right across from the ekiben shop, there's a dining area set up inside an air-conditioned train car, where you can enjoy your bento while watching real trains pass by outside. It's the perfect way to soak up that travel atmosphere.

If ekiben isn't your only option for soaking up that travel vibe, there's also the Train Restaurant Nippon Shokudo, designed to look like a luxurious dining car. Window seats offer a great view of trains passing by right next to you.

The seats in the center are designed in a train carriage style, so dining here feels just like eating a meal while riding a train on a journey.

This time, our editor tried the Grilled Cheese Chicken with Tomato Sauce: tender chicken paired with a tangy-sweet tomato sauce and melted cheese, all served with rice that made it go down perfectly. Dining in this nostalgic setting feels like being whisked away on a romantic journey through the late Showa and Heisei eras.

The Railway Museum has other restaurants and train-car dining areas too, but they tend to fill up fast during meal times, so it's best to line up early.

To wrap up your visit, be sure to stop by the museum shop TRAINIART for some souvenir shopping! It's packed with all kinds of train and railway related goods, including items you can only find here, and even non-railway fans will find themselves tempted to buy something.

Standing at the entrance and looking inside, you'll notice the light fixtures overhead are actually made from strung-together subway hand straps. It's a fun little detail you won't want to miss.

The shop is stocked with everything from beautifully designed train-themed stationery and limited-edition train models to snacks that come in boxes shaped like ticket machines. Our editor especially loved the hand-strap charm shown in the upper left of the photo, it's such a fun little item. There's simply so much to browse through, so be sure to set aside enough time to shop properly.