Halloween Train Rides in Missouri (2026)

Trains and TravelHalloween Train Rides
Written By Kelsey Cecil

Updated October 14, 2026 · 17 min read

The Wabash, Frisco & Pacific sold every one of its 650 Pumpkin Express seats in Glencoe within about 30 hours, and the train ran on Oct 10, which tells you how fast Halloween trains move in Missouri. As of October 14, two Missouri Halloween rides still have a date ahead, one at each end of the state: a gentle pumpkin and costume ride on the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad, and a haunted-leaning evening of spooky train rides in the dark at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis County. For more options within a day's drive, see our map of Halloween train rides across the country.

The St. Louis event, Trick-or-Track, is a single Saturday night, Oct 17, with trick-or-treating and an animal show before the train rides start at 7:00 PM, and tickets are limited. The Kansas City ride is a small one in the best way: a ride-on miniature railroad in Line Creek Park that runs all day on Halloween for $2 a lap, through tunnels and over bridges, with a costume contest at 1:00 PM. Springfield families are a long drive from both, so the neighbors section below covers closer out-of-state choices too.

The short version

  • Pumpkin and costume rides: Kansas City families, and anyone with a toddler, should circle the Halloween Train at the Kansas City Northern: about 20 minutes from downtown, walk-up laps for $2 from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Saturday, Oct 31, with a costume contest at 1:00 PM.
  • Haunted rides: St. Louis families have the closer choice in Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of Transportation, about 25 minutes from downtown, but it is one night only, Oct 17, and the spooky rides happen in the dark, so it suits kids who like a little thrill. Tickets are $10 and limited.

The two rides are about 3 hr 45 min apart, so most families will pick the one on their side of the state.

Watercolor of a red train car on a cliffside track heading into a dark tunnel
From Rally Takes the Train, watercolor by Leslie Dunn.

Look inside the book

A dark tunnel, a brave corgi. Bring Rally along.

In Rally Takes the Train, a corgi rides into a dark tunnel, gets a little scared, and comes out to a big bright light and happy cheers. It takes about five minutes to read, a good fit for the drive to a Missouri pumpkin train.

Page 1 of 8

Rally Takes the Train book cover: a watercolor corgi peeking from a red train

Like it so far? See the full book

25 hand-painted pages, paperback, $13.99 with fast shipping from Amazon.

Buy on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

Every page is real watercolor on paper, painted by hand by Leslie Dunn. Nothing in this book was made with AI.

Compare every Missouri Halloween train side by side

Every ride on this page in one table: type, dates left, the lowest posted ticket price, ride length, who it suits and whether tickets are still on sale. Tap a ride for the full details.

RideTypeDates leftTicketsLengthBest forStatus
Halloween Train at the Kansas City Northern Miniature RailroadKansas CityPumpkin and costumeSat Oct 31From $2Not postedAll ages, toddlers welcomeOn sale
Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of TransportationSt. LouisHauntedSat Oct 17From $10Not postedOlder kids who like spookyOn sale

The rest of October at a glance

When each Missouri Halloween train still runs

Oct 14Oct 21Oct 31

Pumpkin and costume ride Haunted ride Halloween night

Missouri Halloween train calendar: what runs which day

Every remaining date for every ride on this page, from today through Halloween weekend. Green is a gentle pumpkin and costume ride, blue is a haunted ride. Tap a ride to jump to its details.

Kansas City: Halloween Train at the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad

Next: Sat Oct 31Best for: All ages, toddlers welcomeFrom $2Dates left: Oct 31

This is a ride-on miniature railroad, the kind where kids sit right on the small cars, not a full-size excursion train. On Saturday, Oct 31, the Kansas City Northern runs its Halloween Train in Line Creek Park from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, and the loop goes around a field, through tunnels and over bridges. There is a costume contest at 1:00 PM, and category winners take home a 10-ride train pass.

Rides are walk-up at the railroad's posted fare of $2 per lap, so there is nothing to book. A Trunk or Treat fundraiser ($5 per child) and a wood carving demo run 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM the same day. Stroller and parking details were not posted, so check the operator site.

Halloween Train at the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad at a glance

Type
Pumpkin and costume ride: Daytime ride-on miniature railroad, trick-or-treat theme, family ride
Dates left
Sat Oct 31
Tickets
Listed on the railroad's Oct 31 calendar; walk-up rides with no tickets or sell-out posted as of Oct 14
Times
Trains run 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM; costume contest at 1:00 PM
Ride length
A miniature train loop around a field, through tunnels and over bridges
What's included
Miniature train laps, a costume contest (winners get a 10-ride pass), plus a separate $5 per child Trunk or Treat from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Price
$2 per lap, the railroad's posted fare for all ages
Ages and scare level
No minimum age stated; the railroad presents it as a family ride
Costumes
Costumes welcome; costume contest at 1:00 PM No costume? The Rally tunnel tee counts.
Strollers
No stroller policy posted; check the operator site
Parking
Not posted; check the operator site
Where
Line Creek Park station, 6060 NW Waukomis Dr, Kansas City, MO 64151

Tickets on the railroad’s site (opens in a new tab)

St. Louis: Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of Transportation

Next: Sat Oct 17Best for: Older kids who like spookyFrom $10Dates left: Oct 17

Trick-or-Track is the National Museum of Transportation's Halloween evening in St. Louis County. Doors open at 5:30 PM, kids trick-or-treat in costume (bring a candy bag), Serengeti Steve's animal show runs from 6:00 to 7:00 PM, and then the museum runs spooky train rides in the dark starting at 7:00 PM. The museum has not said which of its trains carries riders, so check the operator site if your child has a favorite.

It is one night only, Saturday, Oct 17. Tickets are $10 for adults and kids 3 to 12, and children 2 and under are free but still need a reserved ticket. Tickets are limited, and some remained on October 14. Ride length, stroller rules and parking were not posted.

Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of Transportation at a glance

Type
Haunted ride: Evening Halloween event with spooky train rides in the dark, family night
Dates left
Sat Oct 17
Tickets
On sale as of Oct 14 with tickets still available; tickets are required and limited
Times
Doors 5:30 PM; Serengeti Steve animal show 6:00 to 7:00 PM; spooky train rides in the dark from 7:00 PM
Ride length
Not posted; check the operator site
What's included
Spooky train rides in the dark, the Serengeti Steve animal show and trick-or-treating in costume
Price
$10 adults, $10 kids 3 to 12, kids 2 and under free (still reserve a ticket)
Ages and scare level
No minimum age stated; the museum bills it as a family Halloween night with spooky rides in the dark
Costumes
Costumes encouraged; bring candy bags
Strollers
No stroller policy posted; check the operator site
Parking
Not posted; check the operator site
Where
National Museum of Transportation, 2933 Barrett Station Road, St. Louis, MO 63122

Tickets on the railroad’s site (opens in a new tab)

Already wrapped for 2026

  • Pumpkin Patch Train, St. Louis Iron Mountain & Southern Railway, Jackson: Ran Oct 3, 4, 10 and 11, 2026; watch the railroad's page next fall for the next season.
  • Pumpkin Express, Wabash, Frisco & Pacific Railway, Glencoe: Ran Oct 10, 2026, and all 650 seats sold out within about 30 hours, so book the moment next year's tickets open.

Rally’s Spooky Train Ride: Halloween shirts

The tunnel page from the book, Rally on his red seat in the dark, is printed on black shirts in sizes for the whole family, from baby to 5XL. Skip the costume hassle: no masks to fog up, no capes caught in the train door, just a shirt that already says Halloween and layers under a coat on a cold platform. A matching set makes for easy pumpkin train photos. See everything in the Rally shop.

Missouri on Halloween: Mild Afternoons, a Fast Chill at Sunset

Missouri Halloween afternoons usually land somewhere between 55 and 65 F, which is pleasant weather for a miniature train lap in a costume. The catch is how quickly it cools off after dark. Trick-or-Track in St. Louis runs its train rides after 7:00 PM, so bring a jacket that fits over the costume, and if you plan to go straight from Line Creek Park to neighborhood trick-or-treating on Oct 31, pack a warmer layer for the evening.

The Ozarks run cooler than the river cities, so Springfield-area families making the drive up should pack for a colder start to the day than Kansas City will have.

How Far Line Creek Park and the Transportation Museum Are From Kansas City, Springfield and St. Louis

These drive times are approximate and assume no traffic, and Halloween day traffic can add more than you expect.

Drive times, no traffic

Kansas City
about 20 min from Kansas City; about 2 hr 45 min from Springfield; about 3 hr 45 min from St. Louis
St. Louis
about 25 min from St. Louis; about 3 hr 45 min from Kansas City; about 3 hr 15 min from Springfield

Tunnels in Kansas City, Spooky Rides in the Dark in St. Louis: What a Two-Year-Old Will Notice

The Kansas City Northern's Halloween Train is a family ride, and nothing the railroad has posted mentions actors, haunted scenes or a minimum age. The one thing worth flagging for a very young child is the tunnels on the loop. On a train this small, a tunnel is a short dark stretch that feels very close to a little rider.

Trick-or-Track in St. Louis is the bigger question mark. The museum calls its 7:00 PM rides spooky and they run in the dark, but it has not described what riders will see, so a cautious preschooler may be happiest with the trick-or-treating and the animal show and an early exit. If you ride, talk it through first: it will be dark, there may be spooky decorations, and you will be right beside them the whole time. Counting out loud together helps in any dark stretch.

Watercolor view from inside a dark tunnel looking out at a sunny beach and cliffs
From Rally Takes the Train, watercolor by Leslie Dunn.

In our book, the train rolls into a dark tunnel and Rally cannot see anything. He is scared, and then he sees a big bright light and hears happy cheers with his big ears. The tunnels in Line Creek Park are exactly the kind of moment that page was made for, so read it together the night before. We have a free Rally coloring sheet to bring along, and you can read how my mom dreamed up Rally's story.

What Missouri Parents Learned From This Year's Early Sellouts

  • Missouri's big pumpkin trains run early in October and sell fast: the Glencoe Pumpkin Express sold all 650 seats within about 30 hours. Follow those railroads well before October next year so you see on-sale dates.
  • Trick-or-Track in St. Louis requires a ticket for everyone, even kids 2 and under who ride free, and tickets are limited, so reserve before Saturday.
  • At Trick-or-Track, doors open at 5:30 PM and the train rides start at 7:00 PM. Bring a candy bag for the trick-or-treating.
  • The Kansas City Northern Halloween Train runs 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM on Oct 31 at $2 per lap; bring small bills if your kids will want a second lap.
  • Costumes are welcome at Line Creek Park, and the 1:00 PM costume contest awards a 10-ride pass. On a small ride-on train, shorter costumes that do not drag are safer than long capes.
  • Branson Scenic Railway did not list a 2026 Halloween train, so Ozarks families should not plan around one this year.
  • Stroller rules and parking details were not posted for either Missouri ride, so check the operator site before you load the car.

Closer Pumpkin and Haunted Trains for Missouri Families in Kansas and Iowa

Kansas City families who want a full-size pumpkin train can head about 2 hr 30 min west to the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad's Pumpkin Harvest Express, a daytime ride where passengers hunt for pumpkins along the line, now running Oct 17, 18, 24, 25, 30 and 31. It is covered on our Kansas pumpkin train page.

St. Louis families who miss Trick-or-Track on Oct 17 can still find a Halloween train later in the month: Midwest Haunted Rails in Mount Pleasant, about 3 hr 15 min north, is a haunted night event with a steam ghost train through Oct 31 that suits older kids better than toddlers; see the Iowa Halloween train guide. Illinois also has pumpkin rides within a day's drive of St. Louis, listed in our Illinois roundup.

A train book for the ride

If your kids want a big train with no costumes, our guides to the Southwest Chief through Kansas City and the Lincoln Service from St. Louis to Chicago cover a different kind of rail day.

Free for train families

Print the Rally coloring pages before you go

Watercolor coloring pages from the book, free to print. They fit in a folder with a few crayons for the line at the depot or the drive home.

Get the free coloring pages for Kansas City
Rally Takes the Train book cover: a watercolor corgi peeking from a red train

A train story for the ride homeRally Takes the Train is a five-minute rhyming picture book about a corgi's first train trip to see his grand-paw-rents, including one dark tunnel he is brave enough to ride through. Hand-painted in real watercolor. $13.99 on Amazon, for ages 0 to 8.

Buy on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

More for train families

Sources

Checked against each railroad’s own pages and ticket calendars on October 14, 2026. Dates, prices and policies change, so confirm with the railroad before you go.

Missouri Halloween Train Questions, From Kansas City and St. Louis to Glencoe and Jackson

What Halloween events are there for kids in Kansas City, Missouri?

One family Halloween event in Kansas City is the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad's Halloween Train in Line Creek Park, a gentle ride on Saturday, Oct 31, from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM. Kids ride small ride-on cars around a field, through tunnels and over bridges for $2 a lap, and a costume contest at 1:00 PM awards winners a 10-ride pass.

What Halloween events are there for families in St. Louis, Missouri this October?

One family Halloween event in St. Louis County is Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of Transportation on Saturday, Oct 17. Doors open at 5:30 PM for trick-or-treating in costume and Serengeti Steve's animal show, and spooky train rides in the dark start at 7:00 PM. Tickets are $10 for adults and kids 3 to 12, and kids 2 and under are free but need a reserved ticket.

Is the Wabash Frisco and Pacific Pumpkin Express in Glencoe, Missouri still running?

No. The Wabash, Frisco & Pacific Pumpkin Express in Glencoe ran on Oct 10, 2026, and all 650 seats sold out within about 30 hours of going on sale. There are no more dates this season. If you want seats next fall, watch the railroad's social pages closely and buy the moment tickets open.

Is there a pumpkin patch train near Jackson, Missouri this year?

The St. Louis Iron Mountain & Southern Railway's Pumpkin Patch Train in Jackson already wrapped for 2026, after running Oct 3, 4, 10 and 11. Our research found no other pumpkin patch train in southeast Missouri with dates left. Watch the railroad's page next fall for the next season's dates.

Are there Halloween things to do with kids near Kansas City besides trick-or-treating?

The closest Halloween train to Kansas City is the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad's Halloween Train in Line Creek Park, about 20 minutes away, on Oct 31 only, at $2 a lap. For a full-size pumpkin train, the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad's Pumpkin Harvest Express in Abilene, Kansas, is about 2 hr 30 min west and runs Oct 17, 18, 24, 25, 30 and 31.

Is there a Halloween train for kids near St. Louis this October?

Yes, for one night. Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of Transportation, about 25 minutes from downtown St. Louis, runs Saturday, Oct 17, with spooky train rides in the dark starting at 7:00 PM, plus trick-or-treating and an animal show earlier in the evening. Tickets are $10, and kids 2 and under are free with a reserved ticket. The Glencoe and Jackson pumpkin trains already wrapped.

Is there a Halloween train ride near Springfield, Missouri?

Not nearby this year. Branson Scenic Railway did not list a 2026 Halloween train. The closest remaining Missouri rides are the Kansas City Northern's $2 miniature Halloween Train on Oct 31, about 2 hr 45 min from Springfield, and Trick-or-Track in St. Louis on the evening of Oct 17, about 3 hr 15 min away. The Kansas City ride is the gentler of the two.

Can kids wear costumes on the Kansas City Northern Halloween Train?

Yes, the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad welcomes costumes on its Halloween Train and holds a costume contest at 1:00 PM, with a 10-ride pass for category winners. The cars are small ride-on cars, so a costume that lets your child sit easily and keeps fabric away from the wheels is the safer choice. Leave long capes, tails and big props in the car while you ride.

Are the tunnels on the Kansas City miniature train too scary for a toddler?

Usually not. The Kansas City Northern Halloween Train is a family ride, and nothing posted mentions actors or haunted scenes. The loop does pass through tunnels, which are short dark stretches on a small car. Tell your toddler ahead of time that it gets dark for a moment and then comes right back out, and keep them on your lap.

Is Trick-or-Track at the St. Louis transportation museum too scary for a toddler?

It may be for some toddlers. The National Museum of Transportation calls the 7:00 PM rides spooky train rides in the dark, though it has not described what riders see and posts no minimum age. The earlier part of the evening, trick-or-treating and the Serengeti Steve animal show, is the gentler half. A cautious two-year-old can enjoy that and head home before the train rides.

Can we still get tickets for a Missouri Halloween train this weekend?

As of October 14, yes. Trick-or-Track at the National Museum of Transportation in St. Louis runs Saturday, Oct 17, and tickets were still on sale, though the museum says they are limited and every guest needs one. The Kansas City Northern Halloween Train does not run until Oct 31 and needs no tickets. The Glencoe and Jackson pumpkin trains already wrapped.

Is the Kansas City Northern a real train or a miniature train?

It is a ride-on miniature railroad, not a full-size excursion train. Riders sit on the small cars themselves on a track loop through Line Creek Park, around a field, through tunnels and over bridges. For preschoolers, that small size is part of the appeal, since everything is built close to their own size.

Is there a Halloween train in Branson, Missouri?

Not this year, based on our research. The Branson Scenic Railway did not list a 2026 Halloween train. The Missouri Halloween rides with dates remaining as of October 14 are Trick-or-Track in St. Louis on Oct 17 and the Kansas City Northern Miniature Railroad's Halloween Train on Oct 31. Check the Branson railroad's own site in case anything is added later.

When do Missouri pumpkin train tickets usually sell out?

Very fast. In 2026 the Wabash, Frisco & Pacific Pumpkin Express in Glencoe sold all 650 seats within about 30 hours, and the train ran on Oct 10. The Iron Mountain pumpkin trains in Jackson also ran only on the first two October weekends. If you want a Missouri pumpkin train next year, follow both railroads and buy as soon as sales open.

Kelsey Cecil
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