model train for hobby

Miniatur Wunderland - the world's largest model railway

   WMRC Vice-President Dave Downie sent us this link about Miniatur Wunderland (German for miniature wonderland), heralded as the world's largest model railway. Located in Hamburg, Germany, it was built by twins Gerrit and Frederik Braun.

    By January 2011 the railway consisted of 39,370 feet of track in HO scale. It's divided into seven sections, including the Alps, Austria, Hamburg, America, Scandinavia, and Switzerland. The layout is still under construction, and new sections are constantly in development. Ten new sections have been planned, and their newest sections in the works include Italy and Monaco. They expect the railway to be complete in five years, but why would they ever stop?

    The exhibit includes a staggering 890 trains made up of over 11,000 cars, 300,000 lights, 215,000 trees, and 200,000 figurines. Not surprisingly, it has become one of Hamburg's biggest tourist attractions. Over 12 million people have visited the railway. Their scale model version the airport alone cost 3,500,000 Euros.

    To watch their latest video, click here.
    To download a PDF their press kit, click here.
    To visit their website, click here.