Real Rails 2025 - Tours
Guided Tours
NOTE: Fare includes school bus rental and admission/donation as required. Some tours have PPE requirements. For those that do not, please wear sensible footwear.
Tour 1 - GO Transit Willowbrook Rail Maintenance Facility - Friday; 8am-12noon. $35
The Willowbrook facility is the original purpose built GO locomotive and passenger car maintenance and storage facility, opened in 1980. Since its creation in 1967 to serve commuters along its Lakeshore line from Burlington to Pickering, GO has grown its rail and bus service and now carries over 56 million passengers annually. Willowbrook plays an essential role in ensuring that over 200,000 rail passengers get safely to work and home again on time every day! GO schedules are found at: www.gotransit.com NOTE: This tour will only accept 20 people. GO requires that visitors must wear their own PPE compliant footwear. GO will provide the rest of the PPE.
Tour 2 - Halton County Radial Railway Museum - Friday; noon-4pm. $45
Now in its 8th decade of operation, the Halton County Radial Railway Museum houses one of the largest collections of radial and streetcars in Canada. Join us for this special event. Normally closed this time of year, the people at the HCRRM will open exclusively for us on Friday October 17, 2025. See the magnificent collection in the specially built exhibition building. Our special day will give us rare access to the restoration facilities and no less than four different types of cars for us to ride. Ride one, or ride all four! For more about the HCRRM go to: hcry.org
Tour 3 - VIA Rail Toronto Maintenance Shops - Saturday; 8am-noon. $35
See how Canada's passenger rail system keeps the wheels rolling on its fleet of locomotives and cars, from the heritage fleet used on The Canadian, its premier transcontinental flagship train to its newest Siemens SCV-42 (Charger) fleet now operating in intercity corridor service. While there are plans to replace the equipment of The Canadian , for now active elements from the past, present and future of Canadian passenger rail service can be seen here together! For more info go to: Via Toronto Maintenance Centre - Wikipedia NOTE: VIA requires that visitors must provide their own full PPE including vest, safety footwear, helmet and goggles.
Tour 4 - Ontario Steam Heritage Museum - Saturday; noon-4pm. $35
While the Ontario Steam Heritage Museum is a private registered museum, and only open by appointment, we have bee granted the opportunity to tour this unique facility. Its collection of steam traction engines, portable steam engines and stationary steam engines is hard to beat. It also has a Vulcan steam locomotive which is being restored to operation. Some engines will be fired up for our tour. Definitely not to be missed by fans of steam technology! For more about the OSHM go to: www.ontariosteamheritagemuseum.ca
Tour 5- Ontario Southland Railway - Sunday; 11am-4pm. $35
The Ontario Southland is a successful shortline created in 1992 using the former CPR branchline connecting Tillsonburg and Ingersoll, a distance of 27 km (17 mi.) It has since grown with the purchase of an additional 52 km (32 mi) of former CPR track connecting Woodstock to St. Thomas and in 2015 began leasing the former CN Cayuga Sub between St. Thomas and Delhi. It is unique among shortlines, rostering over 30 locomotives with build dates from 1947 to 1973. Vintage diesels and shortline operations - a winning combination! For more about the OSR go to: ontariosouthlandrailway.ca NOTE: Be sure to arrange with the hotel your checkout and baggage storage with the hotel if you are on this tour.
Self-Guided Tours
Toronto Railway Museum
Accessible by car, GO train or TTC, the Toronto Railway Museum uses part of the old John St. CPR roundhouse in downtown Toronto. It is about a 15 minute walk from Union Station. Its collection includes CNR Northern 6213, CPR wooden business car Nova Scotia. NOTE: The QEW and Gardiner Expressway are extremely busy and parking near the museum is expensive. Taking the GO train or TTC from Kipling station is recommended. For more about the TRM go to: torontorailwaymuseum.com
Steam Whistle Brewery
Adjacent to the Toronto Railway Museum and sharing some of the roundhouse stalls is Steam Whistle Brewery. While visiting the Museum you can also tour the brewery and enjoy a meal there. There is a charge for the brewery tour. For more information including the menu at its Steam Whistle Kitchen,go to: steamwhistle.ca
Little Canada
Truly an amazing sight, Little Canada reproduces major scenes from all across Canada in HO scale. They will even print a 3D model of you (for an extra charge.) You can travel from the Atlantic, to the Pacific, to the Arctic Oceans and everywhere in between for the price of admission without leaving the building! For information about accessibility, admission, etc., go to: little-canada.ca
Bayview Junction
You'll be hard-pressed to find a busier railway junction anywhere else in Canada. Bayview Junction hosts four different railways, GO, CN, CPKC and VIA. Less than a half hour away, you will find a number of excellent vantage points for railfanning and photography.