Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum

This is no museum. It is the seventh gate of hell, reserved for the worst of sinners.
We went here for the sake of a young child’s entertainment but, much like the other children there at the time, his joy and excitement (and maybe even his soul) quickly dissipated.
There isn’t much to see or do, and the staff is comprised solely of people ages 75 and up. One staff member in particular, a half-​man named «Matt», was rude and boring. He had no people skills, and couldn’t handle the fact that a TWO-​year old couldn’t tolerate his awful railroad rantings… but neither could any of the adults on the tour.
If you want to piss away a perfectly good $ 9, then stop by this «museum», or your local Subway for lunch.

This was a very fun excursion with the family. Nice tour tons of education but not overwhelming. The experience can be as long as you want to be. My husband loves trains so we took the kids and I had a great time as well. Not a huge museum by any means but so worth it!

Go see this place before it closes! The people who own the rights to the tracks they used to use for the train ride have refused to renew the contract, so for now the scenic ride is on hold. The folks who run the museum were very nice and knowledgeable, and while you can only currently ride the train for about 200 feet, it’s still interesting to see the inside of a restored antique train. You’re guaranteed to walk away knowing more about trains than you did before.
The place is in serious danger of closing, though, so go visit and show your support while you can.

I think it is a bit of a stretch to call this a museum. They have a few exhibits, but I would imagine that most people come here just to the ride the train.
The ride itself is slow and shaky, but I enjoyed it. There isn’t much to see, mostly woods, but the speaker did a great job at explaining all the points of interest along the way and the history of the train. A word of caution, if you go on a really hot day as we did, there is no AC and not all the windows go up, so make sure you sit next to or behind an open window.
I think it is worth seeing, especially if you are into trains, but don’t expect too much.

I’d like to think of myself as a train connoisseur. Not that I know everything about trains, but I know enough. You see, I’ve been going to Railroads ever since I was a little girl. My Dad really instilled in me a love for all that is trains.
So I accidentally let it slip to my Dad that Joe and I were going to the Berkshires and that we wanted to go to the Berkshire Scenic Railway. Well, I should have realized that by telling my Dad this he would obviously want to come. And I was correct. And you know what, it worked out great. Joe and I saved about $ 140 on bus fare, my parent’s managed to stay in Lenox while we were in Williamstown, and we both got to see trains.
Now, the BSR offers a 90 minute train ride that starts in Lenox, goes through Lee, and ends in Stockbridge. Along the way, you get a nice narrative about the sights and sounds around you, plus a little history of the railroad. This always happens with every train ride, but I wish they would turn up the sound, because I actually enjoy the narrative.
There is also a mini-​museum in the Lenox station that basically tells you the history of the BSR, the different stations, and so on. It’s a bit primitive, but they have some hands-​on exhibits, like a telegraph, and a light system that tells you what the different signals mean. For the model railroad fan, there is one giant display next to the gift shop portion of the station, which is basically a replica of the line. There is also a smaller version at the entrance.
The one regret I have is not purchasing one of the delicious smelling hot dog that were being sold before the ride. Had I known that they would not have been available when we came back, I would have grabbed one. Le sigh.
My only warning is to those of you that get motion sickness. The passenger cars that they use are from the 1920s, and they sway quite a bit. At some points I felt like I was on a boat. But overall, I say for $ 15.00 a person, it’s a great deal.