My daughter Halle is in college, and there we were at the Colorado Railroad Museum in matching Christmas-light pajamas, holding up our golden Polar Express tickets for a selfie. The hoods had little gold stars on top. Of course we put them up for the picture.
I love this sort of thing because I think families need traditions, and sometimes that starts to feel like one more thing somebody has to plan. I didn’t go to Golden on November 5 thinking, “Tonight I’m going to make a family memory.” I went to ride a train with my kid. The memory happened anyway.
The Colorado Railroad Museum invited us to its media preview of The Polar Express Train Ride and provided our tickets.
We sat in preferred viewing
Honestly, it was the perfect spot for us. Part of what you’re going to see in Golden is a live show. There were performers in chef hats holding their trays up onstage, and we had hot cocoa and cookies. My mug had a little golden ticket printed just inside the rim that said BELIEVE. You can see it peeking out over the cocoa in my photo.
If you’re wondering whether to go with a grown kid, look at our ticket photo. Halle and I are both grinning like fools. I’m glad we didn’t decide we’d aged out of this one.
Wear the pajamas. Bring the warm shoes.
The museum encouraged adults to wear pajamas, too. My practical advice: plan what goes over them. Part of the evening is outside while you wait for the train, so bring a warm layer and wear closed-toe shoes you can stand around in.
Our preview instructions said to arrive 45 minutes before showtime. That left time on the schedule for parking, checking in and the cabaret-style pre-show. For our visit, parking was free on the museum grounds at 17155 W. 44th Avenue in Golden. Check-in was under the booking name; the big golden tickets in our pictures weren’t something we had to print at home. Check your own confirmation for your arrival time and the Colorado Railroad Museum for current ticket information.
Oh, and our bells? Definitely ding-a-linging.
