Thanksgiving Guests in Town? The Museum of Aviation's Free Holiday Season Starts the Sunday Before

The Museum of Aviation opens its two free holiday displays on Sunday, November 22. The Festival of Trees then stays up for more than five weeks. The Middle Georgia Model Railroad Club's Planes and Trains display shuts down after eight calendar days, and the museum is closed on one of them. If you're hosting family in Warner Robins for Thanksgiving, plan the visit around the trains. The trees will still be there when the next round of guests shows up for Christmas.

Seven Open Days, and Two of Them Start After Lunch

The Planes and Trains event page lists the display as running November 22 through November 29, 2026. It follows the museum's regular schedule: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. The museum is closed on Thanksgiving Day. The museum's hours page lists the same regular hours and the same Thanksgiving closure. Both the first and last days fall on Sundays, so the week starts and ends with four-hour windows.

Santa makes his first appearance at 10 a.m. on Friday, November 27. The museum says he'll also be back Saturday and Sunday, but it hasn't posted times for those days. That makes Friday morning the one slot with a set time, all three displays open, and the full nine-to-five day still ahead. For guests flying out Saturday, Friday is the day to go. For guests leaving Sunday, check the event page before you count on seeing Santa that last afternoon.

What Fills the Century of Flight Hangar

The museum calls this the 18th year the club has kicked off the holiday season in the Century of Flight Hangar, though the summary at the top of the same page says 17th. The layouts cover T, Z, N, HO, S, O and G scales. Up to nine trains run continuously on three main lines, past miniature buildings, cars, bridges, rivers and a model airport. A Christmas Village and Thomas the Tank Engine are back again, and the event page says the club adds new modules and features each year.

The hangar holds more than the club's own layouts:

• Visiting exhibits from the Southeastern Railroad Museum and area Welcome Centers
• A commercial vendor selling train-related items
• Raffle tickets for a model train starter set
• Santa's fully restored reindeer sleigh, where children can sit with him and share Christmas wishes

According to the museum, the club was founded in the 1970s and has about 31 members. Members staff the display to answer questions about the hobby. Outside of Thanksgiving week, the club holds public meetings on the third Tuesday of every month at the IHOP at 2710 Watson Boulevard. It skips November and December. A visiting grandchild who gets hooked on HO scale can't catch a meeting while they're here. A local kid who does has a standing invitation starting in January.

The Displays That Outlast Thanksgiving Week

The Festival of Trees opens the same Sunday as the trains and runs through December 29. Admission is free during normal operating hours. Decorated trees fill the rotunda and the second and third floors of the Eagle Building. The museum invites visitors to wear ugly Christmas sweaters and take photos by their favorite tree. Voting for a favorite tree is planned, but the event page still says to check back later for the ballot.

With five weeks to work with, the trees fit the visitors who arrive later in December. The museum closes at 1 p.m. on Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve and is closed all day on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. In 2026, that means Thursday, December 24 is a morning-only visit, Friday, December 25 is closed, and the festival's final day is Tuesday, December 29.

The art upstairs stays even longer. The American Society of Aviation Artists' ASAA 2026 International Aerospace Art Exhibition opened October 6 and runs through mid-March 2027. It's a juried show of 38 paintings by 27 artists from around the world, chosen from nearly 100 entries.

The museum also opened something new this year on the same floor as some of the trees. According to the Houston Home Journal, the GEAR Lab (Georgia Engineering, AI, and Robotics) held its ribbon cutting on Wednesday, May 6, 2026, on the Eagle Building's second floor. It offers hands-on emerging-technology activities for students, community members and businesses. At the opening, the Journal quoted 78th Air Base Wing Commander Johari Hemphill on the people who will use the space: "The people are the magic. Dreams come true in spaces like this." The GEAR Lab site describes AI, robotics, aerospace, automation and 3D-design activities, and it takes visits through a booking inquiry. If a relative's teenager would like a session, send the request well before they arrive.

Getting In, and Getting Lunch

Admission and parking are both free. The museum's entrance is just south of Robins Air Force Base's Russell Gate along Highway 247, at 1942 Heritage Blvd. According to the museum's FAQ, there's parking for buses and RVs, so relatives arriving in a camper can park on site. Pets aren't allowed, with exceptions for seeing-eye and other special-needs animals, so the family dog will have to stay home.

You'll need a plan for food. The FAQ lists snacks and drinks in the Gift Shop as the on-site option. A morning with Santa followed by an afternoon with the trees and the paintings will likely include a lunch somewhere else. One option on Russell Parkway is The Brass Tap at 3151 Russell Parkway, Suite 600. The Houston Home Journal reported on September 10 that it was in its soft opening, with hours of 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Sunday through Thursday and 11 a.m. to midnight on Friday and Saturday. Since those hours date from the soft opening, check them before you go.

A Halloween Run-Through, and What Comes After

Local kids can have their own museum day before the holiday crowds. The 2026 Halloween Duck Hunt runs Saturday, October 31, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Children who find a duck can return one to the Gift Shop for a prize. A child who has already been through the building can lead the cousins around when they visit in November.

Once the trains are packed up, the city's own holiday calendar starts. The City of Warner Robins events calendar lists a Tree Lighting Ceremony and Winter Bazaar on Tuesday, December 1, from 5 to 8 p.m. at 105 Mulberry St. The city says more details are coming. The 2026 Christmas Parade steps off at 10 a.m. on Saturday, December 5, on South Davis Drive near Warner Robins High School. Parade entries must register by 5 p.m. on November 13. If your church group, business or club wants a float, that deadline comes up nine days before the trains start running.

Thanksgiving visits often lead to questions about what life in Houston County actually looks like, from commutes past Russell Gate to what different price points buy across the county. If your guests start asking, William Walton-Dean can give them a clear, local read on the market. Schedule a Consultation.