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Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad continues to garner accolades

One of the most unique and beloved tourist attractions in the Okanagan Valley continues to garner recognition and win awards.

The Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad announced Monday they have been entered into the TripAdvisor Hall of Fame and received the Certificate of Excellence for 2018.

In a phone interview with PentictonNow Monday, longtime owner Poul Pederson, who runs the business with his wife Ulla, daughter Lotte and son-in-law Joe Mendes, said they were thrilled to win another prestigious award.

<who>Photo Credit: Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad </who>The accolades and awards continue to pour in for the Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad. The unique tourist attraction was entered into the TripAdvisor Hall of Fame on Monday. Members of the family-run business include Poul Pederson (far right), his wife Ulla, daughter Lotte and her husband Joe Mendes.

The 4,000 square foot facility located in the Buenva Vista Industrial Park in Osoyoos, has been garnering national and international attention almost from the time it opened back in 2003.

Using small kits, the Pederson’s have created a “fantasy world” involving two kilometres of scaled-down miniature trains and train tracks that capture small European villages in intricate detail.

As a kid, Poul always wanted to have a train set, but that dream never came true. When he became an adult, he never forgot his childhood dream and started to collect Marklin trains.

<who>Photo Credit: Facebook Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad

After getting married to Ulla and having his only daughter, he became very serious about his trains. He became so bitten by the bug, that every house they built had to have a very big special room with 2,000 square feet of space set aside for his train set obsession.

He started setting up his train sets in Denmark in the mid-1970s and soon it wasn’t enough just to have the tracks and trains running.

He enlisted his wife’s help to build the small houses to create miniature European villages.

<who>Photo Credit: Facebook Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad

As she had become wheelchair-bound due to rheumatic arthritis, Ulla needed a distraction and poured her heart and soul into the venture.

They ended up purchasing over 80 “kits” at a store closeout sale.

Ulla became so engrossed and involved in creating all of the tiny houses, that it helped her deal with her physical pain much better.

To date, she has assembled more than 2,000 tiny houses and her son-in-law is also helping as their collection grows.

<who>Photo Credit: Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad

When the family decided to move to Spain in the late 1970s, all of the miniature trains, train tracks, houses, cars, people and trees were taken apart and packed into storage.

After a couple of years living in Spain, Poul, Ulla and Lotte decided to pack up and move again, this time to Osoyoos and Canada.

This is the fourth and last time the model railroad has been set up and he’s thrilled he’s been able to turn a beloved hobby into a successful small business that has attracted tens of thousands of visitors over the past 15 years, said Pederson.

In 2015, the top-rated Canadian television series The Amazing Race featured the Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad in one episode.

Contestants had to find 20 hidden miniatures of host and former Canadian Olympic gold medallist Jon Montgomery.

<who>Photo Credit: Facebook Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad

“The response and exposure we got from being on The Amazing Race was simply incredible,” said Pederson. “We still get people coming in every day telling us they watched that show and wanted to see the railroad for themselves.”

The entire outlay of the model railroad is “pure fantasy” with the goal of recreating a miniature European village like the one he grew up in in Denmark, said Pederson.

Poul set up all the the wooden train tracks, switches and signals, as well as the wiring and computer programming.

<who>Photo Credit: Facebook Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad

Ulla and Lotte then went to work to create the magic of the little towns and roads to connect them.

Since the tracks and trains are the main attraction, the landscapes and decorations have to compliment the trains, he said.

There are now more than 20,000 trees, cars, lights, houses, castles, factories and people.

Ulla has now painted more than 26,000 “little people”, using a very small brush, dab of paint and great deal of patience, he said.

Lotte has become a master at landscape and scene building, he said.

Since the entire family is so heavily involved, it’s a common goal to upgrade and improve various sections of the display as soon as new products come to market, he said.

Mendes is now also involved in running the trains and computers, he said.

<who>Photo Credit: Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad

“It’s truly a family affair,” said Pederson.

Now in its eighth year, the Certicate of Excellence celebrates businesses that have earned great traveler reviews on TripAdvisor over the past year. Certicate of Excellence recipients include attractions, restaurants and accommodations located all over the world that have continually delivered a quality customer experience.

“As the owner of the Osoyoos Desert Model Railroad, I am very proud to announce we have entered into TripAdvisor’s Hall of fame after being a recipient of their Award of Excellence every year since 2012,” said Pederson. “What started out as a model train hobby in Denmark in the early seventies, led to opening up our train display in 2003 in Osoyoos, which is now a world class attraction.

“The entire family is very excited to receive this honour. It is truly amazing we are among the top 30 Things to Do in all of Canada according to TripAdvisor and we want to sincerely thank all our visitors for all their thoughtful and wonderful comments.”

“TripAdvisor is excited to announce the recipients of the 2018 Certicate of Excellence, which celebrates experiences and other travel businesses that have consistently received strong praise and ratings on the world’s largest travel site,” said Heather Leisman, Vice President of Industry Marketing, TripAdvisor. “This recognition allows us to publicly honor businesses that are actively engaging with customers and using feedback to help travelers identify and condently book the perfect trip.”

The Certificate of Excellence accounts for the quality, quantity and recency of reviews submitted by travelers on TripAdvisor over a 12-month period.



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