Museum of Handcar Technology – Monterey Bay Rail Bikes

Our organization umbrella consists of Kalamazoo Manufacturing Company that manufacturers our vehicles, Handcar Tours that hosts guided tours, and the Museum of Handcar Technology that preserves and preserves the long heritage of human powered railroad vehicles.

Device Holdings

We own the largest collection of railroad handcars in the world.

Manufacturing

Photos and videos showing how we build our handcars.

Monterey Branch Line

We reopened the Monterey Branch Line after 20 years of being out of service.

4.8 92 reviews

Matt Wittkopp ★★★★★ 2 weeks ago
Wow! If you are visiting the Monterey area, You NEED to do this! My wife and I did a Friday morning tour ($10 off on Fridays). … More What a great experience! We did the electric assist tour for two, and it was much easier than we expected it to be. All said we did about 45 minutes of actual biking and there is a small break in the middle which is when the track is closest to the ocean for a cool view. The business is family owned, the owner gave the welcome and safety brief. It's clear they are very passionate about this and it really helped to make the experience fun! We will be back in a few weeks to bring some visiting family. The only down fall is that children need to be five and older for the electric bikes and ten and older for the manual hand carts. It would be cool if they add a children seat in the back to allow little ones to enjoy it. All said, it was a very cool experience and we are glad we did it. Well worth the money!Edit: Came back a few weeks later with family to try the hand cars. We really enjoyed the hand cars, definitely better than the bike cars but it's a close call, so I recommend both. My mom, my sister and myself were able to do the hand car. The first hill was the hardest part and after that we were able to get cruising. It was a lot of fun and our calves and arms are sore the next day but we got the cart moving pretty fast. We really enjoy it and enjoy talking with the staff who are all family members and are quite passionate about what they do! We will be back with other family members and friends. Thank you!
Allan Chris Sucgang ★★★★★ 2 weeks ago
It was our first time, and it was awesome! We have a wonderfulfun day. I highly recommend to everyone of all ages ( kids … More of course with adults supervision), all worth it driving to this awesomeness HANDCAR TOURS. The folks who works here are knowledgeable, super friendly, and awesome, especially Mason and his Mom. You guys Rock!!!
D C ★★★★★ 3 weeks ago
If you have a couple of hours to spare in Monterey, definitely book a time slot to go on these updated train carts. They … More have electrical assist and it does help getting up the minor hills. Mason and family are awesome and definitely recommend this experience.
Ngan Nguyen ★★★★★ a month ago
I saw an ad for this on Instagram and decided to give it a try. It's an interesting concept to enjoy the view along … More the coast.People working there were very friendly and knowledgeable of the cars. This is a family business. The owner's son is the own that designed the cars and they build all the cars themselves. They said it cost them $29,000 to build an electric car. The hand cars were created first. A hand car can hold up to 4 people, you have to use your arms/hands to drive it. The electric cars were added very recently and only 2 people can occupy it. You use your legs to pedal itWe reserved an electric car and I'm glad we did because I don't like the arm motion of the hand car. I much prefer pedalling. You don't have to pedal much because it's electric assisted. I enjoyed the ride but it felt quite short. I wished it was longer and there was less waiting/idle time.Support small business!!