Am I being unreasonable for wanting my friends to choose a more central meeting place?

Surely with group meet ups despite the best planning there is often going to be a date or venue that someone can’t manage? Whether that is they can’t manage from the start or something crops up after the arrangements have been made, that’s just life.
This time it’s you that the arrangements don’t work for, it’s not really the difference between 2 or 3 hrs travelling is it, it’s because of your new baby. Just bow out gracefully, they can have a meet up that’s more convenient for the majority and you can suggest somewhere for the next meet up and look forward to that.

It sounds like they usually all travel further to accommodate you & for this one meet up they prefer to go to this particular place. Do you ever organise the meet ups? It’s hard keeping everyone happy.

So usually they all travel much further than they need to to meet up to accommodate you. On this one occasion you're being asked to travel further, how can you possibly think that's unreasonable?

Can you go by train?

Can you stay overnight?

Can you just opt out this time?

Presumably if they all have small families then they've also had to travel at some times and leave small babies? Or have they taken the babies with them?

A very tiny baby is a reasonable reason not to go though.

3 hours each way is too far in my opinion. Unless it's a big event and you're also staying over.
I have a group of friends in which the majority live close to each other. If there are 3ppl in one area and me elsewhere, I think it's fair to do 3 meet-ups in their location and one in mine. Bit of a ratio of 1:1 per person.

I think if you live the furthest away, that’s just how it goes.

It’s totally fine for you to give it a miss if you have a small baby.

They're not unreasonable for arranging it.

You're not unreasonable for not wanting to go with a small baby.

No one's being unreasonable. Just say you'll try to make it to the next one.

I think it’s difficult to expect several people to travel much further to accommodate one who loves further than them all.

On every occasion, anyway.

Is the person for whom it is a special occasion close to the venue?

On the odd occasion I think you have to suck it up that you will need to travel further.

Usually I would say suck it up but with a newborn I would duck out this time.

But do it with good grace.

Having a tiny baby would be the reason not to make this meet up, not the distance. Dip out of this one.

I think this is one for you to sit out. They aren't being deliberately unfair, however it sounds like you live much further away. Sometimes these things happen.

Not unreasonable not to travel that far, But would you have traveled the usual 2 hours with baby? I wouldn't have at that age. I don't think they are unreasonable for planning it, sounds like they usually do travel as well so hopefully it's just a one off

If you’ve got a tiny baby, you clearly can’t do a six hour travel day. That’s totally fine and totally normal.

Just say ‘ooh, with X being so stuck to me at the moment I just can’t do the travel guys. Know you all want to see the place, I’ll sit this one out and catch you next time.’

No biggie.

It's understandable you wouldn't want to go with the baby (although tbh even the usual 2hours would also be quite a faff) but I don't think it's at all unreasonable of then to want to go somewhere closer for the majority of them to go somewhere particular.

It sounds like most of them live quite close to each other so could meet up with less than an hours travel but they travel further every other time to save you and the other further friends additional time, which is nice of them.

I think it would be a bit unreasonable to kick up a fuss about ONE occasion thats a little bit further for you when they usually make an effort to make it as fair as possible.

Not everyone can make it to everything.

What's the occasion?

Having just seen your update, you’re not unreasonable at all not to want to spend 6 hours travelling for a meet up when you have a very young baby at home. Just be honest, ‘would love to come but I can’t leave the baby for that long, have a drink or three for me and I’ll see you all next time’. …And relax..

If 3 of them live quite near each other, I think it's fair / understandable that you travel to them

Depends how far it is, but it sounds like a one off so I wouldn’t complain about it.

If the place has special significance then i would suck it up. If it is very far then book a hotel and stay the night.

It’s only 2-3 times a year. My friends and I are scattered all over the UK. We meet twice a year in London or Dublin and once in Spain. At least three of us will fly when we’re going to London or Dublin, and we all fly to Spain from our respective airports. It’s all part of the fun. If equidistant means a Harvester in Hull compared to a bit of travel for a night out at Hamilton in London then I know I’d want to make the effort.

Gonna need more info op
Is it round the corner for others but hours for you?
Who chose it?
What's the occasion?

it’s not like they’re doing this every time and it happens three times a week. And it’s a special occasion, so everyone’s doing something a bit different. Come on OP, you know you’re being a bit unreasonable.

If this place is closer for everyone else, sounds like they usually travel further so you can be included? If that’s the case as a one-off either don’t go or arrange to stay overnight. It depends how much you want to see these people.

Are you one of those friends who never arranges anything, but then complains about other people’s arrangements?
Next time suggest and organise something near you then you won’t have to drive very far.

You say ‘we normally meet in an area that is fairly equidistant for the furthest people including me’ but also that this meet up is far from you but ‘much nearer for everyone’.

The ‘everyone’ implies that you’re the only one having to travel further. If that’s the case or there is only one other ‘inconvenienced’ then YABU: group things are usually organised around the majority