To take my toddler on a 3.5 hour train journey?

[Peppapigforlife]

Has anyone ever done it? I want to take her on a toddler holiday. I don't think my phone battery will last long enough to keep her entertained and I think the trains are older ones without plug sockets. It's not just one train but three changes.
The longest she has been on a train is just over an hour.
Any experiences would be really appreciated.

Oh just to add I don't drive and I checked for coaches, but there aren't any.

I regularly used to take my DS on long train journeys like this as I also didn't drive. He had lots of activities in his special backpack. We didn't have apps and decent you tube access on phones. He loved it.

I took my DD on a 5 hour train journey (Bangor, North Wales to Bristol) at 17 months old. It was absolutely fine.

Then we had to come home...

The train broke down at Abergavenny, DD went for a nap in her pushchair (pushed around the platform) when she woke 3 hours later we were still in Abergavenny. It was a really hot day (fortunately it was brand new air conditioned train), I didn't have enough food for thetime we were stuck and the snacks given out for free were not the kind of food any sane person would feed a toddler confined to a railway carriage. Then due to the delays we got stuck at Shrewsbury station for an hour or so, then on the next train they suddenly announced that it wasn't stopping at every station in order to get people to the last Holyhead ferry of the day on time, which luckily didn't affect us, but there were some very confused passengers who didn't have English or welsh as a first language trying to figure out what the hell was going on. It was a frickin nightmare!

In the end the 5 hour train journey took 10 hours. Fortunately DD was still breastfed (although not outside the house under normal circumstances by this point) and I was able to sit on the floor between carriages with her on the boob and YouTube cartoons on my phone and keep her calm.

So, OP, 3.5 hours will be fine, but have contingency plans in case of long delays.

I have very fond memories of long train journeys with my granny when i was little. She used to come up to where we lived on the train, stay with us for a week or two, then take me back with her on the train so I could stay with her, then my mum would come down and take me back. I think they started doing this when I was very small, maybe 2 or 3. I know that I loved it - Granny always bought special sweets which were just for trains (I found out aged about 25 that mint humbugs aren't called "train sweets" - I thought that was their name!) and would read me a story, and we'd play I Spy type games where we had to see a cow and a red car and swing and an oak tree or something from the window (she was rubbish! She never saw half the things! I always won!).

I took my 1 year old to Scotland recently, which was about 2 hours on a train and 1 and a half hours on a plane.

I’m very lucky in that he LOVES to look out of the window, but I also took along one of his favourite books (which was about a train so he enjoyed that) and one of those popper toys. I also got some kids Bluetooth headphones and downloaded some of his favourite shows on the bbc iplayer kids app just as backup- but I ended up not needing them.

My mum lives that far away and I don't drive either so I do that distance pretty often by train. I have a 2 and 4 year old. Lots of snacks, colouring supplies, and spotting stuff out the window, it'll be absolutely fine.

Train journeys in many ways easier than car - as long as you don’t have lots of luggage- because you can give them more attention.

Has anyone ever done it?

😂😂😂

OMG. How overdramatic to think no one has ever done this in the history of trains. Some people might have even done it -gasp- before smartphones!

@EatYourVegetables how overdramatic to not read between the lines of colloquial English, to understand that a person was asking a small collective of readers if they had experienced this and if so, their input would be appreciated.

I have done many train journeys with wee kids, if you are going to do screens please take headphones

For the love of gd please don't subject other train users to noise from your phone for an hour +

One tip - everything you take with you (crayons, books, little toy) - wrap it. So then she spends at least 5 mins unwrapping it. Doesn't even need to be new - just wrap toys she already has.

@Peppapigforlife

Now a reading comprehension in “colloquial English” quiz for you. Did I write what I did because:

A) I was confused about your question and thought that you really thought that children under 5 are not and have never been allowed on trains; or
B) I was surprised at how much of a big deal you are making out of a simple train journey, and by your implied question of “how do I parent for 3h without screens”.

But yes, if you still need a serious answer: many children thoughout the world go on train journeys every day. My kids have been going regularly; we don’t drive because climate change so we take trains. You can do it. Bring books and crayons and small fiddle toys. Ration them out ie take them out slowly and only produce the next one when the first one becomes boring. Talk to the child, narrate what’s happening. Bring snacks. Go to the bathroom in the middle of the journey, with a toddler this might kill 15 min to waddle to the bathroom, queue, agree to go in, figure out how to wash hands etc, walk back. Look out of the window to spot animals, building machinery, big buildings etc. Save your phone for emergencies, don’t use it as a nanny. And if you are going to put Peppa on bring child friendly earphones, no one wants to hear that.

The decent power packs on amazon are about £20, they charge a phone several times and a tablet. I did an 11 hr flight with 2 x DCs 3.5 and 1.5. Loads of activity books, play figures and their DSs (it was 12 years ago so smart phones not quite like they are now).

I agree, definitely earphones, at that age I used the proper kids headphones, they are nice and comfy for them. There is nothing worse than having to listen to other people's kids programmes full volume when on public transport.

I did a 7ish hour train journey recently with a 1yo, 2yo, 3yo and then 12yo and 15yo and like other people have suggested, we had new, cheap toys they had every hour or so (in wrapping paper), colouring, stickers, snacks they don't often have etc.

@EatYourVegetables if you read all my posts you'd see that I've taken her on trains many a time.

My question wasn't asking how to 'parent my child', but if a child that age could cope with such a long journey, as she is a toddler and it is a toddler's nature to be full of the unexpected, and İ wish to be fully mentally prepared for what to expect (as much as possible within the scope of the unknown).

Now others have reassured me they have taken their tots on journeys of that length with no bother, that has put my mind at rest.

many trains have sockets for phone charging - but please don't think that the rest of the carriage want to be entertained by shildrens storied over the phone at full volume, with toddler screeching above the din. as I had to put up with for over an hour last night. They don't.

@ThinWomansBrain awww sorry you had to go through such an ordeal. Trust me, İ can't stand the sound of it myself, so I usually put it on mute and when she notices and asks for sound, put the volume at one, so I can't even hear it, let alone anyone else.

@ShinyMe awww i love that image of you and your granny.
İ used to love the trains that we had as a kid, with the seperate compartments, and the doors you had to open yourselves .The journey felt so much more magical on one of those trains. They still had them in some places in Eastern Europe when I went interailing, twelve years ago, I hope they're still around.

I did 4.5 hour train journeys (Somerset to Yorkshire) regularly on my own with my 3 when they were all under 10 to visit my parents. We would go London and the journey included the underground Paddington to kings cross . On a Friday night as well! They used to actively enjoy it and once I passed my driving test still preferred the train. If you can get a table seat you’re sorted. Drawing, colouring, snacks, being read to- they liked the close attention I think. Also people are on the whole very kind and you get all sorts of mini positive interactions which keep you going.

👍 still grouchy from horrid journey late last night

Forgot to mention- just don’t accidentally book/ get in the quiet coach!

I travelled pretty extensively with both dd1 and then both her and dd2 when they were toddlers and babies - trains from Scotland to London, 5hour plane journeys etc. I found its pointless to take too much stuff, a lot to carry and ends up all over the floor. A couple of favourite characters, a sticker/colouring book and a small pack of pens but he most important thing a fully charged device - even better if they have their own - and charging bank and LOTS of snacks. Trains are my favourite way of travelling as you can get up and wander around, walk to the far away toilet to pass some time, get a table seat if at all possible. I've never had any issue getting buggies off etc, wouldn't have thought to ask for assistance. Backpack reins might be a good shout though if she's likely to want to walk at times and it's often easier getting things off with the dc on foot. I've actually never been on a train that didn't have at least some sockets either.

Did you know that people had children before smartphones were invented

Seriously, colouring books, crayons, toys etc are what we used on much longer journeys, I lived overseas flew regularly with my 2 alone 10 hours.

Oh and buy toddler headphones, nobody wants to hear your phone.