Tell Trainline about the family days out you have planned - £300 voucher to be won NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Trainline is developing a new days out tool to help with finding new places to visit and they’d love to know which family days out you’re planning this year, and – if you’re going by train – how you plan on entertaining your children on the journey.

They also want you to get involved with helping them to shape their new tool - you can suggest new attractions to be included in the tool using the “suggest” button.

Here’s what Trainline has to say: “At Trainline we’re always looking for ways to make journeys smarter. Clare Gilmartin our CEO, is a mother of three, and keeps us focussed on our customers by reminding us that “it’s the little things that make a big difference”, from saving a few minutes by using a mobile train ticket to getting a great deal using the best fare finder, and this is the ethos that we have at the heart of what we do. Our latest days out tool helps you to find and plan a day out by train, just in time for the summer holidays, but we want your ideas to take it the extra mile.”

So, whether you’ve got educational trips or adventure filled days planned for the summer holidays (and beyond!), let Trainline know about them and your train journey entertainment tips below.

All those who share a day out or tips for entertaining children on the train below will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher from a store of their choice (from a list).

Please note that the days out tool is new and development of it is still underway. Some less popular train routes haven’t been added yet, but will be with time. There will also be more attractions added so please make suggestions on what you’d like to see next. Additionally, if you live in London please search from a mainline station to get the best results.

Thanks and good luck

MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

A few trips to lomdom-we have done the southbank, transport museum and natural history museum. Gone to brighton, and dorking for countryside walks

We recently went to the zoo although we drove. On the way back dh kept missing our turn off, we ended up miles away from where we needed to be and added 1.5 hrs onto our journey, none of us were in a very good mood. Luckily I'm always prepared and had extra snacks, audio book and toys for dc, my bag is always packed as if we're going on a mini break! Think we'll get the train next time though!

We're planning to go to Shepreth Zoo soon - it's fairly close to us but actually much easier to go to by train than car as it's just around the corner from the train station. Journey is short enough that kids are usually entertained by the scenery, though I will take snacks and technology for the youngest just in case.

We don't drive so all of our days out are on the train - the next one will be to Scarborough. We spend most of our time looking out of the window seeing what new things we can see - birds, plants etc. to mark off in her books. We do always take a pad of paper and pens though so that we can play hang man, squares, and noughts and crosses too. Xxx

I'm planning a trip to visit my brother in Leicestershire at Xmas time.
A national express coach is the cheapest way of doing it, but I'd much prefer the speediness of the train.

We've mixed the trips to include no cost days like picnics, walks and adventure playgrounds near home with trips that cost more in time and travel eg beaches, museums ruined castles etc. So far I've managed to keep within the budget but the daytrip tool looks like it could help although I think they have to be more flexible in family numbers. I have four children so we've already blown the tool whether one or both parents go.

Take plenty of snacks on the train, colouring books and something new the kids haven't seen before, to get out if all else fails!

My son and I are going to Hastings this year for a week. It will just be the 2 of us so that we can spend some quality time together before he goes back to school. Last time we went it was as a large extended family so days out had to be suitable for everyone. This time I will let my DS choose what he wants to do. I imagine that we will visit the Aquarium, play crazy golf, go on the beech front rides, eat ice cream, go on the boating lake. It will be a few crazy days of not watching the pennies and just living life to the full.

We travelled by train up north because my father had a stroke. It was a real nightmare navigating the underground with a baby, suitcase and changing bag on my own, but once we got on the train I found a double seat, laid the baby across it, plonked myself on the floor in front of her, turned Ewan the Dreamsheep on and she slept for the whole three hour journey. Bliss!

We travel to London by train about once a month from the wilds of hobbitshire.
We can always find something different to do and taking the train makes life easier when we arrive there.
The train service isn't good enough where we live to visit anywhere else by train though.

Hello i have a 7 year old son and a 1year old son. Our planned days out are Colchester Zoo,Highlodge (thetford forest,thetford) Milton Maze Maze (cambridge). Bewilderwood. To keep my boys occupied we take the ipad (some games you can play without wifi),sweeties,i spy,etch a sketch and books.

My tip would be to do your own 'eye-spy' sheets - ditch the technology because that's too easy!
Print out sheets with things you may see on your journey and get the kids to tick them off when they do. Leave a space for them to draw a picture of something from their journey.

We would usually have several days out in the summer, using the train.

But due to the disgraceful, costly, infuriating and demoralising on-going industrial dispute at Southern, we are unlikely to ever use the train again.

My DD is due to start secondary school in September, and where we live many students take the train to school. We are looking at bus routs having always assumed she would use the train.

We have got a trip booked to Dover Castle and the White Cliffs. I love history and want to in still a love of it in my girls....

We have Merlin cards and I need to organise a family rail card so that we can go further afield and visit the London attractions.

It is good to see how we could manage the travel and attractions on a day out basis although the travel still looks quite expensive.

We always book tickets to go and see family weeks ahead so we can choose the cheapest tickets and try to make the journey part of the whole experience, by taking magazines and snacks and games to play.

We always only ever take a direct train with no changes, even if it takes way longer than one where you have to change as it's just not worth the hassle and stress of packing everything up and getting off a train with a protesting child to find another train that's leaving in 54 seconds just so we can save 20 minutes on the trip.

Going to Thorpe park monday after next.

We have a day out in Blackpool planned for my nephew's birthday but will probably end up driving as the train involved too many changes with a large group of us

Our summer holidays end tomorrow . But we just returned from a week long trip to the scottish islands which was great. We took the train to Oban and the ferry with our DCs and dog.

We are taking the children to Harrogate to the Foodies Festival. Really looking forward to them having cookery lessons in the children's tent.

We will be going by train to Newcastle. The Centre of Life museum is next to the train station which mu daughter loves and good restaurants aren't too further away either.

We've just recently been to the Yorkshire Wildlife Park and had an amazing day, we were extremely lucky with the weather but, even on those inclement days, there are indoor areas where the children can play if you get a downpour. Reasonably priced too!

We are planning day trips to the beach and the park and strawberry picking too!.

Taking a map of your route teaches children about map reading and gets them to look out for aproaching stations and landmarks etc. Also good for their geography too!

I have just got a railcard so that ds3 and I can travel on the train. We are planning the seaside and an adventure park. I took ds1 and ds2 on the train for a treat for the first time when they were 5 and 3 and ds2 hated it and spent the whole journey trying to get off. He is now 19 and hasn't been on one since.

We've got days out to the zoo, park and many bike rides planned.