Top tips for the train

[stargirl1701]

We have booked a holiday in Dorest for June and would like to travel by train. What would be your top tips? So far, I have:

Family railcard
Book 12 weeks in advance

I've never used the train outside of Scotland so I am only familiar with Scotrail.

Dorset

How old are the children?

reserve seats, book a table seat, so they can colour/stick/ play games. Don’t book in the quiet carriage.
Scotland to Dorset is quite a long journey - take a picnic and some snacks, rather than relying on the catering which can become expensive.
Make sure you know how to get to your accommodation when you get off the train, you will be tired and won’t want to be faffing around trying to work it out

Tickets can be cheaper if you split the journey and don’t buy through tickets. Check different routes, some will be cheaper.
I often travel from Coventry to Liverpool, its much cheaper to get a ticket from Birmingham to Liverpool and separate ticket from Cov to Brum. All all the same train.
If you have to change trains, check the changover times, give yourself a bit of room for delays and getting across platforms.
Think about peak times, both at start and end of the journey. I usually plan the journey to leave after commuter times and to arrive either before or after at the other end. Leaving half an hour later can make it a lot easier at the end.
Don’t take huge suitcases, difficult to get off and on and fit into the luggage racks.
I travel all over the UK with my son, who is now 16, it can be a very easy and comfortable way to travel with a bit of planning.
Have fun!

Is the station you’re travelling to a big station? If not there are unlikely to be taxis waiting there so be sure to book some kind of transfer in advance if you need to.

Definitely plenty of snacks.

Have chargers in easily accessible bags as there are normally sockets you can use to charge up phones/ Switch etc.

We do Cambridgeshire to Pembrokeshire most summers. It’s better than driving as you can stretch your legs whenever.

Remember headphones for any devices.

A power bank is handy. Not all trains have charging sockets.

There is a Cross Country train that starts in Manchester, going through Birmingham and Reading down to Bournemouth.
It would save lugging suitcases on the tube if you could use that. If you want to break the journey I. London I often use a company called Stasher (like Airbnb for luggage) to look after my bags.

GWR (my local train co, but can book tickets all round the UK), gives me nectar points for travel.
Some (like Southern) sometimes have cheap child fare promotions on their trains if you book with them.

Also, pay attention to travel delays; DH and I have had several refunds when trains >30-60 minutes late (it's been such a long time since I've been on a train I can't remember the rates now).

Book seats in a different carriage to your kids