Summer holiday to the seaside reliant on public transport

[badlydrawnbear]

It will be our first summer holiday since DH died. I can’t drive. DC are 7 and 10. Please recommend places we can get to on the train from Midlands and can then get to accommodation/ beaches/ interesting places to go if not beach weather/ shops without a car.

Tenby, but its quite a journey

Weymouth.

Long journey ( 5 hours ) but only one change, pre-booked adult tickets are around £40.

Decent beach, shallow water, nice harbour and Jurassic coast not too far 👍

Caswell Bay in South Wales. Train to Swansea then taxi or bus to Caswell. There are chalets there you can rent very inexpensively. Lovely beach. Great walks nearby and very relaxing location.

Bournemouth also good. Also Kent coast (Broadstairs/Margate/Whitstsble/Deal/Canterbury) all on high speed line from St Pancras with pretty good public transport. Loads to do down there (if you have passports and are that way inclined code do a day trip to France, Covid requirements willing)

I second Weymouth. The train station is close to lots of hotels and the sea front. They run a good bus service in the summer to places of interest.
www.firstbus.co.uk/wessex-dorset-south-somerset/plan-journey/jurassic-coaster/jurassic-coaster-timetables

Honestly? I think it's easier to go abroad. Then all you have to do is get to the airport. Book an all inclusive package holiday so they can make friends , get guaranteed weather, you will be able to relax more

Brighton. It is easiest in terms of plentiful accommodation, diverse food options, cheaply finding /replacing essentials (we always forget things) and trips to other places nearby using local transport. It is lively but I personally like that (never stayed anywhere where I couldn't sleep and I'm a very light sleeper).

Sorry for your loss.

We had quite a few holidays by train pre-kids. Cornwall is very good for this and there are cross-country trains from some places in the Midlands direct to Exeter and Penzance.

In Cornwall, St Ives (change at St Erth) is brilliant for this and having a car is a pain there anyway as parking is a nightmare. There’s stuff to do in town but you can also get buses to Land’s End and Marazion for St Michael’s Mount.

Looe in Cornwall is also a good option by train. As for St Ives, you do change train - I think it might be Lostwithiel but it was about ten years ago. It’s not got as much going on as St Ives but the coastal path towards Polperro is lovely.

We also enjoyed Bournemouth, where there is plenty to do but you can also get the bus to Poole and boat to Brownsea Island.

Good luck!

Blackpool is really easy to get to by train.

I drive so not quite the same but I have 2 children and every year I look up holidays and realise that staying here is such a big risk weather wise and more expensive.
Last night I looked up butlins and the cost of the break, with a food package plus petrol I'd be near on £1000 😳
Then I looked on tui and found a weeks all inclusive in turkey for £999.
They do 1 child free and £200 for a single adult booking with children at the moment.

Maybe too far but you can get train to Penzance, Penzance premier inn is just by it, from there can get boat / plane / helicopter over to Isles of Scilly and those you can walk around, get boats inbetween, lots of wildlife, canoeing etc. Does get booked up quite early though.

Or Torquay - there are hotels there with pools, one we stayed in had bowling and kids entertainment programme as well and think boats also go from there as well as train in summer. There was a tourist train picked up from outside door of some hotels there as well.

I'd go abroad too, unless there's reasons why not. Warm, nice all inclusive, all transfers, coach trips....

The Isle of Wight has a good public transport network, and plenty for kids in a relatively small area. Train to Portsmouth Harbour or Southampton, then across the water by ferry or cat.

Isle of Wight. Not sure about trains from midlands to Portsmouth (for ferry), but once you get there there is a good bus network plus trains down one side of it. Loads to do and feels like you’ve gone somewhere special.

(Disclaimer: 20 years since I holidayed there with no car!)

Well that just shows you’re destined to go to the Isle of Wight!

This map is a useful resource.

Tenby is lovely as is Llandudno.
What about Barmouth?
Barnstaple?
Weymouth?
The Isle of Wight?

You can download railway maps from here

Weston super mare, it's restaurants are up and coming but the town centre is grotty. It's easy to get to Bristol or Bath where there's plenty to do it it's raining

If you can go abroad (I know we can't as asd child and covid rules) the First Choice Splashworld range have waterparks and kids entertainment and very easy - just get on plane, met other end with coach to hotel, go to hotel and all your meals and drinks are included, lots to do onsite and coach trips out if you want to add trips out. Not the most cultural of holidays but lots of fun for kids.

Two places I went with ds (and no car) when he was that age. Sheringham in Norfolk (or Cromer). You can get the train from one to the other, buses to Wells, Hunstanton, and steam railway from Sheringham to Holt.

Broadstairs in Kent. Nice sandy beaches, trains to Margate, Ramsgate, Dover, Deal, Canterbury, Whitstable etc plus local bus services to many places.

Sorry for your loss, what part of the Midlands, what's your nearest station and airport

Whitley Bay/Tynemouth? May not be quite as warm as some of the southern places, but on the metro into Newcastle for things to do, shops etc

Look at PGL family breaks

North Wales is pretty accessible from the Midlands.

Both Broadstairs and Sheringham have food shops in town centre, so very easy.