Friday 21 July 2017

Travel With Virgin Trains For Family Day's Out This Summer

This week schools up and down the country break up for the long awaited summer holidays. As a mum of three myself, I am so looking forward to spending extra time with my children, having fun and making memories. Obviously, the six week's holidays are long and children do get bored, so as a family we normally plan a few exciting days out. Last year we visited York several times by train which we found much more convenient and relaxing than travelling by car.

Travelling by train is exciting for children and is more relaxing for us adults too, there is no need to worry about getting lost or finding a parking space. When travelling with young children, like we do I also find it much more convenient to travel via train as they have toilets on board and refreshment trolleys - so no more constant service station stops. 

The Spirited Puddle Jumper blogger Virgin Trains Campaign 2017


It seem's that I am not alone in thinking like this as recent research carried out by Virgin trains reveals that other parents feel this way too. 

This week 3.4 million cars are set to hit the roads, heading on summer adventures. Meaning us Brits are bracing ourselves for a summer of Carmaggedon (get it?). Common 'carguments' families face are over who sits where, what music to listen to, children kicking seats and having the windows open. Sound familiar? It sure sounds familiar for my family. 

A nationwide study by Virgin trains of over 2,000 parents found that a quarter of parents believe their family argues in the car more then anywhere else, with a third of parents abandoning family trips due to arguments. A huge 62% of those surveryed believe that arguments would have been avoidied if they had of travelled by train instead. 

As a parent this is something that I totally agree with myself as there is nothing worse than an in-car argument (cargument), especially with young children involved. Travelling by train means you can easily combat boredom as you can entertain your child more easily, you can quickly and easily take them to the toilet - always a bonus when you have two pre-schoolers. The thing I like the most about travelling by train is that my children totally adore it and get so excited, which always makes travelling more fun and gets the day off to the right start.

Patrick McCall, Co-chairman of Virgin trains sums it up perfectly saying "Our on board Wi-Fi, refreshments on tap, movies, magazines and more (with our Beam app) and of course toilets are the perfect solution to those avoidable car arguments. Getting trips off to the best start and giving families more quality time together from the moment they leave the house."

This is a statement I certainly agree with myself. The good news is that Virgin trains are helping families tackle those summer 'carguments' and get their trip off to a more enjoyable start by launching some great summer promotions. For example, us Geordie families can save up to 50% off family travel on selected East Coast routes between August the 7th to September the 10th 2017 (on journeys booked between July 31 and September 2nd.)

They also have a super flexible anytime family return ticket offer on the West Coast route. To find out more about these brilliant offers and to book tickets for your next family adventure visit www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/family-promo and enter the promo code FM50 to book or visit www.virgintrains.com to find out more. 

After finding out about these great value offers I will certainly be booking another train adventure to York for us this summer as it is only an hour from Newcastle. My children adore train journeys, we don't have to worry about getting lost, parking or any dreaded 'carguments' between my children either. Summer holidays are made for family adventures, making memories and I can not wait to make more memories this summer without the stress of long car journeys. 


Are you off on any train journeys this summer? If so let me know where you recommend visiting as I am always looking for new ideas.

This is a collaborative post with Virgin Trains. 
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36 comments

  1. I'm heading to Cambridge next month to meet up with another blogger for the day with our kiddies :D

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  2. Oh yes to all of the above! Long car journeys are something I try and avoid, unfortunately there are some times when we just can't. But we do enjoy using the train especially when we're heading into the cities. Birmingham has had a surprisingly transforming makeover and we enjoy going into this City especially to its science museum

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    1. We love the train for city breaks too, mainly York or Edinburgh as you can get some right bargain prices x

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  3. My little girl loves trains; travelling in them and just watching them go by. I suppose most kids do really, don't they. Travelling by train is a better option for us with longer journeys sometimes as my little girl gets car sick. X

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    1. We are the same with young children, they don't get as bored either do they and its nice to take them for a walk or to the toilet if they get restless xx

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  4. I'll never forget following a car in which a young girl was constantly thumping her brother in the back seat, it was the worst cargument ever. We've always found train journeys comfortable.

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    1. Oh no I can imagine my children doing that, they fight non-stop lately. x

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  5. I get a bit out off from trains as the fares can be crazy sometimes but virgin's value ticket offers certainly sound well worth looking into!

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    1. It is a fab offer, we are hoping to visit a few places this summer using the offer xx

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  6. Train journeys were always so exciting as a child. It is a lot easier for our family to take the car as my son is a full time wheelchair user and I have a back problem but I do think my son misses out.

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    1. I can imagine it must be difficult trying to get a wheelchair on a train with a bad back. x

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  7. Annoyingly they don't run from Cardiff. I'm gutted as they look fab trains x

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    1. Oh that's a shame, they really are very comfortable and good value x

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  8. My kids would love to travel by train so we may do it for a day out. My son loves Virgin trains and loves the Hornby version!

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    1. Oh you should while they have the offers on, we are just going to Durham which is 20 minutes away just so we can take the children on the train as they love it x

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  9. I don't think we have used Virgin trains before! but we are always looking for travel that is cost effective!

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    1. Oh you should check them out, I have always found them very affordable x

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  10. I love getting the train on family trips so that no one has to drive, then it's a relaxing time for everyone.

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    1. It really is a relaxing time for everyone, more fun too xx

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  11. I have not been on a virgin train in ages. I use to be a regular before the kids came along.

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    1. Oh you will have to take the kids oneday, they will love it xx

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  12. Some great offers there! I love travelling my train, even my commute to work isn't so bad as I can relax and listen to music. I'd often opt for train instead of car as it takes all the hassle out of driving and trying to find parking etc.

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  13. We took the east coast Virgin train last summer and loved it! It was the first proper long train journey my kids had ever taken and it's set the bar for quality transport. ScotRail just doesn't cut it now, lol!

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    1. The views on the east coast are amazing too, especially the coast in Northumberland xx

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  14. I'm not surprised by their findings at all. We love travelling by train with the kids. You can focus on them so they don't get bored. I see it as quality travelling time to be honest

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    1. You are so right, it really is quality travelling time and so much more enjoyable xx

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  15. We love train travel too although some of our trains get very crowded

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    1. That's a shame, we have always found them to ok here in the North East; mind we mainly travel out of peak time x

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  16. We do love travelling by train - it is so less stressful! Kaz x

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  17. Travelling by train is so much more exciting for kids isn't it. x

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  18. We're going to Cleethorpes for the day next week and haven't booked our trains yet. I'll have to look into Virgin Trains for a change as I usually just book onto East Midlands ones :)

    Louise x

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