Traveling with a Child: A Sleeper Train Adventure!

Planning activities for preschoolers at home is a breeze. But traveling with a child is certainly a little more stressful. Don’t worry though! If you get a little creative, keeping the children occupied and having fun (while learning) is possible!

This summer, just as in years past, we took a trip to see family. However, this time, we decided to take a novel method of transportation. Take a glimpse into how our sleeper train adventure went below!

As I mentioned last month, Engineer and I took a sleeper train to visit my sister and her family.  I was a little worried about traveling with a child on a train, even though Engineer is 6 years old.  It was just the two of us, and I tend to be a worrywart — especially when it comes to my kiddo!  I shouldn’t have worried so much, as he and I had a complete BLAST riding the train!  I’d love to share a bit about our trip, along with a few tips and tricks we learned along the way.  I hope our little adventure inspires you to take the plunge and ride the train with your children!

OUR TRIP

On our way to my sister’s, we boarded the train at night.  It was partway through the train’s journey down the East Coast, so many of the other passengers were already settled in.  Engineer had been too tired to eat most of the day, so I was happy to find out they were still serving dinner.  He wolfed down some mac ‘n cheese in record time!  Then it was back to our room to check out the lay of the land.

Since I was traveling on my own with Engineer, and I knew the trip would last about 24 hours, I decided to purchase a “roomette”.  It cost more than coach travel, of course, but saving up for this splurge was definitely worth it!  To get an idea of the room we were in, look here.  There’s more information on the various sleeper rooms here on Amtrak’s website.  We had two chairs, a fold-out table, a toilet, a fold-out sink, and an overhead storage area.  The two chairs folded down into the bottom bed, and the upper bed pulled down from the ceiling.

What I loved about getting a sleeper room:

• We could spread out a little.  Our bags didn’t have to be perfectly in place.  I could put my feet up if I wanted.  Engineer could climb up and down to the “top bunk” when he wanted.
• I was able to sleep well, knowing that Engineer was safe.  Since it was just the two of us, I knew I wouldn’t be able to sleep in a public area.  I would be too worried about him!
• Engineer was ecstatic about the “bunk beds”!  His excitement over just that one thing was worth it.
• We had privacy when we wanted it.  The door shut and locked, and we could pull the blinds if we wanted to.
• We didn’t bother anyone else with our loud giggles and goofy conversations.
• All of our meals were included.
• We had a nice concierge who helped us out as needed and answered any questions we had.

While we were on the train, Engineer and I had no trouble keeping ourselves entertained.  First and foremost, we had “train TV”, as Engineer called it.  That consisted of an awesome window down by the chairs, as well as another up near the top bunk.  We loved watching the trees and little towns as the train zipped past.  Watching the sunset over the water was just beautiful, and Engineer loved when we traveled over bridges.  Seeing the different train stations was also a highlight for him.  He loved identifying the different train cars and seeing the pieces of track equipment along the way.  Waving at people at the stations was a big hit, too!

In addition to “train TV”, we had brought a few things to play with.  We built a Lego vehicle together, drew some goofy pictures, read some books, and played tic-tac-toe.  I won’t lie, we had electronics with us too, and we used them!  Engineer liked playing on the LeapPad his grandparents got him last Christmas, especially once he remembered he could take videos with it!  I caught up on some reading via my Nook, which was wonderful!  I did a little bit of work on the computer, too, but it wasn’t out as much.

The train’s dining car was fun, too!  In addition to the delicious meals we had, Engineer and I met many interesting people.  Even though he was a little shy with new people, he loved hearing their stories.  We met a couple who traveled all across the US via train, taking beautiful pictures and visiting landmarks.  Engineer’s favorites were volunteers through the “Trails and Rails” program.  They talked to him about trains and national parks, and they had a variety of activities for him.  He even received an honorary park ranger badge (which he proudly wore for days on end).

The trip home was even better than the trip down.  On the first trip, we were so excited to visit my sister and her family, so that was our main focus.  On the return trip, our main focus was just enjoying ourselves and relaxing.  All in all, both Engineer and I had a wonderful time on our sleeper train adventure!  In fact, Engineer is already asking when we can sleep on the train again.  Honestly, I am wondering the same thing!  The only negative I took away from our train trip — they gave us some fabulous gelato for dessert, and I can’t find it anywhere at home!  🙂

A Few Tips for Traveling by Train

• Bring along some hand/face wipes.  You’ll feel fresher by the end of the trip.
• Make sure you have some extra toilet paper or baby wipes on hand, just in case.
• Having your own snacks is great, especially for the kiddos.
• Be prepared to be offline while you’re on the train.
• Bring some cash to tip the dining car servers.

Other Links to Check Out

• Train Travel with Kids: 10 Tips for a Smoother Train Trip with Kids {MiniTime}
• Toddler Train Travel: 7 Tips for Easier Trips {What to Expect}
• Ten Train Trips for Kids {Divine Caroline}
• Amazing Train Rides that Will Dazzle Your Kids {Red Tricycle}
• 10 Train Travel Tips {Kaleidoscopic Wandering}
• U.S. Train Travel {Independent Traveler}
• 5 Tips for Long-Haul U.S. Train Travel {Matador Network}
• Tips on Train Travel {USA Today}
• Top 10 Reasons to Travel by Train {NBC News}
• USA Train Travel Tips {USA Tourist}

Shared at The Parenting Pin-It Party, Discover and Explore, Tuesday Tots

Products to Travel with

Traveling with children is so much fun! The change in the children’s typical routine and environment is a welcome change, even if you don’t plan to travel far. And there are a ton of things to learn and see anywhere you go.

But along with all of the excitement and fun comes the stress of keeping the children occupied while on the road, during downtime, or in the hotel. So, with that in mind, I’ve created a list of some things you can bring along to keep the stress at bay and keep preschool-aged children occupied.

Check out my product suggestions below. I may get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.

• Magnetic travel toys
• Storybooks
• Drawing boards
• Bubbles
• Preschool card games
• Preschool board games
• Simple craft kits
• Scavenger hunt games
• Seek-and-find books
• Toy vehicles
• Small action figures or dolls

This list really just skims the surface of things to keep preschoolers occupied in meaningful play while traveling. Just take note of your child’s interests and then try to find a way to make that portable, while keeping in mind where and when your child will be using the items.

Done-for-You Preschool Resources

Planning meaningful lessons for students week after week while balancing other teaching responsibilities and a personal life can be a daunting task. That’s where Preschool Teacher 101 comes in to save you time!

Preschool Teacher 101 has created some amazing preschool lesson and activity plans that will be perfect for your classroom. Click on the images below to learn more about our car lesson plans!

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