In the school holidays, we did a number of days out instead of a summer holiday. This, one of our day trips, involved travelling by car to Pickering in Yorkshire and then by train from Pickering to Whitby and back with two and a half hours to explore Whitby. The train was supposed to be a stream train but due to the dry heat and the fire risk, a diesel engine was put on. The cost was £120 for the carriage which comfortably fit six people. There were seven of us including our two year old who sat on our knees or pottered about.

The train departed at 12 midday and we took a picnic to eat while we travelled. The journey took about 1 hour and 45 minutes. The scenery was lovely and the seats were comfortable. This could be a really enjoyable and relaxing journey but with a toddler that is unlikely to be the case! It was also a very hot day (over 30 degrees) and even with the window open, it was uncomfortable sitting by the window with the sun shining. Most other days of the year wouldn’t have been too hot, so we were unlucky with this.

When we arrived in Whitby, the weather was very strange, a sea mist had descended there. It was so busy, I’m not sure if this is normal in the summer. We headed to the beach for the children to play in the sand and paddle in the sea. With the strange fog on the beach, the life guards were urging people to not go in too deep! As well as our time on the beach, we also tried to fit in a visit to a fish and chip restaurant. We didn’t have enough time to eat and some of us had to wrap up our food and take it back to the train to eat on the carriage. The time we had to go to the beach and eat seemed quite rushed.

Our toddler loves trains so found the journeys exciting and loved watching out of the windows. The older children happily played some card games on the journey. They all had a great time at the beach. I think in hindsight with the age of our youngest, it was a bit too much travelling when setting off from Lincolnshire, it would have been great if the starting point was nearer to Pickering. It would have been a really good journey if it wasn’t such a hot day.