Why Interrailing with kids is worth considering

After travelling a lot before kids, we got stuck in the not‑unenjoyable cycle of Centre Parcs and all inclusive resorts in the Mediterranean when the kids were small. Last year, when they were 7 and 9, we headed off to Thailand and went all-in with a multicentre adventure. It was fabulous: it felt like we were back to travelling, not just holidaying. 

This year, we still wanted that sense of adventure but did not fancy the long‑haul flight or the daily stress of what our (newly vegetarian) youngest was going to eat. Italy seemed like a great option. Our eldest was also desperate to visit Paris, which started me wondering: could we combine it into one trip? Once I began sketching ideas, train travel became the obvious plan. 

If you are in that same phase of “we love easy resorts, but we are ready for something more again”, an interrail‑style trip can be a brilliant bridge. And if the research feels overwhelming, that is exactly where I can step in and help you explore what might work for your family.

Our Interrail trip 

For our trip we planned around 14 to 15 days of travel, with 2 to 3 nights in each stop so nothing felt too rushed. We knew from the start that we wanted to tick off Paris, Venice, Florence and Lucca, then finish with a few lazy days on the coast to properly unwind. 

We were working with a mid‑range budget, so we mixed hotels with pools and generous breakfast buffets with apartments where we could cook simple family meals. Knowing how intense an Italian summer can be, we focused on city‑centre accommodation so we could easily retreat for a siesta or some pool time during the hottest hours of the day. 

If you are curious what a similar route could look like for your own family, I can help you tailor the number of nights, cities and budget so it feels exciting rather than exhausting.

Planning your family Interrail adventure

When you start planning, think first about your children rather than the map. Shorter train hops and mixing big‑hitting cities with beaches or nature days will keep everyone happier. For most families, 10 to 15 days with 2 to 3 nights in each place is a sweet spot: enough time to explore properly without feeling like you are constantly packing. 

Timing matters too. Shoulder seasons can be kinder for little legs and sensitive sleepers than the full heat and crowds of peak summer but sometimes school holidays will determine your decisions. Decide which elements you want nailed down (such as first and last nights, key train reservations and any bucket‑list excursions) and where you are comfortable leaving some room to be spontaneous. 

If you are unsure where to start with routes and realistic pacing, I can help you sketch out a day‑by‑day outline that matches your children’s ages, energy levels and your budget.

Tickets, Passes and Seating: What worked for us

If you are travelling just within Italy, advance train tickets are often good value and I would not usually recommend using an Interrail Pass. However, travelling from the UK via Paris, it made sense for us, particularly as we picked up the passes in the Black Friday sale, saving 25%, and the kids are under 12 so their passes were free with ours. 

We also chose a first‑class pass and again, I feel we got most benefit from this as part of the UK and Eurostar legs. It was great to have the drinks and food, along with the comfier seats, especially with children. 

It really is a case of pricing up your tickets without a pass and then comparing to the price of the pass plus the reservation fees, along with the potential flexibility a pass can offer, before deciding what will be best for that particular trip. In high summer on the routes we used, reservations were either mandatory or simply sensible with kids, so we did not really make use of the flexibility element. 

If the thought of comparing passes, point‑to‑point tickets and reservation rules makes your head spin, this is exactly the kind of detail I can take off your plate and talk you through.

Packing for Interrailing with kids

We opted for backpacks for all of us, as we knew getting on and off trains, changing platforms and tackling Venetian bridges would prove challenging with pull‑along suitcases. Was this the right decision? For the parents and the 11‑year‑old, absolutely. For the 8‑year‑old, I am not wholly convinced. She struggled with the backpack and once she was in thin summer clothing it did not fit as well as we had hoped, so the complaints were plentiful. Her dad regularly had to come to the rescue and carry his own and her bags for the walk from the station to the hotel (which we had ensured was a maximum of 20 minutes). In hindsight, a small pull‑along suitcase for her, alongside might have been a better option, only needing help when we hit steps. 

If you would like a family‑friendly packing checklist tailored to your route and season, just reach out and I will happily share one.

Keeping kids happy in transit

We kept our train journeys to 2 to 3 hours to avoid boredom setting in, and we relaxed our screen‑time rules a little, knowing that there was not much TV or gaming at other times on the holiday. 

We always made sure to have plenty of picky snacks, usually visiting a bakery and a small supermarket for pastries, rolls and chopped fruit to take with us. Some of our trains included food and drink as part of the first‑class reservations, which was a real bonus and an extra distraction. 

We did include one overnight train journey. It did not quite go to plan, but it did avoid a really long travel day and definitely added a sense of adventure. 

If you are worried about how your children will cope on longer legs, I can suggest routes and stopovers that keep individual journeys manageable.

Choosing family‑friendly stops and stays

You know your children and what motivates them in day‑to‑day life as well as on holiday, and that is gold dust when planning an interrail itinerary. 

We knew the “big ticket” sights would really excite our kids, so we included the “boom” moment of turning a corner and seeing the Eiffel Tower simply appear in front of them. We also wove in their hobbies and interests, from Ladybug and Cat Noir spots in Paris to visiting a famous art shop used by the greats. 

To balance the sightseeing, we changed things up with booked activities and planned in pool time. For us this meant a rowing lesson in Venice, a cooking class in Florence and a ride on a four‑person bike in Lucca. 

Where it fitted the budget, we chose accommodation with more than one room. Having that bit of extra space really helped the kids unwind and stopped us all feeling like we were living on top of each other for two weeks. We stayed central to reduce unnecessary travel time, but also made sure we were not too far from the stations for those walks with heavy bags. 

If you would like help choosing stops and stays that genuinely fit your children’s personalities, I can put together some suggestions and talk you through the pros and cons.

Unexpected challenges

All was planned and booked for our overnight journey from Stuttgart to Venice, but it did not quite work out as expected. Once on board and out of the station, we were informed by a very stressed attendant that an expected carriage was missing and our four‑bed couchette was no longer an option. Instead, we were in a sleeper cabin for three. There was stress from us, tears from the kids, and a brief moment of “what now?”, but we realised we just needed to roll with it. It was not the most comfortable night as I shared a bunk with my 8‑year‑old, but we did still arrive in Venice as planned and the views of the mountains through the window when we woke up were incredible. 

Italian trains rarely run on time and, again, part of the trick is accepting that and building in a buffer. One late‑running train meant we missed a connection, which made the journey more complicated. The replacement was slower and involved an extra change. If I was doing it again, I would allow more time between some connections. 

If planning this trip again, I would also add two nights at Lake Garda after Venice. I think the extra “pause” would have re‑energised us for Florence, which I do not think we made the most of, partly due to the heat and partly because it was our third city in a row. 

The point is not that everything went smoothly. It did not. But with realistic expectations and a bit of flexibility, the wobbles became part of the story rather than trip‑ruining disasters. If you would like help planning in those cushions and “recovery days” from the start, that is something I can build into your itinerary.

Budget & Value: Is it worth it for families?

We found interrailing a smart way to travel on a modest or mid‑range budget, and a great way to use your money effectively. 

• Train stations are generally centrally located and choosing accommodation within walking distance avoids the cost of airport transfers. 
• Moving between different destinations means you can flex your budget, staying in nicer hotels for some nights and cheaper apartments for others. 
• You do not need to be at the station hours before departure, which naturally cuts down on “bored and hungry” spending. 
• If you are travelling on a particularly low budget there are often slower regional train options that do not require mandatory reservations, so you can bring costs down if you are happy to balance that with the risk of busier carriages.

Overall, we spent a similar amount to what we would have paid for a 4‑star all inclusive resort in Europe, but we experienced so much more and exposed the kids to multiple cities and big, world‑famous sights along the way. For us, that felt like far better value for money. 

If you are wondering how an interrail‑style itinerary compares to your usual family holiday budget, I can help you build a realistic example itinerary and cost it out.

Top tips for Interrailing with kids

Here are some of the things that made the biggest difference to us: 

• Keep an eye out for Interrail pass sales, they offer big savings and you have 11 months to activate your pass.
• Do not move around too often. Two to three nights per stop worked really well. 
• Limit your train journeys to a few hours where possible so you avoid boredom and do not spend your whole holiday on board.
  
• If double decker trains are available, the kids found it fun to sit upstairs!
• Snacks! Food can be limited or pricey on trains and in stations, so plan ahead. 
• Choose accommodation within an easy walk or short hop of the station. 
• Aim to arrive at the station early enough for a toilet stop if you have children who are fussy about train loos. 
• Involve the kids in the journey: let them help find the platform, look for the right carriage and seats, and pick out new words on signs in another language. 
• Pack as light as you can. We managed to do washing in two places and it was so warm that everything dried quickly, so we kept clothes to a minimum.
• Packing cubes were great as they can be pulled out and stored in wardrobes without having to fully unpack and repack each time. Packing strategically also meant we always knew where headphones, travel games, snacks and water bottles were and could grab them quickly on busy platforms.
  
• Kindles and audio books meant we did not have to carry multiple physical books for our prolific readers. 
• Our 11‑year‑old has recently got her own phone ready for high school, but our 8‑year‑old used an old phone of ours so we could save playlists, audio books and games to entertain her on the trains. She also loved being able to take her own photos

Is interrailing for you?

Interrailing with kids is brilliant for families who enjoy a bit of adventure and are happy to trade certainty for spontaneity. If you are comfortable packing light, coping with the odd delay, and treating the journey as part of the holiday rather than just a way to get from A to B, you will probably love it. It tends to work especially well if your children are old enough to walk reasonable distances, carry a little backpack and be entertained by the changing scenery outside the window. 

If you have very young toddlers who still need strict nap schedules, anyone in the family with significant mobility issues, or you know that disrupted routines cause major stress, then you might want to think carefully about how you structure an interrail trip. Shorter hops, fewer accommodation changes, travelling outside peak heat, and booking more spacious, central stays can all help, but in some family stages it may simply feel like too much. 

If you are not quite ready to jump into a full interrail adventure, there are some great stepping‑stone alternatives. You could base yourselves in one city and add a couple of easy day trips by train, try a two‑centre rail holiday with just one move, or pick a single country and focus on two or three well‑connected stops. That way you still get a taste of rail travel and the joy of exploring by train, without the full complexity of a multi‑country pass. 

If any of this sparks ideas, I would love to help you work out which version fits your family best and turn it into a plan you feel excited and confident about.