Blog

26 hours on the road with 3 kids

Our bags were packed & our travel clothes out ready to go, as we had an early start in the morning, 5.30am to start our long journey to Spain. As a family of five, the youngest just two months old we have to make sure we are up at least 1 hour before the taxi arrived to pick us up. Now even the simple things like getting ready and out the door takes it’s time, even if we are all prepared the night before. 6.30am the taxi took us to our mini bus which drove for about an hour before transferring us to the main coach, this coach would take us all the way to Spain.

• 

• 

We were travelling with the company Siesta, which has specialized in holidays abroad to France and Spain travelling by coach for years. They offer a great alternative to flying for people wanting to holiday abroad. They are also great value for money and if you’re looking for a bargain check them out.

We had travelled with Siesta to Spain for the first time a year ago with our then 2 boys aged 4 and 8. The boys were really well behaved and entertained on the coach and seemed to love travelling this way. However, this time we had our new addition to the family, our third boy who was only 2 month old. This did make us a little nervous but we figured he was likely to sleep most the journey anyway so let’s do it!

• 

• 

Most people we spoke to about travelling to Spain on the coach said they couldn’t do that it takes too long and it wasn’t for them, I think people thought we must be a little crazy. For me although flying is quicker, one of the worst parts of going on holiday is the stressful drive to the airport and all the check ins and waiting around once at the airport. Instead of seeing the long journey on coach as a negative we found it relaxing to be picked us from where we live, loading the cases onto the coach and not having to worry about anything until we got there. There is no stress about driving or time keeping no transfers to worry about, from the moment we got sat on the coach we could relax and switch into holiday mode.

• 

• 

The coach wasn’t like your standard coach there is extra leg room and the seats recline back for better comfort to allow for a good night’s sleep. There is a pull down table and a touch screen entertainment system with all the latest movies and music along with lots of other forms of entertainment. There is WIFI on the coach and USB charger outlets under the seats. There is a hostess serving food and drinks regularly throughout the journey. 

The food and drink menu is very reasonably priced and we enjoyed it. The toasties are really nice and the boys enjoyed the hotdogs. To drink there was tea, coffee, hot chocolate, water, fizzy drinks and also alcoholic drinks. Wine, beers, lagers and ciders. If nothing on the menu took your fancy there were plenty of comfort breaks at the services where you could get what you needed.

As we travelled from Hull, the North East of England we stopped to pick people up as we travelled down south towards the euro tunnel to France. Before we got on the euro tunnel we had to get off the coach and show our passports before entering France. This was the only time we needed to show our passports. This was a very quick process no ques or waiting around, straight through. Once back on the coach it only takes an impressive 35 minutes to get to France

Travelling through France we began to experience another benefit of travelling by coach. You get to see some amazing views. We were impressed with the beautiful country side where we saw deer’s in the fields. Lots of fascinating buildings, the bright lights of Lyon as we passed through during the night. There were winding roads through mountain hills and lots of little old picturesque villages like something from a postcard. Although flying is quicker we enjoyed the experience of sitting back relaxing and taking in the scenery.

• 

• 

• 

Although I wouldn’t like to travel this long distance by coach all the time on every holiday I would definitely do it again. It’s a good alternative to flying and a different experience allowing you to see lots of new places on your way. For us it was an enjoyable experience and we wouldn’t be worried about travelling this way with the kids again in the future

Hints and tips long distance coach travel

• Pack an over night bag with tooth brush, blanket and Pj’s
• Don’t forget to connect to the coach’s free wifi
• Although you pay in English on the coach, it’s a good idea to have some euros to hand for the service stations. It would be a shame to miss out on the delicious pastries as you pass through France
• Pack a light rain jacket or change of clothes, we have seen people get on the coach soaked wet through a couple of times. Sometimes people are waiting to be picked up with no shelter or they get caught in the rain transferring to another coach and loading their luggage across. It’s a long journey to be sat uncomfortable.

CHECK OUT OUR VID… CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR MORE INFO DON’T FORGET TO HIT SUBSCRIBE