The Goodnight Train Board Book

Product Information

Joining the trend of train travel in Europe, The Good Night Train will be a connection between three major capitals of the continent, with all the romance expected of a night journey, without sacrificing comfort. The Good Night Train will connect two great European capitals, with all the comforts and romance you would expect from a night train. Since my son arrived just over a year and a half ago my wife and I have become something of connoisseurs of children's literature. Before Jacob arrived I don't think I could have envisioned myself turning my nose up at the Hat in the Cat or Goodnight Farm but that happens. Some books just have bad artwork or the text is not fun to read. The story is told is delightful rhyme. I really liked the writing, and the poetry has good rhymes and a lovely rhythm in the meter. It's very easy to read out loud, and flows off the tongue smoothly. There are also places where onomatopoeia is used to mimic the train whistles, "Whoooo! Whoooo!" Those things would be fun to read aloud with a child!

My thoughts: For little ones that love, love, love the previous books in the series, this one might prove quite the treat. I know that trains can be fascinating for young ones and that some never really outgrow their love of trains. (Others do.) This one is written in rhyme. The illustrations are very Christmasy. Santa does make an appearance. Also, even though this is the railequivalent of a red-eye flight,you should arrive feeling pretty well-rested. I’m a fairly decent sleeper, and the noise from the train – not to mention my fellow passengers – hardlywoke me at all, even without earplugs. The excitement for the inaugural departure of European Sleeper’s Good Night Train from Brussels to Berlin is palpable — not least because we’re tooting out of Brussels Midi/Zuid station just one minute behind schedule. So was Berlin worth the journey? Those tired trains are certainly not the most glamorous way to travel, nor the fastest and, as I found, not even always the most reliable. But they are undeniably an adventure — and that part seemed really to have everyone on board. European Sleeper plans to extend the Berlin route to Prague next year, as well as introducing an overnight train from Amsterdam and Brussels to Barcelona.Meanwhile, a second sleeper-train service to Berlin is in the works, giving future travellers even more options.All in all, I’d recommend the experience to anyone. Even budget-flight diehards should give it a go.After years of sitting aroundin departure lounges and airless tubes, the novelty of the train ride makes the journey part of the adventure rather than a tedious schlep.The company behind The Good Night Train is European Sleeper, founded in the Netherlands in 2021, as a cooperative that any enthusiast can become a part of. As its name indicates, its objective is to create a night train network that connects the main European destinations, while travelers sleep. Yesterday morning,I woke upon ashiny metal carriage rolling through the suburbs of Berlin. I had gone to bed the night before somewhere just outside Amsterdam. In the eight hours in between, I had (mostly) slept like a baby whilethewheels beneath megobbled up theroughly 400 miles between two of Europe’smost spectacularly entertaining cities. The illustrations are adorable with festive colors! There is snow on the ground, and the whole train is decorated with wreaths and twinkle lights. The elves at the North Pole are colorful and cute. Each child in the train has their own little bed with comfy pillows. Premise/plot: I believe this is the third book starring the Goodnight Train and its crew. Earlier books in the series include The Goodnight Train and the Goodnight Train Rolls On. In each book, characters travel to Dreamland. This one is set on Christmas Eve. Ileft London bound forBrussels, where there’s an easy change to the European Sleeper service at Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid station.A Eurostar train from London to Brussels leaves at15.04 each day,giving you just over an hour at Brussels to grab a beer, change platforms and board the Berlin sleeper in time for golden hour. Photograph: James Manning The European Sleeper train pulls into the platform at Brussels Midi/Zuid

In addition, The Good Night Train and any other rail system are options for making more sustainable trips and reducing the carbon footprint of tourism. The train is the most ecological form of mass transport. According to reports from the International Energy Agency, means of transport are responsible for a quarter of global CO2 emissions, however, trains only represent 2% of the total energy demand in the industry. A Dutch-Belgian co-operative two and a half years in the making, European Sleeper is the brainchild of a pair of self-confessed train freaks, Elmer van Buuren and Chris Engelsman. This first route (others to Prague and Barcelona are planned for the next two years) stops at Antwerp, Rotterdam and Amsterdam before, just under 12 hours later, reaching Berlin, where bright-eyed and bushy-tailed travellers disembark and get straight to exploring the city — well, that’s the idea anyway. Alternatively,you could catch a train from London to Amsterdam andcatch the Good Night Train there. The last connecting Eurostar service each day arrives in Amsterdam at 16.11, leaving you six hours to kill in the Dutch capital – not a difficult task, when Amsterdam has so many incredible things to do. What was once a common service at any European terminal has become scarce, with just over a dozen night trains active on the continent. However, it has never ceased to be a practical option for any traveler.