I experienced that first hand and I rather have a flight. For me it was 2 hours flight plus another 2 hours getting in and out of airport. That's nothing with 23h of train ride on the same route with couple train changes. From my experience any travel over 4 hours long is almost impossible with a small child especially if most part of that time require sitting in one place.
I've had these long distance trains a couple of times and ICE of Deutsche Bahn (I went through Germany with ICE) did not have such coupes or lockers.
> It certainly explains why plane is actually faster where you are.
It was an example of a vacation in Serbia. Train is great here in The Netherlands. People moan they're not on time, but if you look at the density of the infrastructure its a prestige.
> Travelling by plane with a small child seems equally irritating.
True, but the thing is, that travel by train (as I described) is very long. Either way all you gotta do is keep them (relatively) silent. Either via asleep or by keeping them occupied.
Regardless now that I have a child, I have a lot more sympathy for other parents with their child. And dogs remain the most disgusting, for me.
The overnight trains here (Scotland) have lockable cabins and lockers for those that choose to use the reclining seats. Not that crime is a problem anyway.
> Also, train with a small child
Travelling by plane with a small child seems equally irritating.
60kmh is pitifully slow. It certainly explains why plane is actually faster where you are. In the Blue Banana [1] high speed rail is a reality. The airlines have stakes in it, and discontinued regional flights for that reason.
The trains are cruising at 300kmh within 5 minutes of leaving the station.
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Banana