Video: 'Could We Have Flown? Absolutely': Family Takes 32-Hour Train Instead Of 2-Hour Flight

Travellers often choose the fastest way to reach their destination, while some believe the real fun lies in the journey itself. Jeri Willmott and her husband, Peter, love exploring the world with their children. During their recent trip from Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia to Beijing in China, Jeri came up with a wildest plan.

Instead of taking a flight that would have taken them there in just two hours, she decided to travel by train, which took around 32 hours. The long ride meant more time on the tracks, but it also gave the family a chance to watch new landscapes, meet people from different places and cross an international border by train.

On Instagram, Jeri Willmott explained, “Poor Peter has officially accepted that this is what he signed up for when he married an adventurer. We left Ulaanbaatar, rolled across the endless Mongolian steppe, stopped at the border for 4 hours at midnight for passport control (which takes forever), had the train wheels changed because Mongolia and China use different rail gauges, then carried on through Erenhot, Jining, Zhangjiakou, and finally into Beijing.”

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“Could we have flown? Absolutely. Would it have been faster? By about 30 hours. But you don't get to watch the landscapes change, wake up in a different country, meet people from all over the world or tell your kids they crossed an international border by train. Sometimes the journey really is the best part, even if my husband is still wondering why we didn't just book the flight.”

Interestingly, the couple has already travelled on several sleeper trains across Southeast Asia, but this 32 hour journey was their longest one so far. Despite spending so much time on the train, they felt the experience was worth it.

Reacting to the post, a user wrote, “The kids will have the best memories.” Another shared, “Amazing energy and vision mama.” “Having done the train trip from Beijing to Kazakhstan - you made the right choice,” a comment read.

An individual stated, “I took the train return from Guangzhou (Canton) to Beijing (Peking)back in 1989, a long journey, but one I still remember well 37 years later, always wish I had the chance to continue on Trans-Siberian Railway or the Trans-Mongolian Railway.” Another mentioned, “I'd take the train too. It has a bed, so why not.”

One more added, “As a kid, climbing to the second floor of the cabin is a deep CORE MEMORY of mine. You are doing great.”

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Jeri Willmott and Peter's journey proves that sometimes, taking the longer route can create the most special memories.