Year-End Travel Made Easy: Book Food in Train That Your Whole Family Will Actually Eat
December train travel has a sound. It’s not one sound, actually. It’s many. The dragging of suitcases that are clearly overpacked. The metallic clatter of steel tiffin boxes hitting the platform. Kids crying for no clear reason. Someone shouting a coach number that nobody hears properly.
You don’t need a calendar to know it’s year-end. You can feel it on the platform.
Families travel differently in December. There’s more luggage, yes. But also more tension. More emotion. People are already tired, even before the train starts moving. And somewhere, usually after the first delay announcement, the same question comes up. What about food?
Most people pretend this is a small issue. It isn’t. Anyone who has travelled with parents, children, or both together knows that food quietly controls the mood of the entire journey. This is why, without making a big deal about it, more passengers now choose to book food in train instead of leaving things to chance.
Nobody Plans for the Food Problem. Everyone Faces It.
When tickets are booked, food is barely discussed. The assumption is simple: we’ll manage.That assumption holds for short trips. Two hours. Maybe three. It collapses during December travel.
Trains are full. Really full. Stations feel chaotic. Vendors run out of items early. Pantry food starts tasting the same by the second meal. Packed food from home turns cold faster than expected because, well, it’s winter.
By the time the journey crosses 10 hours, people stop talking about destinations and start talking about hunger. Quietly at first. Then repeatedly.
This is usually when someone says, “We should’ve planned food better.” They’re right. And this is often when families realise they should have just booked food in train earlier instead of improvising mid-journey.
About Carrying Food From Home (The Part Nobody Likes Admitting)
Almost every family carries food from home. It feels responsible. It feels safe.Fresh rotis. Some sabzi. Snacks “for later”. Maybe sweets. The problem is not intention. The problem is time.
Rotis harden. Rice dries. Sabzi loses taste. Snacks finish sooner than planned. And once the food gets cold, people eat it because they have to, not because they want to.
I’ve seen families save packed food for “later” and then regret it when later finally comes. No one really discusses this, but by the second day of a long journey, home-packed food becomes a burden. Heavy bags. Cold meals. Constant calculations.
This is one of the quiet reasons people have started ordering food onboard instead.
How to Book Food in Train with RailMitra
You can easily book food in train through RailMitra website or train food delivery app which is available on both Android and IOS. Just follow these simple steps:
- Go to RailMitra.com or install the application.
- Select Food in train options
- You can order via any of the two methods: PNR Method or Train No. method.
- PNR Method: Enter 10 digit PNR Number and click Order Now.
- Train No. method: Enter Train Name/ Number, Enter Boarding Date and click on Order Now. After that you should enter your Boarding Station.
- Select the station where you want to receive your food on train at.
- Select the restaurant and add meals to your Cart.
- Click on View Cart and Proceed.
- Enter Customer Details and Payment Options.
- Apply Coupon Codes (if any).
- Hit Place Order.
Your hot and delicious food in train would be delivered at your seat via RailMitra.
What Actually Changes When You Book Food in Train
Let’s be clear about this. The biggest change is not choice. Or variety. It’s a mental relief.
When you book food in train, you remove one entire layer of uncertainty. You’re not scanning platforms. No one is sending one person out to check “what’s available”. You’re not counting rotis in your head.
You know food is coming. You roughly know when. That’s it. For families travelling with elderly parents or young children, this matters more than people realise. The journey already requires patience. Food shouldn’t add to the workload.
Everyone Eats Differently (And That’s the Real Problem)
In most families, food preferences don’t align. They never have. Children want plain food. Parents want something filling. Grandparents want light meals. Someone avoids spicy food. Other may avoid onion and garlic. While Someone eats only vegetarian food.
Station vendors don’t cater to this. Pantry cars can’t either.When you book food in train, you’re not forcing everyone into the same compromise. You’re choosing what actually works for each person.
With RailMitra you don’t have to worry if you want different food items. We have wide range of food options available that doesn’t leave anyone left out.
Travelling in Groups Makes Food Even Trickier
December travel often means group travel. Extended families. Wedding trips. Holiday visits.
Food planning in these cases becomes chaotic very quickly. People forget to order. Orders arrive at different times. Someone eats late. Someone eats less.
This is where a group food order helps in a very real, practical way. One decision. One delivery point. One timing. Everyone eats together. With RailMitra, not only can you place group orders seamlessly but also Pre order them, so you don’t have to hustle at the last moment.
That alone reduces half the complaints inside a crowded coach. It’s not about convenience. It’s about coordination. And coordination matters during peak travel.
Vegetarian Food Is Not a Side Detail for Many Families
This part is often underestimated. A lot of families are strict about food habits while travelling. Especially elders. Especially during religious periods that often fall around year-end. Finding reliable vegetarian food at busy stations is difficult. Finding Jain food is even harder.
When families book food in train, they often specifically choose pure veg food in train because it removes any doubt. With RailMitra you can select Pure Veg food in train and ensure that the food served to you is 100% vegetarian. No guessing.
For some households, this single factor decides whether they’ll order food onboard or not.
Winter Changes How Food Feels (Not Just How It Tastes)
Cold food in winter is not just unpleasant. It affects comfort. Digestion slows. Children fall sick easily. Elders feel discomfort faster. A warm meal, on the other hand, calms people down. It helps them rest. It breaks long hours of sitting and waiting.
Packed food rarely stays warm long enough. Pantry food isn’t always freshly prepared. This is another reason families prefer to book food in train during December. Warm food matters more when the weather is unforgiving.
Delays Happen. Hunger Doesn’t Need To
Fog doesn’t follow schedules. Trains get delayed. Sometimes by a lot. Food planning usually doesn’t adjust. Packed food finishes early. Station food arrives too late or too soon.
When you book food in train, delivery aligns with the train’s movement, not just a fixed clock time. That flexibility removes unnecessary stress during winter travel.
People relax when they know food will come, even if the train is late.
Children Remember the Small Things
Children don’t remember train numbers. Or routes. They remember being hungry. Or not being hungry. They remember eating together. Or waiting endlessly.
Parents who plan meals properly often notice that journeys feel easier. Fewer complaints. Less restlessness. More calm hours. Many families try ordering food onboard once and then continue doing it for every long journey after that. Not because it’s fancy. Because it works.
It’s a Small Habit. It Changes Everything.
Nobody books tickets thinking about food stress. But once the journey begins, food quietly controls energy and mood. Food decides the mood of the journey. You don’t notice it until someone hasn’t eaten properly.
Families who plan meals ahead usually reach their destination less exhausted. Not because the journey was shorter, but because it felt manageable. All because they decided to book food in train instead of figuring it out later.
Why December Is the Right Time to Start
If there’s one time when food planning truly matters, it’s year-end travel. Crowds are unavoidable. Delays are normal. Comfort becomes important.
Once you experience a smoother journey, this habit sticks. People rarely go back to “we’ll see later” once they’ve travelled this way.
Final Thought
Year-end train journeys are about going home. About meeting people. About starting fresh. They shouldn’t be remembered for cold food or constant hunger.
Plan your meals the same way you plan your tickets. Book food in train, eat properly, and let the journey feel lighter.