Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast
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Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast
Simon Calder is the Independent’s travel correspondent, the UK’s leading travel journalist. From news updates to discussions with experts, Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast will bring you all you need to know from the world of travel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informati...
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Mississippi, land of the Blues
Global travel editor Annabel Grossman has just returned from the Deep South of the US, exploring the state of Mississippi. She tells me about the musi...
How will your Bank Holiday weekend journey or summer flight turn out?
Today I am assessing the picture on aviation fuel, after easyJet boss Kenton Jarvis added to the airline leaders vowing to fly the full schedule this...
See the magnificent coast of Norway from the local ferry
Today I'm talking to Matthew Valentine, Global Head of Sales for Havila Voyages – the enterprise that is serving the Norwegian shoreline from Bergen t...
Touching distance to Russia – Travel Desk Tuesday
“In both Finland and Poland I somehow found myself as close as it is possible to be to Russia without actually crossing the border”. Global travel edi...
The best of Armenia in six minutes flat
Direct flights from London Luton to the Armenian capital, Yerevan, begin on 8 June, and I am getting a preview of this fascinating nation. Today I hav...
Hope for better public transport in Derbyshire's Hope Valley – "Mini Switzerland"
Transport expert Thomas Ableman has been telling me about his vision for “joined-up” mobility in the UK – giving people the freedom to live without a...
Should you plan a trip to Pakistan?
Over the past few days I have heard several people speak very warmly about Pakistan - saying it is a much-misunderstood country full of wonders and di...
90 days until it goes dark during the day – with the 2026 total solar eclipse
Dr John Mason, eclipse chaser extraordinaire, has been studying the astronomical event on 12 August, when a total solar eclipse will sweep down from G...
Over from Dover: how is the EU entry-exit system working at the UK's main ferry port?
Chief executive of the Port of Dover, Doug Bannister, tells me about the investment made in preparing for the digital borders scheme in a location whe...
UK visitors will get fast-track entry to Greece until better solution is found, minister tells me
After Greece decided unilaterally to scrap biometric border checks for British visitors, the tourism minister has said the “UK fast track” will contin...
How to cope with long-haul flights
Top cinematographer Douglas Bolton shares his secrets of transatlantic travel – basically, stay awake to bedtime.
This podcast is free, as is In...
Holidays are very important to people from a psychological and welfare point of view
With so much uncertainty and confusion among travellers, I am talking today to the man who has led Abta, the travel association, for 20 years: CEO Mar...
Who would ever want to work in the travel industry in these difficult days?
Warnings of flight cancellations, a cruise with a killer virus on board, the EU entry-exit system ... Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief executive of the Advant...
En suite bathrooms in First Class – bunk beds in Economy?
Travel Desk Tuesday, and I am talking to Senior Travel Writer Natalie Wilson about two fresh concepts in the longhaul aviation world: Emirates' plan f...
Hantavirus, flight cancellations, EU entry-exit system and Venezuela
It is an extremely busy weekend on the travel front, and I am rounding up the headline. There are alarming reports of a small expedition ship off the...
Demand is displaced, not depleted – people still want to travel
Nine weeks ago, before the US-Israeli attack on Iran and subsequent reprisals, the intercontinental travel world looked very different. I’ve been talk...
Wizz Air UK sees a bright summer despite the dark clouds
We have just launched our biggest ever network from the UK" – so says Yvonne Moynihan, Managing Director of Wizz Air UK. "Airlines are well used to cr...
Come to my home town – Gdansk
Yesterday I talked to global travel editor Annabel Grossman about her first trip to Poland – a country I have been visiting for decades. Our colleague...
Poland: So much more than a cut-price city break destination
I have been travelling to Poland since before you were born (specifically 1985) and, every time I go there, the nation becomes more appealing – from c...
British Airways Club kerfuffle over elite status
Over the past few days, there has been controversy in the frequent-flyer community about the apparent extension of Silver and Gold status by BA to peo...
Brittany Ferries says no cancellations nor surcharges due to fuel shortages
All week you may have been reading headlines about flight cancellations and soaring airfares. Well, to round off the week, I have been talking to the...
Hoping to put travel anxieties to rest
On St George's Day, there's no need to trim your travel sails. Despite challenging headlines travel remains in good health. My guest today, Ted Wake,...
Meets the boss of Hawaiian Airlines
Six months ago, Hawaiian Airlines became part of the Alaska Air Group, with the understanding that its identity as the carrier to, from and within the...
Where the Earth Meets the Sky
Today I'm talking about the deep south of the world, with conservation biologist Dr Louise Blight – whose book of that title is published today. The w...
British Airways back to Guernsey in the Channel Islands
It is more than 40 years since BA last connected its main base, London Heathrow, with the Channel Island of Guernsey. I was on board the first departu...
Is this the most extreme "holiday" in the world?
Paul Goldstein, wildlife photographer and expedition leader, is just back from Baffin Island in Canada – where the temperature, with wind chill, dropp...
The view from the frontline of the UK travel industry
Richard Slater, Founder and Managing Director of Henbury Travel of Macclesfield,, tells me that traveller confidence took a knock when the US and Isra...
Driving tests and dual citizenship: my conversation with rock legend Suzi Quatro
Today's podcast is rather different from usual. For the first time, I am talking about driving tests but not any driving test. This one involves the Q...
Dispatch from Kosovo, Europe’s youngest nation
Eighteen years ago, Kosovo declared independence from Serbia after years of turmoil following the break-up of Yugoslavia. Serbia still regards Kosovo...
British Airways’ pilot academy open for fresh applications tomorrow
In 2023 I covered the launch of the British Airways Speedbird Pilot Academy: recruiting young people to be the pilots of tomorrow. I am delighted to b...
All change at European frontiers? Not exactly ...
From today, the EU’s “entry-exit system” is expected to be running at all Schengen area frontiers – bringing to an end the stamping of passports. The...
Beond: The new business-class only airline flying from London Heathrow to the Maldives from December 2026
Could you be tempted by the prospect of an exclusive 44-seat aircraft?
All-business-class carrier Beond is set to take passengers in some luxury...
Welcome to Derry/Londonderry, one of my favourite UK cities
My guest today is Charlene McCrossan of Martin McCrossan City Tours – which has been introducing tourists to this corner of the far northwest of North...
Tourism is coming slowly to Greenland, but that's part of the charm of it
Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, is currently enjoying over 14 hours of daylight, a figure that is climbing swiftly towards midsummer. But how much fun...
Hotels are magnets for criminals’ – so what needs to be done to make them more secure?
You will probably have heard of the shocking case of a woman who was sexually assaulted in a Travelodge by an attacker who was handed a key to her roo...
Travel without fear: the world should be accessible to everybody, no matter how you identify
To round off the week, I'm talking to travel expert Rob Staines about queer travel around the world. He and his partner have just returned from India...
Should British Airways be flying from airports such as Liverpool and Leeds Bradford?
That might look an odd question. In the past there have been links from these airports to London Heathrow, which were ditched because the slots could...
EU entry-exit system is stepping up – or is it?
The much-delayed digital borders scheme for the Schengen area is supposed to be up and running in full from 10 April – but Julia Lo Bue-Said, chief ex...
Travel Desk Tuesday with Natalie Wilson
Talking with my excellent colleague, senior travel writer Natalie, about a wide range of travel stories: the shocking business of hotel security, a ne...
King Charles III England Coast Path – meet the man who helped it happen
The 2,700 mile-long trail around the shore of England is the longest managed coastal walking route in the world. It gives unprecedented access to the...