Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast
1,358 episodes — Page 1 of 28
Time travel to 1970s Germany in a new film: Koln 75
What is happening with the EU entry-exit system and the Etias permit?
The story behind a hotel revolution: Yotel!
Travel Desk Tuesday: Taxi prices in Tuscany and the EU entry-exit system
What is the future for international rail travel in Europe?
Mississippi, land of the Blues
How will your Bank Holiday weekend journey or summer flight turn out?
See the magnificent coast of Norway from the local ferry
Touching distance to Russia – Travel Desk Tuesday
The best of Armenia in six minutes flat
Hope for better public transport in Derbyshire's Hope Valley – "Mini Switzerland"
Should you plan a trip to Pakistan?
90 days until it goes dark during the day – with the 2026 total solar eclipse
Over from Dover: how is the EU entry-exit system working at the UK's main ferry port?
UK visitors will get fast-track entry to Greece until better solution is found, minister tells me
How to cope with long-haul flights
Holidays are very important to people from a psychological and welfare point of view
Who would ever want to work in the travel industry in these difficult days?
En suite bathrooms in First Class – bunk beds in Economy?
Hantavirus, flight cancellations, EU entry-exit system and Venezuela
Demand is displaced, not depleted – people still want to travel
Wizz Air UK sees a bright summer despite the dark clouds
Come to my home town – Gdansk
Poland: So much more than a cut-price city break destination
British Airways Club kerfuffle over elite status
Brittany Ferries says no cancellations nor surcharges due to fuel shortages
Hoping to put travel anxieties to rest
Meets the boss of Hawaiian Airlines
Where the Earth Meets the Sky
British Airways back to Guernsey in the Channel Islands
Is this the most extreme "holiday" in the world?
The view from the frontline of the UK travel industry
Driving tests and dual citizenship: my conversation with rock legend Suzi Quatro
Dispatch from Kosovo, Europe’s youngest nation
British Airways’ pilot academy open for fresh applications tomorrow
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 digital borders scheme aims to keep a central database of British travellers – as well as many other nationalities. But several EU countries are far from ready, and officials in Brussels have conceded that passports will still be stamped. Here's the inside story.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 to the Indian Ocean. Rhys Jones, aviation editor for Head for Points, has sampled the cabin. We also talk about Relax Row, the clever three-seat flat bed in economy that Air New Zealand conceived and United Airlines has now picked up.And will there ever be a proper flat bed experience in economy or premium economy?This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 Northern Ireland since the 1990s. She tells me that the Channel 4/Netflix series is bringing in visitors: "People all over the world are watching that show and loving it," she says.Charlene started a Derry Girls tour in 2020 – starting at the spectacular Guildhall, and incorporating the Derry Girls mural and the mighty walls that wrap around the city.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 is the Arctic territory? My excellent colleague, global travel editor, Annabel Grossman, says: "Tourism might be coming slowly, but that's part of the charm of it ... It's difficult to do on the cheap, but it feels very authentic." She recommends a combo of Reykjavik in Iceland and Nuuk, the Greenlandic capital – with added exploration.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 room by a member of staff on the reception desk. Bob Quick spent 32 years with the Police, then moved on to GSA – Global Secure Accreditation Ltd – where he is Managing Director.He has strong views on the weaknesses in hotel security, and what needs to be done.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 – a nation that, he reports, has become much more enlightened in recent years. “There's lots of places in the world that we can go and visit where we can feel safe and be free and actually enjoy who we are and celebrate who we are with wonderful people,” he tells me.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 be used more profitably on other routes. But Rob Burgess, founder of the frequent flyer website Head for Points, says that not enough attention is paid to the value of creating loyalty through co-branded credit cards – allowing people who live in areas currently not served by BA to “get a kickback from their spending”.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 executive of the Advantage Travel Partnership, is sceptical to say the least. She and I also talked about the prospect of surcharges on holidays this summer.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 new Center Parcs Scotland begins to blossom, buy a twist of the Eiffel Tower and new rail prospects across Europe and Central America.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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 shoreline, thanks to many years of painstaking work by today's guest – Neil Constable, who led the project for Natural England. We caught up on a breezy day...This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jet2 launches from Gatwick – and the company boss has plenty to say
Just when you thought London Gatwick couldn’t get any more competitive, Britain's biggest holiday company has launched at scale from the Sussex airport. Jet2 chief executive Steve Heapy has been telling me why there is room for his company at a location already chock-full of easyJet, British Airways, Wizz Air, Tui, Ryanair. This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
'Dubai will come back – the influencers will see to that'
That's the surprising view of an eminent commentator on travel, tourism and geopolitics: the formidable all-rounder, Ash Bhardwaj, who has served around the world as an infantry officer in the British Army Reserve. I hope you enjoy our wide-ranging conversation.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mind the doors – and the escalators, and other rail passengers
Govia Thameslink Railway, which runs Gatwick Express, Southern, Great Northern as well as Thameslink – has brought out a new safety video which is designed to reduce the number of injuries – currently running at 16 a week – sustained by passengers at its stations. Writer and comedian Diane Morgan presents it.This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Travel Desk Tuesday with Global Travel Editor Annabel Grossman
We talk about the effects of the Iran conflict on travel in the immediate and more distant future. Plus: how will it affect travellers' views on visiting America?This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Views from the top: three aviation leaders assess the state of travel after three weeks of the unfolding tragedy in Iran
Michael O'Leary, chief executive of Ryanair and Kenton Jarvis, CEO of easyJet tell me how the crisis has affected their airlines, while Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association (Iata), assuages concerns about flying. This podcast is free, as is Independent Travel's weekly newsletter. Sign up here to get it delivered to your inbox. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.