Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast

I’m on a plane to Sweden – flying Ryanair from Stansted to Vasteras, an approximation to Stockholm. I know some people will have paid less than me, and some will have paid more: that is the nature of pricing planes, trains and ships. How do companies set prices, and when exactly should you book? If I knew that … This podcast is free, like my weekly newsletter. Subscribe to that here . Hosted on Ac...

Would you tolerate standing on the scales at the airport? At present, airlines use “assumed mass” – typically 88kg per passenger. Air New Zealand is seeking 10,000 volunteers to ensure that these averages are still accurate. Yet if airlines knew exactly how much each passenger weighs, the captain could load fuel more accurately: reducing fuel burn, and the damage to the planet. Which major airline...

I’m in Szczecin in northwest Poland – previously known as Stettin, when in German hands. It’s a fascinating city, as I have been hearing from Szymon Maksymiuk at the city’s tourist office – who explained that Szczecin has the newest “old town” in Europe – dating from the 1990s and still not finished. This podcast is free, like my weekly newsletter. Subscribe to that here . Hosted on Acast. See aca...

A new transatlantic start-up airline, Global Airlines, says it has acquired its first Airbus A380 SuperJumbo and will fly four of them between London and New York/Los Angeles from next Spring. I'm not marking that in my diary just yet.  https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/airbus-a380-london-new-york-norse-los-angeles-b2347479.html Of course, this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter....

When airport eGates work, they're wonderful! Step in, scan your passport and... whiz, you're through! But that didn't quite happen on Friday night and Saturday when there were failings nationwide causing chaos for passengers trying to enter the country. So, how do these robotic border force agents work? And what happens when they go wrong? Of course, this podcast is free, as is my weekly newslette...

My flight at Heathrow, to Prague, has just been cancelled – along with almost 200 other departures since the latest British Airways IT meltdown began. From the airport, here's my take on what's been happening and your (and, on this occasion, my) rights. Of course, this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter. Subscribe here to have it delivered every Friday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priv...

I'm in County Mayo, Ireland, getting a real night and day experience in Ireland's glorious west. In this episode, I visit Wild Nephin National Park and Blacksod Lighthouse on the Mullet Peninsula, meeting Georgia MacMillan, who tells me a little about the the dark sky park and Mark Ruddy, who explains what there is to explore on the peninsula. Of course, this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsl...

“France has banned domestic short-haul flights where train alternatives exist, in a bid to cut carbon emissions,” I read. The report says routes where trains can make the journey in under two-and-a-half hours have been banned – ruling out air travel between Paris and cities including Nantes, Lyon and Bordeaux. Except that those cities have five, six and seven flights a day, each way, to and from P...

Today’s travel podcast comes from Glencolmcille Folk Village on the raw northwest shores of Ireland, where I hear from manager Margaret Rose Cunningham about keeping tradition alive – and how the Wild Atlantic Way has brought new eyes to the beautiful land- and seascapes of County Donegal. Of course this podcast is free, as is my weekly newsletter, which you can subscribe to here . Hosted on Acast...

I’ve been enjoying the sunshine in Glenveagh National Park in County Donegal, in the far northwest of Ireland, with Head Of Education & Learning Clare Bromley and Ranger Lee McDaid of Ireland’s National Parks and Wildlife Service. This podcast is free, much like my weekly newsletter - subscribe here to get it in your inbox every Friday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informati...

I'm at London Waterloo – the busiest railway station in the UK, and also the home for Network Rail and the Great British Railways Transition Team. The latter is the body that is supposed to be acting as a "guiding mind" for the nation's rail services. Reports this morning say that the legislation necessary to establish GBR won't happen before the next election. Add to that the latest strike called...

Whether you love 18th-century classical music or 20th-century rock, a top London tourist attraction reopens today, 18 May 2023: the Handel Hendrix House, at 25 Brook Street, London W1. After a £3m restoration lasting nearly two years, the house where George Frideric Handel lived from 1723 until he died in 1759 has reopened in ravishing style. An adjoining flat at no 23 – and part of the same museu...

“We’re seeing the rebirth of package holidays.” That’s the message from Steve Heapy, chief executive of Jet2 and Jet2 Holidays. He’s just announced a very significant expansion for the company: opening a base at Liverpool John Lennon airport from spring 2024 with a big network of holiday flights Jet2 Holidays has taken over as the biggest tour operator in the UK from TUI – which is itself growing...

Imagine a world where we can get from London to Sydney in two hours. It's a fantasy that the Civil Aviation Authority and the RAF have been working towards. The journey would involve space travel and sustaining a force of 6G on your body. One important thing to be sure of: whether humans could survive the journey. So, recently, a group of healthy participants between 30 and 80 years old were put u...

Flights from Gatwick Airport were halted this afternoon due to reports of drone activity close to the airspace. At least 12 inbound flights were diverted away from Gatwick for almost an hour while an investigation took place into the suspected drone. Gatwick is the busiest single-runway airport in the world, with little slack in the system when schedules unravel. This podcast is fre...

The latest round of rail strikes has begun, bringing 48 hours of misery for train passengers. It is especially aggravating for people hoping to travel to Liverpool for Eurovision. But dare I say it? There are a number of alternatives to rail travel for reaching Merseyside. This podcast is free, much like my weekly newsletter - subscribe here to get it in your inbox every Friday. Hosted on Acast. S...

In today's travel podcast, I chat with tour guide Ruth Ben Ami in the heartland of humanity, Jerusalem. This podcast is free, much like my weekly newsletter - subscribe here to get it in your inbox every Friday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this day in 1919, the first commercial air service in Britain began – from Manchester to Southport, a distance of just 40 miles. In the 104 years since then, the range of UK domestic flights has waxed and waned. I'm at Luton airport, where EasyJet began in 1995 as a purely domestic airline with links to Edinburgh and Glasgow. As rail links have improved, links like this have reduced – but North...

Sun, sea and... school term! June is just weeks away now and it's a contender for one of the best months of the year to get away. In southern Europe you can expect warm temperatures (although expect cool seas!), and inexpensive flights due to a full month of term time for schools. Also in this episode: what Rome and New York have in common. And, no, it's not a shared love of pizza. This podcast is...

I'm always happy to answer your travel questions, and often do so! But, as my colleague Charlotte Hindle points out in this episode, I am only one man... So, with my mortality recognised, who else can *you* ask for help and travel advice? Whether you need to get money back after airline issues or need emergency travel, there are multiple examples of when you might need a helping hand, so listen no...

"Mind the gap," says King Charles in the Royal travel announcement that is playing out at stations across the kingdom this weekend. Does he mean the void between the train and platform – or the wide-as-ever gap between the rail unions and the government? More strikes next weekend, and overnight the RMT union announced that members had voted 91% in favour of continuing industrial action. What’s goi...

Around 1,400 security staff have walked out at Heathrow airport two days ahead of the Coronation and the bank holiday weekend. Members of the Unite union, mainly employed at Terminal 5, are striking in support of a pay claim. Signs in the terminal warn departing passengers: “There may be some security delays due to industrial action.” The Fast Track security lanes are closed, but queues for the fi...

I'm hearing from Dylan Harris, founder of Lupine Travel, about the inaugural Trans-European Race – which starts in central London on 5 August at 10am and concludes as soon as you can reach Istanbul. The distance as the crow flies – or the plane flies – is about 1500 miles. It’s quite a lot longer by public transport and walking, the only forms of travel allowed. Dylan reveals more ... This podcast...

International travellers will no longer need to demonstrate to airlines that they have received Covid jabs from Friday 12 May. Florida’s theme parks, Manhattan’s restaurants and California’s road trips are now on the summer agenda for British travellers who have not been vaccinated against the virus. The rule will expire at the end of the day on Thursday 11 May – which is when America’s “Covid-19...

The month of May has begun with fresh travel chaos. Thousands of travellers hoping to return to the UK today at the end of the bank holiday weekend are being told their flights are cancelled because of striking air-traffic controllers in France. On Tuesday the walk-out at HM Passport Office will be stepped up, and on Thursday security staff at Heathrow airport will walk out again. And later in May...