Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast

Steve Wilson, founder of Linger, tells me that many legal and financial services firms are happy for their top people to take sabbatical – a break to help them re-energise – and he and his team can deliver life-changing experiences.

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Hi from London St Pancras International – most beautiful railway station in the world, and also the hub for Eurostar. I am talking to Simon Lejeune, Chief Safety and Stations Officer for the cross-Channel rail firm, about the big changes the impending entry-exit system will bring.

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I am in Brno in the Czech Republic, where I have come to meet Kevan Vogler – a Canadian who has been living in his adopted homeland of the Czech Republic for more than 20 years, and is therefore the ideal person to write Culture Smart! Czech Republic: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture.

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That's the recommendation of the International Air Transport Association (Iata). Opponents say the airlines see raising the age limit as an attempt to deal with a temporary shortage of pilots. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency says the risk of a serious health incident on the flight desk increases with age, and that skills decline with the years.

But Willie Walsh, a former pilot himself and now director general of Iata, ...

Flying is incredibly safe. But as we have seen over the past nine months, accidents happen with tragic consequences. I am talking to Elmarie Marais, the chief executive of GoCrisis – a company that works with airlines to prepare emergency procedures, and gets to work to care for the loved ones of the victims. As I make clear, aviation has an outstanding safety record.

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I am still in southwest France, specifically at Toulouse airport departure lounge, where I am talking to Jackie Banfill and Frank Epstein – who have been in the high Pyrenean co-principality of Andorra. I know the place mainly from winter, but they say it is glorious in summer.

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Steve is Head of Engineering at the UK's second-busiest airport, and responsible for the baggage systems. Almost all the time things work well for the passenger, the airport and the airline.

But sometimes bags with loose straps and the like can gum up the system. And if you leave old barcodes on your case (those little labels) your bag might end up in Bangkok while you are waiting in Barcelona.

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All week I have been covering the strike by members of the RMT union working for London Underground, which has paralysed the capital. While some Tube trains have been running on each day, they represent only a tiny fraction of the network.

I took one of the rare trains running from Baker Street to Harrow-on-the-Hill, sharing the journey with a pigeon and a handful of humans.

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The summer has actually been excellent in terms of coming out of the UK," says Jeremy. While the peak day for flights from the UK is still back before Covid, in October 2019, and UK-US flights are showing a downturn, the trend is unrelentingly upwards. North Africa bookings doubled this summer and the Middle East is expanding ... 

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Today is the day that Intrepid Travel has revealed its Not Hot List – places off the tourism mainstream, from Nevada to Sierra Leone. I've been speaking to Hazel Maguire, chief marketing officer for the adventure travel company.

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Paul Goldstein, adventurer and wildlife campaigner, successfully completed 25 Marathon-length walks from Tigerton in Scotland to Tiger Bay in Wales to raise money for the conservation of four-legged animals – particularly the tiger. He's been telling me the highlights ...

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I'm talking to Martina Jamnig, director of the Austrian National Tourist Office in London, about the activities on offer in autumn and winter – which range from Christmas markets to ice-bathing in Carinthia. News about more flights to Austria, too.

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5 September is the day to celebrate travel professionals, and therefore a good day to hear from Julia Lo Bue-Said OBE, chief executive of the Advantage Travel Partnership. She believes school holidays need to be transformed so that they better meet the needs of families – and wants to start a national conversation on cutting the summer break to a month, with extra weeks added in May and October.

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At the end of the summer I'm talking to Kaya Niedenthal of Currency Online Group in London about trends in the currency markets: what's worth buying now, the use of the dollar and euro in many developing countries, and the currency that is selling extraordinarily well to Brits.

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The Caribbean is a mosaic of delectable isles - but what makes St Lucia distinctive? Senior travel writer Natalie Wilson was there in the summer and was smitten by the island's beauty, friendliness and culture.

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