Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast

New green list possibilities?British Airways signals a return to Australia seven months from now – with a faster journey but smaller plane.And could Ryanair be leaving Northern Ireland?Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Action at last against the “cowboy” firms on the government’s register of travel testing providers – but it is too little too late. And let’s talk about tipping – which many travellers find a nightmare, but it shouldn’t be.Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week there’s another traffic light review. I don’t know exactly what changes will be made, but I can guide you through the practicalities.Travel in the former East Germany 32 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall.And while foreign secretary Dominic Raab is in trouble after his holiday in Crete – if you don’t have any pressing matters of state, it’s a great island to explore.Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I’ve just touched down in Berlin, location for probably the world’s least successful new airport project.75 weeks into the coronavirus pandemic, a snapshot of the international travel experience – at least between the UK and Germany.And what’s happening with autumn cancellations and expansion to southern Europe?Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

News of a seat sale on LNERLikely moves in the next traffic light announcement.And another reminder: you need no test to leave the UKSign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Please stop worrying about Spain going on the red list everybody.Booking “insurance” flights – how to do it.And on the final full day of my trip to Shetland, my top five from the islands. Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A leading analyst gives a damning verdict on the UK’s travel rules.More holiday cancellations coming in for late summer and autumn. Why?And my recommendations for the Mediterranean in September.Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Being pinged following flights with infected people – what has changed?The Corona Testing Centre continues to make strange claimsAnd how travel in Shetland remains defiantly analogue in a digital age.Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What’s happening in Australia in terms of Covid and travel?Dodgy testing companies giving misleading “advice” on testing to leave the UK.And the Scottish travel experience right now.Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could airlines be forced to tell you the environmental impact of your flight?How to spend those Avios.And a reminder about passport validity.Sign up to Simon's free weekly newsletter at independent.co.uk/newsletters and all the very latest is available 24hrs a day at independent.co.uk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.