Simon Calder, Travel Expert, returns

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1:00Simon Calder: Hello, I'm Monica Reinagle, host of the Nutrition Diva podcast. Summer is here, and with it, the hot and sticky weather. A morning working in the garden, or maybe on the golf course, can leave you more depleted than you realize. And plain water isn't always the most efficient way to restore the balance. That's where Liquid IV comes in. Its science-backed formula is clinically proven to hydrate faster than water alone. Whether you're exercising, playing outside, or simply surviving a summer heat wave, it's an easy way to stay hydrated. Shop now at liquidiv.com. Liquid IV, hydration that goes wherever life takes you.

1:43Hello and welcome to the Travel Diaries podcast. I'm your host, Holly Rubenstein, and here each week I'll be speaking to a very special guest about the seven chapters in their life's travel diaries. From their all-time favourite destination and their hidden gem to their worst travel experience and what's at the top of their travel bucket list, we'll be uncovering their adventures around the world and the travel experiences and destinations that have shaped their lives. Well, today on The Travel Diaries, I am joined by one of the UK's most trusted and best-loved travel experts, Simon Calder. You'll know him as the Independent's travel correspondent, a familiar face on TV and radio, and the go-to voice when travel chaos strikes, whether it's air traffic control meltdowns or passport expiry panics.

2:38But beyond the headlines, Simon is also a true adventurer with an insatiable curiosity for the world and a lifelong love of the open road, rails and skies.

2:50Simon Calder: Unbelievably, it's been five years since Simon last joined me on the podcast. And in that time, so much has changed, not just in the world of travel, but in the way we think about where we go, how we get there and why we travel in the first place. So today's episode is something of a global catch-up. From discovering the ancient cities of Algeria and the wild islands of the Antarctic, to cycling the Danube and family holidays on the beaches of Poland, Simon shares his latest discoveries, surprising favourites, and some underrated gems that might just change your next holiday plans. So without further ado, let's get started.

3:30Here's Simon.

3:44Simon, welcome back to The Travel Diaries. It is so lovely to be reunited with you after five years it's been since you were on The Travel Diaries. Can you believe it? That's ridiculous. We were so young then. Well, you were anyway. Not sure about me. I can't imagine how, you know, I've had two children since then. How could that be? Oh, my goodness. Yes. But still traveling, still talking, which is the main thing. Absolutely. Absolutely. And of course, I mean, a lot has, I mean, gosh, how much has changed in the world and the travel industry since we last spoke. It's changed dramatically. So I guess kind of to kick things off, I wondered, you know, what do you feel since we last spoke has been the biggest shift that you've seen, that you've observed in the travel world in these recent years?

4:36Well, you might have noticed we've had a COVID pandemic. We have had unprecedented times as travellers. Of course, if you go back actually five years ago this summer, there was just this extraordinary interrupted holidays, going back to Spain, then having to leave and then sit in a room for two weeks afterwards. It was just completely weird. The traffic lights. Oh, well, that all happened actually. I mean, 2021 was, if anything, even worse because we started with a 19-week ban on anybody going on holiday from the UK. All manner of horrible things that stood between you and your holiday. But I think it did a really important thing, which was to remind us just how much we loved travel.

5:24Because five years ago, we were kind of, you know, 2019, I think, which will be seen in years to come as the golden age of travel in terms of opportunities and costs. We kind of took it for granted. But now we know, having been deprived of it, just how much it means. And people are, I think, increasingly keen on getting those great life affirming experiences, building those memories. And that means that people are concentrating on travel, even though it's more expensive, even though it's perhaps less certain, people are still stretching their horizons. And it's a joyful time to be a traveller once more.

6:04Yeah, it's led to, like you say, a real re-evaluation of people's priorities, I think, when it comes to travel. And like you say, perhaps those bucket list trips have become more front and centre of people's minds. certainly yeah and i i think that's a a really important part of the transformed landscape the idea that people are thinking no i'm i'm not satisfied just to go back to the same old beach year after year i want to do something which stretches me which um introduces me to whole new cultures cuisines landscapes and and i want to make sure that i'm making the most of um of every possible opportunity to go on holiday and I welcome that but of course I spend my entire life on holiday pretending to work.

6:54Speaking of which I mean so of those kind of big destinations what are the kind of trends that you're seeing in terms of people's choices? Yeah well first of all we're after experiences I think more than simply you know a fairly transactional relationship with the destination um we've i think over the years got too accustomed to the idea that you know you can go and stay in an all-inclusive resort and um enjoy the the swimming pools and the beach and everything but you're not really going to engage with your culture people i think are much more focused on so what is around um what are the local people eating and drinking there's so many opportunities out there and in terms of destinations that is also reflected in the fact that people are going to places like Borneo and Antarctica they are heading off into the depths of Africa of course safaris will remain very popular but I think people are aiming to to go a bit beyond the obvious.

8:01Well, when we last spoke, top of your bucket list was going to Antarctica. Yes. Have you been in that time? I have. Now, when I say I've been to Antarctica, I've been to the Antarctic region. I haven't actually set foot on Antarctica. And you will understand this, Holly. Stuff doesn't always happen as it's supposed to, whether all sorts of other problems can intervene. So I saw some fantastic sub-Antarctic islands and amazing wildlife. And yeah, I'm happy not having set foot on the Antarctic Peninsula. The absolute highlight was South Georgia. Now, this is more distant than the Falkland Islands even.

8:48It is also the place where Ernest Shackleton ended that amazing journey, trying to rescue his team of explorers who had to overwinter in the Antarctic. And he actually set off on a small boat, along with a few of his crew, to go for help. They got to South Georgia, which is a very mountainous very remote very wild island they kind of shipwrecked on the south coast they then climbed over the mountain range in the middle having spent weeks on a small boat and they finally um got help and everybody survived one of the great stories of our times but also south georgia is fascinating for um it's it's very much edge of the world feeling for the uh very limited human interaction that we've had with uh with south georgia and that part of the world and also uh just just penguins galore it's a wildlife destination um that whole area it's i i find the human stories gripping um because they are mostly to do with kind of survival against the odds um and how humanity can adapt to pretty much anything.

10:12But the great opportunity is to photograph creatures in extraordinary circumstances. And funnily enough, the Galapagos, which is very, very equatorial as opposed to polar, offers similar experiences. Absolutely. Well, everyone's travel diaries evolve over time. I don't know, do you remember what your all-time favourite destination was on the Travel Diaries last time? I'm going to say it was either Uzbekistan or the Azores. I think it was the Azores, yeah. Okay. So has that evolved? Has that changed? Has something new crept to the top of your list since then that you can tell us about? Oh, look, there's all sorts of places where I have been lucky enough to travel to, where I have had fantastic experiences.

11:04So I'm going to give you a very quick quiz, Holly. What's the largest country in Africa? And nobody gets this right. The largest country. I would have said Nigeria, but I'm probably, I know that I'm wrong. So do tell. As I say, everybody's wrong. It used to be Sudan until South Sudan became an independent country. Now it's Algeria. Algeria. And I was lucky enough to go to Algeria. It is one of those, you would love it because it's one of those raw destinations where there's all kinds of opportunities to see the most amazing classical ruins with nobody there. And it's because they haven't really needed tourism.

11:46They're very rich in oil and gas. And it's also the sort of government, how can I put it, which does not feel that it needs to engage hugely with millions of overseas visitors. but if you can get there and it is actually getting easier with visas on arrival for instance you're going to have a fascinating time whether it's in in the city of Algiers itself which is one of the great Mediterranean ports or wandering along the coast to an astonishing city called Constantine which is built high above a deep ravine if you can imagine something like the Grand Canyon only with a city built into it that's that's constant theme for you so um you're traveling across uh the beautiful countryside of Algeria going east from Algiers some way actually from the coast um the coast itself is uh is lovely and then you see this kind of the these uh hills rising ahead of you and in those hills um you you have a kind of intricately carved river gorge which um meanders through uh this this chasm very precariously built on that you've got um a wonderful absolutely traditional arabic souk a kind of medina the old town and that's full of lovely little lanes with all kinds of homes and trades which have been there for many many centuries overlaid with some naturally French colonial architecture and so on and the whole package is linked together with these really spectacular bridges because it has to be because you're on this kind of pinnacle above a a river and so it everything it I can't I haven't seen it as part of a film set but it jolly well should be so I'm looking forward to the next James Bond um to seeing it on there I I've not seen a city with that kind of location I guess the closest I would get to it is probably somewhere like Granada in Spain which has a magnificent setting and the Alhambra is this wonderful palace on the rock.

14:13And actually, I think we may have talked about this. That was the point when I was, what, 19 or something, hitchhiking through Spain. I just stared at this miraculous setting and I just thought, yep, I just want to travel. Thank you very much. And that's when I started being on holiday permanently. How would you go about kind of executing that? Would you think it'd be safest to go through like a tour kind of company or how would you go about it? Okay, so yeah, the mechanics are really, really important, Holly. So thank you for that opportunity. There are some specialist tour operators in the UK who will put together a trip.

14:55Now, that's going to be slightly more expensive than a DIY expedition, but it's also going to be far more rewarding. And also you are going to find that you have far better consumer protection. So go through a package holiday company if you can. They will then be in touch with a ground operator, a really good company in Algeria who will look after you every step of the way. And that's what I did. And they do everything from at the airport, helping you manage money and absolutely critical wherever you're going, that you understand how to organize your finances and getting you a SIM card, for instance, all the way through to the details of the waves of civilizations which have swept across Algeria and the rest of North Africa.

15:52So from all points of view, very good, very good opportunity. Just on the money question, I'm very much of the mind that people shouldn't get ahead of themselves and just assume that everywhere takes cards. cards i'm really interested in a survey by tesco travel money which actually revealed that um about two two out of five people have been embarrassed to find that they assumed that they would be able to use their cards abroad and couldn't so really important particularly if you're stepping off the the beaten track um to make sure that you have plenty of cash and And organizations like Tesco Travel Money can help you get the right funds, which depending on where you're going will be often US dollars or euros.

16:45And if you've got cash in your pocket, then you know you are going to be able to extricate yourself from unexpected circumstances. Situations, yeah. Yes. Yeah, it's about being prepared, essentially, isn't it? Yeah. And obviously things like travel insurance, absolutely crucial as well. If you're going to places, I think after we spoke last time, I was going to Yemen. Oh, yes, you were. And that was where I had to be. Exactly right. And a beautiful Indian Ocean Island, which in 30 years from now, we will be talking about what a marvellous eco resort it is. But I went there and I did, I'm afraid, go against foreign office advice not to go to anywhere in Yemen.

17:35And it was at the height of the COVID pandemic. Again, I'd gone with a proper packageology company. So when the Yemeni authorities said, off you go, you've got to get out now or you'll be here indefinitely. we were looked after but again you travel insurance really important and you can get insurance which works even if you're going against foreign office advice but I wouldn't advise people to go against foreign office advice unless they are really clear on what that where they are going what they are doing and crucially who's going to be looking after them. So what made you want to go there so much that you were prepared to to kind of go against that advice what what was it that that that was that tempted you because we talked about it briefly but now that you've been there do you live up to your expectations and can you tell us about it yeah completely exceeded the expectation and and this is this goes back to something we talked about which is how you get inspired to go to places and it's mostly talking to people so a couple of friends had been there they said this is an astonishing location it is safe um or at least as safe as can be and if you're going through a good responsible travel company they will look after you but um from the moment you touch down you meet such friendliness um and not in the sense of yep you've you've come bringing uh lots of dollars and therefore we will we will be nice to you but just genuine openness um from islanders who uh have um you know obviously like everyone else in Yemen been through some hard times, but who are nonetheless the very best of humanity, really friendly, really keen that you see the most of their island.

19:20And my goodness, what an island. So it's dramatically very beautiful. It has huge sand dunes. It has completely unspoiled beaches, which run for miles. It has bizarre um flora and fauna so animals and and vegetation dragon's blood tree and and things like that in really accessible circumstances and you can uh just really enjoy being there and you're not going to have any luxury there uh we stayed in the best hotel in town and i think there might have been some hot water at one stage but i'm not sure any of it found its way to my shower and you're not going to have air conditioner or anything like that, but you will, and you'll be sitting on the floor eating your meals along with the locals, but that's all great.

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21:12Simon Calder: Hello, I'm Monica Reinagle, host of the Nutrition Diva podcast. Summer is here and with it, the hot and sticky weather. A morning working in the garden or maybe on the golf course can leave you more depleted than you realize. And plain water isn't always the most efficient way to restore the balance. That's where Liquid IV comes in. Its science-backed formula is clinically proven to hydrate faster than water alone. Whether you're exercising, playing outside, or simply surviving a summer heat wave, it's an easy way to stay hydrated. Shop now at liquidiv.com. Liquid IV, hydration that goes wherever life takes you two so culture sounds absolutely amazing and one of those destinations that feels like you know it's going to appeal to the intrepid traveler isn't it because it's like one of those kind of like one of the last to kind of be accessible to be to be opening up and kind of with that in mind another kind of travel trend that i've obviously seen over the last few years is just new tourism destinations be almost created whether that's because you couldn't visit in the past and the borders were shut or they're just brand new places that are being built are there any kind of new destinations that have kind of come into fruition since we spoke or are currently in the works that that excite you well there's certainly a really interesting development over in the Middle East that intrigues and interests me.

22:42This is Saudi Arabia, which if you go back 10 years, you used to go to, perhaps like me, the world travel market in London, where the world gets together. And it used to be that Saudi Arabia would have a stand normally right down the back in the corner, one gentleman sitting at a desk on his own. Now, when you go along, it's as though if you if you arrive from Mars, you would imagine that Saudi Arabia comprised half the world, all this glitz, all this glamour. And what the country is doing, the kingdom is trying to transform from a oil based economy to diverse tourism focused economy. And undoubtedly, there are lots of things to do, and they've made it suddenly much easier to get to Saudi Arabia.

23:35And they're launching a new airline called Riyadh Air and opening new airports and creating new resorts. And there's talk that you will be able to get a drink in Saudi Arabia. So that is the big tourism story of the 2020s. however there will be people who will have concerns about the human rights record the attitude for instance to GLBTQ plus people who are not given the same rights that they would be elsewhere and it's one of those difficult things Holly where you have to come up with your own decision on whether you think that that's a good destination to go to whether you think actually meeting people talking to them will actually help perhaps the process of increasing tolerance or whether you just think i don't want to have anything to do with the regime which um behaves um in in certain ways which i find deeply deeply um offensive so difficult times there less controversially i'd say um cape verde uh in the atlantic is opening up um more portuguese speaking islands like the uh the zoars but we've got more flights going in there and i'm kind of excited that that is going to become an independent backpackers location rather than um somewhere that is absolutely just squarely commoditized all-inclusive holidays right yeah because cape verde is different to the azores in that it's is it it's further south so it's kind of more of like a hot weather destination.

25:15Oh, very much so, yeah. It's a perfect place to be if it's November or January in Northern Europe. It's a really good time to be. Like a winter sun place. Yeah, exactly. And it does mass market package tourism, but I've also heard really interesting things about the rest of the archipelago away from the all-inclusive resorts. So I'm hoping to get there. And other locations, well, earlier this year, We saw it used to be the case that you couldn't fly to Tbilisi in Georgia from the UK. And suddenly, within a couple of days, British Airways and EasyJet launched flights from the UK to Tbilisi. And that's a very exciting part of the world.

26:00So Central Asia, Uzbekistan very much getting back on getting into the mainstream as well. So, so much exciting stuff to do. And I'm personally really keen to get to more of West Africa, in particular Ghana and Sierra Leone. Again, people have told me great things about those locations. Oh, wow. So say you're planning a trip to Ghana. Would you be heading to Accra or travelling beyond it? What appears? OK. And tell me if you agree with this, that capital cities are, I find, very compelling and intriguing. and I'm really keen to go to Accra because I've heard great things about it, but they're not necessarily representative of the country, so you do need to travel around as well.

26:51Generally, the further you are from the kind of beaten track, I find the more hospitable, friendly the locals are, so I'm very much looking forward to going off into the wilds of Ghana and indeed Sierra Leone, which some people say is their absolute favourite country in Africa. Really? So I don't know, I can't really picture much about Sierra Leone. Can you tell me what kind of what is it that people have told you that they love about it? Yeah, it's basically, it sounds absolutely heavenly. Everything from beaches to wildlife to a really relaxed outlook on life. you'll recall of course we've had unfortunately diseases in particular Ebola was a worry there but that's now gone away and just unspoilt friendly welcoming of course like every country it's got its own indigenous cuisine which is always worth exploring and I can't wait to get there as well so many places so little time Holly well we're in the thick of you know well schools and holidays are just kicking off now and obviously the story that we're hearing so much is that as of destinations the traditional destinations the spains the italy's the france and greece being absolutely boiling um almost too hot to go outside and really not necessarily that safe for children and then also the chaos at immigration as well in the airports like we saw and Faro recently.

28:24So with that in mind, would you be advising that families re-evaluate the destinations that they're thinking about for school summer holidays? And if so, where would you be sending them or recommending that they perhaps explore? Really, really good point. Yes, absolutely. And I would be sending everybody to the Baltic. That's the new Mediterranean. Things are heating up in the Med. We've seen wildfires in southern France in eastern Crete and I'm afraid that is really just the start of what I think could be another really difficult summer and if you go to Poland which I've been to many times you will find that most of the north coast seems to be one continuous beach my favorite resort is a place called Sopot which is just around the corner from Gdansk a fine city really easy to reach from right across the UK, you'll find that you get amazing value there, that it's not too expensive to get there.

29:23And furthermore, if you've got a young family, then you are not going to get the same extreme sun that you would in the Mediterranean. And I really welcome that that's a possibility. You could also go to Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, which also have great beaches. They're a little a bit further north but equally fascinating um however uh i look at the schedules and i see that for example the peak day for departures from the uk uh there are no fewer just with one airline easy jet four flights from across the uk to sharm el sheikh in egypt three to her gada please everybody those are going to be way way too warm in the middle of summer they're great places to be from november to march but um you don't want to be there in peak summer but it's 75 years ago this summer that the first package holidays by air to the mediterranean began and um it seems that our addiction to sunshine hasn't um hasn't diminished too much no but that that um Polish recommendation is really interesting because also if you fancied it I guess doing a kind of city because Gdansk is I've not been but I've heard it's a gorgeous city oh yeah and then and then to head out to the to head out to the coast and be able to have a kind of beachy escape um it's a great dual center summer holiday oh sure yeah and I'm all in favor of places where you can but can combine a city break along with actual seaside and all the traditional stuff moving on to sustainability um and slow travel i mean obviously they continue to be top of top of the mind our minds are there um any destinations that in the last few years you've genuinely seen that ethos being embraced where it's more than just a buzzword where you are really seeing it being put into proper practice a really really tricky one so the idea that you shouldn't just fly somewhere um have your two-week holiday and then fly back you should you be should be traveling at a pace that um uh you can properly appreciate things so a couple of examples um the first one is actually cycling the danube uh increasingly popular and a really lovely experience whether you're um just a couple heading downstream by the way always go downstream with wind behind you which you will be doing if you are going from somewhere like the glorious german city of regensburg um through to vienna um you can rent a bike here leave it there so that's that's a really good um option as well and i saw that on your instagram you did that quite was that quite recently yes thank you thank you for for watching um and the great thing is that that that is the very definition of slow travel staying in local places with um family run hotels local food it's everything that you you could want and i remember one particular day there i was cycling along this beautiful danube path and then there's a cafe over to to the left and i think well that's but there's nobody around and that was fine they just left the cafe open they said right here's all the snacks here's all the drinks here's the kettle help yourself two two euros fifty for a cup of coffee and um on your way just such a lovely reflection of we think um that the vast majority of travelers are good and honest and we provide a service which hopefully they will enjoy um so So that's one example.

33:12I'm hugely fond of the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland, which isn't a single trail that they discovered. It's a marketing exercise about 15 years old now. But hats off to them. Absolutely brilliant. Let's connect the far north of Ireland with the far south and we're going to do it along the west coast. We're just going to bring in roads and lanes and paths and we're going to call it the Wild Atlantic Way. And that's been really successful in enticing people to parts of Ireland, which they just wouldn't be going to in a way that they feel is sort of manageable. It's a bit like the kind of modern version of Route 66, only a heck of a lot more interesting, Holly.

33:57And have you done the whole of it yourself or have you done portions of it? If so, which portions have you most enjoyed? oh gosh it's a big journey you'd need quite a lot of time oh you would do yeah so I would I've done the kind of top half if you see what I mean and the whole peninsula of County Donegal and County Donegal my goodness vast county so much diversity going from the very top of Ireland all the way down this corrugated coastline and with plenty of opportunities to escape onto islands off the island of Ireland where things are really remote and very beautiful and you just feel as though this is the edge of the world and you found it.

34:47But of course, being Ireland, it's also very friendly. You can get a very good local meal and occasionally a drink as well, I've noticed, which is just what you need at the end of a long day but it mostly gives you access to places beyond the obvious and well worth doing as opposed to i have to say in terms of sustainability the north coast 500 which was the scottish response to this they saw what was happening in ireland thought that's a great idea let's create one in the north of scotland linking together existing roads on a 500 mile trail which is great but there's lots of complaints from the locals that actually the English drive up in their mobile homes they stock up at a supermarket in Inverness they then drive around they're not spending any money they're just causing problems and so I'm very much keen on working on a code of conduct for people which says yeah we will bring our mobile home up but we're actually going to stay in places you know pub car parks or whatever that are deliberately set out for us we're going to have lots of local meals and we're going properly to contribute to the the economy it's almost like a marketing exercise that's been too successful yes well or it didn't didn't unintended consequences it's it's great for gripping the imagination what so i can go on a 500 mile trip that sounds great you know spread that over the course of a week see some amazing seascapes and landscapes a wonderful idea but of course the other thing it does and here's a here's a tip um all you need to do is go to all the roads that aren't on it because they will be empty and equally beautiful and so kind of set up your own little uh anti north coast 500 which takes you down all all the so just get a good good old map and then just work out where the tourist traffic won't be.

36:45Yeah, that's a very, very good tip. So then as we wrap up, you know that we always end on the destination that's at the top of your travel bucket list. You've mentioned some fantastic ones. I know when we last spoke also you had talked about Nepal. Ah, yes. Has that come to fruition? It has, and thank you so much for asking about that. And I can't believe that I waited till I was really quite an advanced age before I went to Nepal. Having been there, I can see exactly what people mean. You go to Kathmandu, which is a chaotic Asian city, sort of sat in a deep valley amid some very impressive hills, not quite the Himalayas yet.

37:30but you will find that you are just completely overwhelmed by the openness by the kindness of the local people and so i urge you to go there i will be returning next year for some more high altitude trekking because i might be scared of heights but i do like trekking through the mountains and i did prepare my uh my wish list um as well as sierra leone and ghana i want to go to Congo, in Southern Africa, Malawi, Mozambique look very tempting and Madagascar. So exciting there. And well, here we are. The conflict in Ukraine very, very sadly continues. But once that is over, tourism will be a really important force for good in helping the Ukrainians rebuild their country.

38:24So I can't wait to get back to Kiev and many other places in Ukraine. Yeah, because that was another destination that you've spoken very fondly of, Ukraine, before everything happened there. It's a beautiful, beautiful place. Oh, very much so. So much to see. Lviv, a beautiful city in the west of Ukraine. Odessa is one of the most gorgeous places on Earth, a southern city on the Black Sea. Kyiv, a spectacular capital city, and in between lots of beautiful villages, lovely coastline. It's just a question of how much has been damaged or destroyed by Putin's terrible war. But they do need help. They do need rebuilding.

39:14This isn't about voyeurism going back to see what has, the effect of the war. It's more to say, look, we want to help you rebuild, create jobs, bring money in to all the things that will make, sorry to use this phrase, make Ukraine great again. And where are you heading next, Simon? What's your next flight? My next flight is going ridiculously early in the morning, 5.55, I think, from Stansted Airport. It is going to Perugia. Yes, Perugia in central Italy. I'm then going off to an area called Le Marche, which is very much off the beaten track, up in the hills in the middle of the country. And I'm not trusting to cards there.

40:08I'm going to be taking a good wad of euros to make sure that I am able to get around and enjoy all the fantastic local delicacies and meet all the people and share their lives briefly. I've heard Lamarck is a great hidden gem. It was actually Alex Jones, the TV presenter's hidden gem, and she came on The Travel Diaries. and um it's it's like an alternative if it's an under the radar alternative to like a tuscan holiday isn't it it's kind of more like is it more is it umbria yeah exactly so it goes tuscany over-touristed umbria getting that way le marquis not as far as i know but i will yeah go and discover it if i'm not too near right i'll have a wonderful time i can't wait to follow along Thank you so much for joining me again on the podcast, Simon.

40:57It's been so great to chat. I hope we can do it again sometime soon. Thank you so much.

41:09Ah, well, a huge thank you to Simon for joining me again on the podcast. I could honestly listen to him talk about travel for hours. His enthusiasm is just so infectious. And wow, I mean, Constantine, Socotra, Sopot, a whole new list of destinations to add to the travel wish list. And Simon discussed his top tips for summer holidays after new research from Tesco Travel Money found two in five travellers are being caught short of cash. You can find out more about Tesco Travel Money by visiting tescotravelmoney.com. Thanks so much for listening today. If you'd like a reminder of any of the destinations that we chat about on any of the episodes, just open up the episode show notes on your podcast app and there's a destination recap list in there.

41:53Or you can visit my website, thetraveldiariespodcast.com. If you'd like to find out who is joining me on next week's episode, come and follow me on Instagram. I'm at hollyrubenstein and I'm also on TikTok at hollyrubenstein2. If you can't wait till then, remember there's the first 14 seasons to catch up on. that's about 155 episodes to keep you busy. If you enjoyed today's episode and you fancy leaving a little rating or review on your podcast app, that would be fantastic. It helps other people to discover the podcast. In the meantime, wishing you guys all safe travels, a wonderful week, and I'll be back on Tuesday.

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