Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast

On St George's Day, there's no need to trim your travel sails. Despite challenging headlines travel remains in good health. My guest today, Ted Wake, managing director of Kirker Holidays, says that airlines could cut one flight in five with impunity. "There is scope for the airlines to trim their schedules in the coming months without having any appreciable impact on consumers."

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Six months ago, Hawaiian Airlines became part of the Alaska Air Group, with the understanding that its identity as the carrier to, from and within the Pacific state would continue. Today, 22 April, the enterprise joins the Oneworld airline alliance.

Chief executive Diana Birkett Rakow has been telling me about her airline, the state of Hawaii and the benefits of an airline alliance.

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Today I'm talking about the deep south of the world, with conservation biologist Dr Louise Blight – whose book of that title is published today. The work – part science, part adventure and part travelogue – is subtitled "A Story of Penguins, People and Place in Antarctica".

Louise told me about her time on Ross Island – and the emotions of life taken to extremes.

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It is more than 40 years since BA last connected its main base, London Heathrow, with the Channel Island of Guernsey. I was on board the first departure from the isle – a notable operation with both pilots and all but one of the cabin crew being Guernsey born and bread.

While I waited for the flight I talked to Zoe Gosling, Lead Marketing Officer at Visit Guernsey – who had just flown in from Heathrow.

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Paul Goldstein, wildlife photographer and expedition leader, is just back from Baffin Island in Canada – where the temperature, with wind chill, dropped to minus 50C. He talks about the rewards of such a trip – and his new fundraising project. He will walk 500 miles, and he will walk 500 more, to campaign for endangered species.

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.