The Travel Expert with Simon Calder

This week, Simon Calder and Greg Dickinson tackle your most pressing travel questions in a special Q&A edition. From finding the best budget-friendly seaside towns in southwest England and choosing between the Chilean and Argentine routes to Patagonia, to essential tips for solo backpacking in South Korea and exploring China by public transport.

Plus, we debate the world's best airports, decode airline baggage fees and lost luggage rights, and share top recommendations for a special celebration in Sardinia.

Send your questions to thetravelexpert@telegraph.co.uk.

Let The Telegraph Travel newsletter from Simon Calder be your guide to inspiring destinations at home and around the globe. Every week, Simon and our team of experts will send you the latest news, features, opinion and advice. Sign up here.

Video Producer: Carla Mercer
Producer: Georgia Coan
Commissioning Editor: Louisa Wells
Head of Travel: Ben Ross

Highlights:
Budget-friendly seaside towns and Sardinia celebration spots
Airline baggage fees, lost luggage rights, and the world's best airports
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, we're joined by Britain's foremost hotelier and star of Channel 5's The Hotel Inspector, Alex Polizzi, to share her views on the biggest challenges facing the hospitality industry, her favourite hotels in the world, and what it really takes to run a successful stay.

Plus, Simon Calder and Greg Dickinson discuss the devastating airstrikes on Riyadh Airport and what the escalating regional conflict means for global air corridors and tourism.

We also look at the controversial new mandatory travel insurance being introduced by Kenya and Tanzania, and share essential travel updates for the weekend ahead, including planned disruptions affecting journeys to Heathrow and Gatwick airports.

Send your questions to thetravelexpert@telegraph.co.uk. Let The Telegraph Travel newsletter from Simon Calder be your guide to inspiring destinations at home and around the globe. Every week, Simon and our team of experts will send you the latest news, features, opinion and advice. Sign up here.

Video Producer: Carla Mercer
Producer: Georgia Coan
Commissioning Editor: Louisa Wells
Head of Travel: Ben Ross
Studio Operator: Meghan Searle

Highlights:
Hotel inspector Alex Polizzi on the secrets of great hospitality
What the Riyadh Airport airstrikes mean for global air corridors
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, as British airports prepare to introduce "contactless borders" with facial recognition at e-gates, Simon Calder and Greg Dickinson discuss whether passport checks are finally becoming a thing of the past and how the new technology will work.

Plus, following the British Museum's decision to ban cameras for the Bayeux Tapestry exhibition, the duo explores why tourist attractions are cracking down on photography and how snapping photos impacts our travel experiences.
We're also joined by loyalty guru Rob Burgess, founder of Head for Points, to dive into the dark art of airline loyalty schemes and whether earning and burning is still worth your time.

And finally, answering your travel questions, Simon and Greg share recommendations on whether to fly or take the ferry to the Isle of Man and look into China visa rules for 2027.

Send your questions to thetravelexpert@telegraph.co.uk.

Let The Telegraph Travel newsletter from Simon Calder be your guide to inspiring destinations at home and around the globe. Every week, Simon and our team of experts will send you the latest news, features, opinion and advice. Sign up here.

Video Producer: Carla Mercer
Producer: Georgia Coan
Commissioning Editor: Louisa Wells
Head of Travel: Ben Ross
Studio Operator: Meghan Searle

Highlights:
Are contactless facial recognition borders the future of UK airports?
Why the British Museum has banned cameras for the Bayeux Tapestry
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, following a terrifying 14,000 ft drop in altitude and a violent cockpit altercation on a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv where a pilot was stabbed, Simon Calder and Greg Dickinson discuss airline safety, pilot security, and whether passengers should be worried.

Plus, as strikes and engineering works converge across the network, the duo dives into the looming winter of discontent for rail travellers, and explores the curious German offshore island of Heligoland, which is fighting back against mass tourism.

And finally, in a bumper edition of your travel questions, Simon and Greg share top tips for taking a 14-year-old to Paris for the October half-term, advise on using a UK Blue Badge for parking in Florida, offer guidance on claiming a hire car refund after a delayed flight to Palma and suggest unusual things to do and visit in London.

Send your questions to thetravelexpert@telegraph.co.uk.

Let The Telegraph Travel newsletter from Simon Calder be your guide to inspiring destinations at home and around the globe. Every week, Simon and our team of experts will send you the latest news, features, opinion and advice. Sign up here.

Video Producer: Carla Mercer
Producer: Georgia Coan
Executive Producer: Louisa Wells
Head of Travel: Ben Ross
Studio Operator: Meghan Searle

Highlights:
Should passengers worry about airline safety?
Winter of discontent: Strikes and engineering works hit rail travellers
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, as air traffic control meltdowns and NATS software defects continue to make headlines, Simon Calder and Greg Dickinson discuss whether ongoing aviation chaos is becoming the new normal.

Greg also reports back from watching robots park cars at Gatwick Airport, while Michael O'Leary warns that cheap flights are up by 14% as airlines cut back schedules.

Plus, we are joined by fellow travel expert Rachel O'Reilly for a winter sun special comparing the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean, exploring closer-to-home escapes like the Canaries.

And finally, the team answers your travel questions. Simon and Greg offer advice on car rental for older travellers with Europcar and Zipcar, and recommend the wild landscapes of the Southern Carpathians as an alternative hiking holiday to Everest base camp.

Send your questions to thetravelexpert@telegraph.co.uk.

Let The Telegraph Travel newsletter from Simon Calder be your guide to inspiring destinations at home and around the globe. Every week, Simon and our team of experts will send you the latest news, features, opinion and advice. Sign up here.

Video Producer: Carla Mercer

Producer: Georgia Coan

Executive Producer: Louisa Wells

Head of Travel: Ben Ross

Studio Operator: Meghan Searle

Highlights:
Air traffic control meltdowns: Is aviation chaos the new normal?
Winter sun special: Caribbean vs Indian Ocean with Rachel O’Reilly
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.