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simoncalder.bsky.social
Simon Calder
@simoncalder.bsky.social
5.4K followers 7 following 110 posts
Travel news and advice shared here, on TikTok @caldertravel and answering questions at weekends with my 5.30pm UK Instagram Live: http://instagram.com/simon_calder/
I read all relevant posts but cannot reply to everyone.
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simoncalder.bsky.social
Grand Egyptian Museum – the GEM – finally opens in full to the public today.
It has immediately become a contender for world's greatest museum.
Do you have a different nomination?
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Egypt reclaims its history as Africa’s cultural pride and joy finally opens
The Man Who Pays His Way: The builders have reached the finish line for Cairo’s Grand Egyptian Museum, and now the race to the past begins
www.independent.co.uk
November 4, 2025 at 8:44 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Eastern Airways: Passenger rights as it goes wrong for the UK regional carrier.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Eastern Airways: What are my passenger rights as airline stops flying?
With no aircraft, no ticket sales and all flights cancelled, it seems unlikely the airline can be rescued
www.independent.co.uk
October 27, 2025 at 4:35 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Eastern Airways has:
Cancelled all flights.
Stopped selling tickets.
Returned aircraft to leasing companies.
So sadly it appears the regional airline will close after 28 years, following BMI Regional and Flybe.
I am now writing an explainer on passenger rights.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Eastern Airways stops flying and returns planes to leasing companies
All flights cancelled as airline files ‘notice of intention to appoint an administrator’
www.independent.co.uk
October 27, 2025 at 3:37 PM
Reposted by Simon Calder
leverhulme.ac.uk
ICYMI: the latest episode of The We Society 🎙️ sees travel journalist @simoncalder.bsky.social join Will Hutton to discuss the joys of travel, how it has changed, and some of the threats that huge increases in tourism pose to popular destinations.

Listen now: media.leverhulme.ac.uk/podcast/calder
October 20, 2025 at 11:24 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Rail: taxpayer subsidy of £400 per second to keep UK trains running looks unsustainably high.
Some fresh ideas from @freewheeling.info to entice new passengers and boost revenue.
Reserved seats on any train.
More first class.
Simpler railcards to drive loyalty.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
How to fix Britain’s trains: Expert calls for more railcards and first-class
Train Talk: Thomas Ableman believes some passengers will gladly pay more for superior service
www.independent.co.uk
October 21, 2025 at 12:39 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
EU entry-exit system not going well at Prague airport: busiest arrival point where the EES is due to be happening 100% on day one.
Queues of up to 90 minutes reported for arrivals from the UK and other non-Schengen nations.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Hour-long queues in Prague airport as EU entry-exit system comes into effect
Exclusive: Czech Republic vowed to introduce 100% EES checks on day one
www.independent.co.uk
October 12, 2025 at 3:29 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
EU entry-exit system explainer.
Key points:
No need to prepare anything in advance.
On first contact, facial biometric and fingerprints (not for under-12s) are collected. After that, just the face.
Initially it's an extra layer on top of existing manual checks.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
I am travelling to the EU on or after 12 October. What is changing?
All you need to know about handling the Schengen area entry-exit system
www.independent.co.uk
October 11, 2025 at 8:10 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
340 Tui passengers from Montego Bay to Manchester are stuck in Nassau, Bahamas, for 2+ days.
Original cause: an air-rage diversion.
Aircraft then developed a technical fault.
As Tui has no operation in Nassau, organising care is tricky.
Passengers cheesed off.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
‘Scared’ Tui passengers feared ‘riot’ after being stranded in Bahamas
Exclusive: The plane diverted to Nassau to remove a disruptive customer on Sunday
www.independent.co.uk
September 16, 2025 at 1:36 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
EU entry-exit system: just 32 days until UK passport holders start giving fingerprints and facial biometrics when travelling to the Schengen area.
Confusion and misinformation abounds.
At 11am today I will host an Ask Me Anything on the new red tape we asked for
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
EU entry-exit system: Join Q&A with Simon Calder on latest post-Brexit travel changes
Simon Calder, The Independent’s travel correspondent, is on hand to answer your questions and demystify the EU’s new entry-exit system and post-Brexit travel rules
www.independent.co.uk
September 10, 2025 at 9:05 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
London Underground strike.
Northern Line is now running end to end.
Edgware and High Barnet <> Morden and Battersea Power Station via both Charing Cross and City branches.
Gaps between trains of 10 minutes or so, and some stations in central area may be skipped.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Tube strikes today: When are they and which lines are affected?
Everything you need to know about the upcoming walkouts, from the lines affected to the best ways to get to the airport
www.independent.co.uk
September 9, 2025 at 7:51 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Book an Interrail pass by next Tuesday, 9 September, and save 20%. Prices start at €226 (£197) for 4 days of travel within a month, 2nd class. 3-month continuous pass in 1st class costs €971 (£845).
Under-28s: further discount of 25%
60-plus travellers save 10%
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Interrail sale: All the best European train route itineraries according to an expert
Exclusive: Author of Europe by Rail, Nicky Gardner, believes that train travel offers “a chance to think”
www.independent.co.uk
September 3, 2025 at 11:52 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Air rage incidents rose 8% in 2024 compared with the previous year.
Worldwide, there are now an average of 11 per hour.
Many involve excessive drinking.
Time to trial alcohol-free flights?
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Airline passengers behaving badly: Is it time for alcohol-free flights?
Plane Talk: Do pricing policies for in-flight beers encourage passengers to drink more – and get angry?
www.independent.co.uk
September 3, 2025 at 6:06 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Just 40 days to the start of the EU's much-delayed entry-exit system.
Roll-out across the Schengen area begins 12 October.
Passports will be checked and stamped as normal, but you must also be prepared to provide fingerprints and a facial biometric if requested.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
What will the EU’s new entry-exit system mean for British travellers?
Under the entry-exit system, British travellers to the Schengen Area can expect to be fingerprinted and provide a facial biometric
www.independent.co.uk
September 2, 2025 at 2:17 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
EU entry-exit system starts 12 October.
Authorities are doing all they can to ensure a smooth roll-out of the new fingerprints'n'facial biometric regime.
But if things start to unravel, says top aviation economist, Athens airport will see the greatest chaos.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
August 29, 2025 at 2:06 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Ryanair cabin baggage rules.
CEO Michael O'Leary tells me 99.9% of passengers comply.
To persuade the 1 in 1,000 who exceed the newly expanded 40x30x20cm limit for a free bag, he is raising the cash incentive paid to ground staff to identify offenders by €1.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Ryanair to increase staff rewards for catching passengers with oversized cabin bags
Exclusive: Michael O'Leary will raise incentive for boarding gate ‘offenders’ – claiming the policy will lead to lower fares
www.independent.co.uk
August 27, 2025 at 2:52 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
7 weeks today, the EU entry-exit system begins. From 12 October 2025, some British travellers to/from the Schengen area will need to provide fingerprints and facial biometrics; by the end of the roll-out (9 April 2026) that will apply to all UK passport holders.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
What will the EU’s new entry-exit system mean for British travellers?
Under the entry-exit system, British travellers to the Schengen Area can expect to be fingerprinted and provide a facial biometric
www.independent.co.uk
August 24, 2025 at 7:33 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
HS2: tens of billions shamefully squandered on a hopelessly botched rail project. Politicians top the list for culpability.
But a fresh take from @freewheeling.info proposes better rail planning: starting by looking at the best future timetable you can afford.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
How the HS2 shambles could have been avoided – if we’d copied the Swiss
Train Talk: After all the squandered billions, some lessons for the future of railway expansion
www.independent.co.uk
August 15, 2025 at 1:43 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
easyJet CEO Kenton Jarvis tells me European Parliament proposals to allow all airline passengers to take 2 pieces of hand luggage are “unworkable and mad ... a bizarre initiative from someone who clearly doesn't fly very much. There isn't room in the aircraft.”
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Easyjet boss slams ‘unworkable and mad’ EU proposals to change cabin baggage rules
Exclusive: CEO Kenton Jarvis says ‘it's a bizarre initiative from someone who clearly doesn't fly very much’
www.independent.co.uk
July 17, 2025 at 11:16 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
The Schengen "border free" area is now tangled with internal frontiers.
The expanding controls deployed by each country means anyone travelling widely within the zone this summer will face multiple checks crossing frontiers on trains, boats, planes and highways.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Schengen area: what can I expect when crossing internal borders?
Don’t be a checkpoint Charlie: pack your passport when travelling within the ‘passport-free zone’
www.independent.co.uk
July 16, 2025 at 12:56 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
40 years old on Tuesday and more successful than ever.
No, not me: Ryanair, which started flying from Waterford in southeast Ireland to Gatwick on 8 July 1985.
What did CEO Michael O'Leary ever do for us?
And if Ryanair did not exist, would we have to invent it?
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
If Ryanair didn’t exist, would you have to invent it?
The Man Who Pays His Way: What did Europe’s biggest budget airline ever do for us?
www.independent.co.uk
July 6, 2025 at 5:47 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
The wrong train, bus, dish, drink ... when has your travel need been lost in translation?
"We gotta get out of this place." Ever been stranded somewhere unexpected and had to improvise?
And showers in strange lands.
Share for the next You Should Have Been There podcast @youshouldhavebt.bsky.social
June 19, 2025 at 9:13 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
HS2: I read the official reports so you didn't have to.
A vision of connectivity & levelling up is now a national embarrassment, wrecked by incompetence while squandering tens of billions of public cash.
Like the project, the trains will be slower than promised.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Simon Calder on how HS2 squandered billions to become a national embarrassment
Trains may run between Birmingham and somewhere near London by 2036 – a decade late, and slower than planned as Simon Calder explains
www.independent.co.uk
June 19, 2025 at 8:06 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Gibraltar: a superb Mediterranean destination with an intensity of history, scenery and cuisine that transcends its modest scale.
At present all you need is a valid UK passport to stay as long as you wish.
But Spain will soon take back control at the airport.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Spain to gain sovereignty over British travellers to Gibraltar
Exclusive: UK visitors face extra Brexit red tape, including fingerprinting, as Rock aligns with Schengen area formalities
www.independent.co.uk
June 19, 2025 at 7:41 AM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Which are the world’s greatest intermodal transportation hubs?
The rules:
At least three different forms of transport must converge at the same location.
Two of those transportation methods must be through, not simply terminating, services.
And at least one of them must be international.
I'll start.
June 15, 2025 at 11:04 PM
simoncalder.bsky.social
Air India 171.
Heartbreak in Ahmedabad. All thoughts with the families and friends of those who have lost loved ones.
Air safety professionals are working to understand the causes of the tragedy, and identify lessons for the future to make the skies safer.
www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-...
Devastating Air India tragedy is an exception in the trends of air safety
‘Commercial aviation remains one of the safest forms of public transport,’ says the chief inspector of aviation accidents in the UK
www.independent.co.uk
June 12, 2025 at 12:49 PM