The Travel Diaries – Details, episodes & analysis

Hello and welcome to today’s summer season finale of The Travel Diaries. Today, we have a very special guest joining us, the lovely Lisa Faulkner, a multi-talented actress, presenter, and chef, who has graced our screens for over two decades.

Born in London, Lisa’s journey into the limelight began at the tender age of 16 when she was scouted by a modelling agency. Her career quickly transitioned from modelling to acting, where she built a reputation for her compelling and versatile performances in shows like Holby City and Eastenders, before winning the hearts of viewers as the champion of "Celebrity MasterChef" back in 2010. Not only did the show see Lisa reinvent herself as a TV chef and author of several best-selling cookbooks - she also met her now husband, Masterchef judge, and former guest of The Travel Diaries John Torode, and together they are now the hosts of John & Lisa’s Weekend Kitchen on ITV.

Lisa is an avid traveler with a deep love for exploring new cultures and cuisines. Her travels have taken her to the far corners of the globe, from the bustling streets of Tokyo to the wild landscapes of Western Australia. Uncovering hidden culinary gems and soaking in the rich history of her favourite destinations, Lisa’s travel diaries take us from Paris and Greece, to Japan, Vietnam, Australia and beyond. 

Destination recap:

• Ikos Resort, Thessaloniki, Greece
• Paris, France
• Japan
• Kyoto, Japan
• Ho Chi Minh, City, Vietnam
• Western Australia 
• Margaret River, Western Australia 
• Alberta’s, Busselton, Western Australia 
• Dubai, UAE
• Westerns Laundry, London, England 
• Nashville, Tennessee, USA

You can catch Lisa exploring Western Australia on John and Lisa’s Food Trip Down Under - the full series is now available to watch on ITVX.

And that’s a wrap for Season 12. I'll be back towards the end of September with Season 13, and lots more brilliant guests, and destination specials!

To celebrate today’s season finale, I also have a fabulous competition running on my Instagram page @hollyrubenstein where you can win a 2 night stay at Bodmin Jail Hotel in Cornwall, one of the most unique hotels in England. Good luck!

Wishing you all a fantastic rest of your summer (or winter, depending on where you are listening!) and wherever you’re heading, safe travels. 

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Today is the first of a new kind of episode. Just like my destination specials are a slightly different format, today is the first in a series of "Epic Adventures" where my guest may not necessarily be a household name, but has achieved remarkable feats in the world of travel and adventure. Ed Jackson is the perfect guest to kick this off, as someone whose story is bound to leave you inspired and in awe.

Once a professional rugby player, Ed's life took a dramatic turn in 2017. He’s here in part to talk about his new documentary film, "The Mountain Within Me," which chronicles his journey from the rugby field to the mountaintops. The film isn't just about physical challenges; it's about the mental and emotional mountains we all face and how we can overcome them. In this episode, we'll dive deep into Ed's story, exploring the highs and lows of his recovery, his newfound passion for mountaineering, and the profound lessons he's learned along the way, as well as touching on some of his travel diaries chapters in the latter half of the episode, too. 

From tragedy to triumph, one step at a time, here are the epic adventures of Ed Jackson. 

Holly’s Destination Recap:

• Papaioannou. Mykonos, Greece 
• Cali Mykonos, Greece 

Ed’s Destination Recap:

• Fiji
• Mt Snowdon, Wales 
• Nepal
• Matterhorn, Switzerland
• Primošten, Croatia 
• Montepulciano, Italy 
• Patagonia, Argentina

The Mountain within me is in UK cinemas from 23 August, with Preview Q&A Screenings from 19 August

You can find out more about Ed’s charity, at https://www.millimetres2mountains.org/ 

With thanks to Skyscanner - Visit skyscanner.net/carhire or download the Skyscanner app for free to start comparing car hire prices

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Today we are joined by a name synonymous with adventure, exploration, and a deep passion for the great outdoors. Julia Bradbury's love affair with nature began at a young age, nurtured by family hikes and camping trips in the rugged landscapes of the Peak District.

She started her career as a show business reporter for breakfast TV in Los Angeles, becoming a household name as the presenter of BBC’s Countryfile alongside co-host Matt Baker - her boundless enthusiasm for the countryside endeared her to audiences across the UK. She is perhaps best known for turning her lifelong passion for walking into prime-time TV, with shows including Britain’s Best Walks, Cornwall and Devon Walks with Julia Bradbury and Wainwright’s Walks in the Lake District. 

But Julia's thirst for adventure extends far beyond the borders of Britain, and over the years, she’s embarked on countless adventures to some of the world's most remote and awe-inspiring destinations. Her travel diaries today take us from Greece to South Africa, Iceland to Costa Rica. 

I also really enjoyed talking to Julia about health and wellbeing, she has a huge wealth of knowledge that she accumulated while writing her Sunday Times Bestseller Walk Yourself Happy, and also because of the lifestyle shift she herself adopted after being diagnosed with breast cancer for which she underwent a mastectomy in 2021. I think that you’ll find this an inspiring, energising and wanderlust-inducing conversation. 

Destination Recap:

• Agia Marina, Athens, Greece
• Chios, Greece 
• Skiathos, Greece 
• Skopelos, Greece 
• South Africa
• Peak District, England - Stanage Edge, Buxton, Mam Tor
• Landmannalaugar trail, Iceland 
• Costa Rica 
• Lake District, England
• South America 

Walk Yourself Happy is available from all good bookshops and online, and you can book her Lake District retreat, which is called Walk Yourself Happy Wellbeing Retreat on theOutdoorGuide.co.uk here.

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Today, I’m joined by the sportsman, adventurer and double Olympic gold medallist, James Cracknell. We first got to know James as part of the coxless four rowing team, alongside Steve Redgrave, that won gold at the Sydney Olympics. Several world titles later, James went on to take part in countless feats of endurance, from becoming the highest ever placed Brit to run the Marathon des Sables, the hottest hardest race in the world, to rowing the Atlantic in a two man boat, and racing to the South Pole with his friend Ben Fogle, who you might have heard on the podcast earlier this season. 

Then, in 2010, James’s life was turned upside down. While cycling in a race across America, he was struck by a lorry and experienced a serious brain injury that left him in a coma. As we discuss, his journey to recovery has been anything but straightforward, but his story is one of sheer determination and resilience, ultimately leading him to return to university - Cambridge, no less - where he became the oldest ever winner of the famous Oxbridge boat race. 

Travel has been hugely important to James. Of course he’s spent a lot of time on some of the world’s most beautiful lakes and rivers - and I love being by the water, so I really enjoyed hearing about those. And his Slovenian hidden gem is a spot that I’ve now added to my travel wish list, and I’m sure you might do too. 

Destination Recap:

• Biarritz, France
• Lac d’Aiguebelette, France
• Galtür, Austria
• Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
• Annecy, France 
• South Pole, Antarctica
• Rowing the Atlantic Ocean
• Lake Bled, Slovenia
• Lake Maggiore, Italy / Switzerland
• Grand Canyon National Park, USA
• The Amazon
• Tepui Table Top Mountains, Venezuela 

Thank you so much for listening. If you haven’t yet left a rating or a review, why not do so now? Your support is so greatly appreciated and most importantly, helps others to discover the podcast. 

Don’t forget to hit subscribe so that every week a new episode will appear in your library.

To find out who’s on next week’s show, come and find me on Instagram. I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And visit TheTravelDiariesPodcast.com for everything else podcast-related.

To find out more about Lanserhof at the Arts Club and Lanserhof Sylt, visit https://www.lanserhof.com/en

This episode was produced by Holly Rubenstein

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Today, I’m joined by Lyn Hughes, the co-founder and editor-in-chief of one of the UK's best-loved travel magazines, Wanderlust. In the early nineties Lyn and her late husband were bored on a flight to South America, so they schemed out their dream travel magazine on the back of a sick-bag. The idea stuck and, returning to the UK a few months later, they launched Wanderlust magazine from their spare bedroom, with Lyn as editor and her husband, Paul, as publisher. The magazine gradually grew through word of mouth, and now, years later, it’s one of the UK’s leading travel magazines. Of course, through her work with the magazine, Lyn has travelled all around the world, and has her finger on the pulse of what’s hot and what’s not when it comes to travel. I particularly love her hidden gem in this episode and along with her travel diaries we cover wildlife travel, future travel trends, and of course a little bit of travel during Covid - it’s hard to escape it at the moment. As usual, though, the plan is to transport you far away from all those worries, so from New Zealand and Borneo, to Macedonia and Morocco here are the travel diaries of Lynn Hughes. 

Destination Recap:

• Southport, Merseyside, England
• Exmoor, Devon, England
• Bodmin Moor, Cornwall, England
• Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore trip
• Taman Negara National Park, Malaysia
• African safaris including Zambia
• Caiman Lodge, The Pantanal, Brazil
• Kaikoura, New Zealand
• Marrakech, Morocco
• Number 43, Cumbria, England
• Lake Ohrid, North Macedonia
• St Naum Monastery, North Macedonia
• Japan
• Sumatra, Indonesia
• Sabah, Borneo

Wanderlust Magazine is available in all good newsagents as well as online at wanderlust.co.uk 

Thank you so much for listening. If you haven’t yet left a rating or a review, why not do so now? Your support is so greatly appreciated and most importantly, helps others to discover the podcast. 

Don’t forget to hit subscribe so that every week a new episode will appear in your library.

To find out who’s on next week’s show, come and find me on Instagram. I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And visit TheTravelDiariesPodcast.com for everything else podcast-related.

To find out more about Lanserhof at the Arts Club and Lanserhof Sylt, visit https://www.lanserhof.com/en

This episode was produced by Holly Rubenstein

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, I’m joined by the food writer and TV presenter, Giles Coren. Giles has been a restaurant critic and columnist for The Times for 17 years and alongside chef Monica Galetti, he is the presenter of Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby, which sees him travel the globe, visiting some of the world’s most incredible hotels, rolling up his sleeves to work alongside their staff. As well as some fabulous hotels, stay tuned for some fab foodie recommendations too.

I loved chatting to Giles - his take on travel amused me from start to finish. I hope you enjoy it too!

Destination Recap:

• MGM Macau
• Kenyan safari
• Andalucía, Spain
• La Petite Maison, London, England
• Chewton Glen, Hampshire, England 
• Le Gavroche, London, England
• The River Cafe, London, England 
• Min Jiang, London, England
• Gymkhana, London, England
• Palmers, London, England
• Scott’s, London, England
• J Sheekey, London, England
• Inter-railing around Europe
• Tourettes-sur-loup, France 
• Corsica, France 
• Giraffe Manor, Kenya 
• Marina Bay Sands, Singapore
• Grand Resort Bad Ragaz, Switzerland
• Schloss Elmau, Germany
• The Brando, French Polynesia 
• The Bell Inn, Langford, England
• Kerala, India 
• Cuba

Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby is out now on BBC 2, and is also available on BBC iPlayer. 

Thank you so much for listening. If you haven’t yet left a rating or a review, why not do so now? Your support is so greatly appreciated and most importantly, helps others to discover the podcast. 

Don’t forget to hit subscribe so that every week a new episode will appear in your library.

To find out who’s on next week’s show, come and find me on Instagram. I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And visit TheTravelDiariesPodcast.com for everything else podcast-related.

This episode was produced by Holly Rubenstein

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On today’s episode, I’m joined by the explorer and survivalist Ed Stafford. In 2010, Ed became the first person to walk the entire length of the Amazon River, a feat that took 860 days and put him on the map as one of our most prominent and exciting adventurers. From there here’s gone on to present and self film more massive challenges, like living in complete isolation on a desert island for 60 days without food, clothes or equipment, or being left for dead in various extreme environments around the world from Madagascar to Mongolia. These became incredible TV series that I’ve watched religiously and couldn’t recommend more. 

Ed is someone I’ve wanted to interview for the very beginning but like so many of my dream guests he’s normally always travelling so I was lucky to finally get this time to speak with him and I hope you enjoy what I think is a really raw and honest account of the spiritual and emotional development that comes with travel - as well as hearing about some inspiring destinations along the way.

Destination Recap:

• Henfaes, Aberdaron, Wales
• Leicestershire, England
• Aldeburgh, Suffolk, England
• Walking the length of the Amazon river
• Olorua, Fiji
• Argentine Patagonia
• Northern Thailand
• Ibiza, Spain
• Antarctica 

Ed’s new podcast, Dangerous Minds, is out now

Thank you so much for listening. If you haven’t yet left a rating or a review, why not do so now? Your support is so greatly appreciated and most importantly, helps others to discover the podcast. 

And don't forget to hit subscribe so that every week a new episode will appear in your library.

To find out who’s on next week’s show, come and find me on Instagram. I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And visit TheTravelDiariesPodcast.com for everything else podcast-related.

Huge thanks to The Lygon Arms hotel for their support for today’s episode - you can follow them here

This episode was produced by Holly Rubenstein

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Sir Michael Palin - where do you start! He’s a legendary comedian, part of pop culture history as one of Monty Python. He’s a BAFTA-winning actor, a best-selling author, and one of our most loved travel documentarians and travel writers. His journeys across the world, beginning with Around the World in 80 Days, followed by Pole to Pole, Full Circle, Sahara, Himalaya, Brazil and more, were a key part of how many of us discovered the world growing up, through his eyes, and through his warmth and curiosity with whoever he encountered along the way. 

From Saharan Africa and the Amazon, to western Scotland and North Korea, it was such an honour to hear the travel diaries of Sir Michael Palin. I hope you enjoy them.

Destination recap:

• Sheffield, England
• Norfolk, England
• Solden, Austria 
• Venice, Italy
• Barbados
• Morocco
• Mauritania
• Chinguetti, Mali
• Persian gulf to Indian Ocean dhow boat trip
• West coast of Scotland including Glencoe
• Aberfeldy, Scotland
• New York, USA
• Istanbul, Turkey
• Kolkata, India 
• Pongo de Mainique, Peru
• North Korea
• Algiers
• Vietnam
• Gulag camps, Kolyma, Russia
• Mongolia and the 'Stans
• Altai Mountains
• Walking in the Dolomites, Italy

Michael Palin’s North Korea Journal is out now, and available from all good bookshops. 

Thank you so much for listening. If you haven’t yet left a rating or a review, why not do so now? Your support is so greatly appreciated and most importantly, helps others to discover the podcast. 

Hit subscribe and every week a new episode will appear in your library.

To find out who’s on next week’s show, come and find me on Instagram. I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And visit TheTravelDiariesPodcast.com for everything else podcast-related.

This episode was produced by Holly Rubenstein

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jeremy Jauncey is the founder and CEO of the world’s largest online travel community, Beautiful Destinations, which has a combined social following of over 25 million people.

The jaw-dropping photos on Beautiful Destinations’s Instagram feed have provided me with endless travel inspiration and undoubtedly influenced some of my travel choices. 

And what was once a passion project has become a global business, with Beautiful Destinations offices based out of the US, UK and Asia. 

While it might look like Jeremy spends most of his time being photographed in some of the most epic locations around the world - meditating on North Island in the Seychelles, hugging giant pandas in China, posing on a horse rearing in front of a pyramid in Egypt - most of the time he is actually consulting with major travel brands and tourist boards, helping them to tell inspiring stories through social first content.

This conversation gives a deep insight into the business of travel and travel marketing, of the power of imagery, and the power of human connection. 

From New Zealand and Japan to the Philippines and Norwegian Fjordland, these are the travel diaries of Jeremy Jauncey. 

Destination recap:

• Perth, Scotland 
• New Zealand 
• Colombia
• Panama
• Rwanda
• Singapore
• New York City, USA
• Tokyo, Japan
• Palawan, Borocay and El Nido, Philippines
• Siargao, Philippines
• Scandinavia, in particular Norway including Fjordland and Lofoten Islands 

You can follow Jeremy on Instagram @jeremyjauncey and of course @beautifuldestinations, too.

Thank you also to CV Villas - you can browse and book their stunning villas around the world, here

If you’ve enjoyed this episode today then don’t forget to subscribe and leaving a review or a rating really helps others to discover the podcast. And to find out who’s on next week’s show come and find me on Instagram, I’m @hollyrubenstein - I’d love to hear from you.

Thanks so much for listening and I’ll see you again next week. 

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Bonjour! As quarantine-free travel is soon to be announced between France and England, here is a bonus episode celebrating Fabulous France to whet your appetite and inspire your future travel plans. 

As well as hearing from some of my favourite guests from the past two seasons, today’s show is introduced by Nicola Williams, France expert for The Telegraph and Lonely Planet. She shares her experience of living in France during lockdown and her top tips and hidden gems to visit across the country now that we can travel freely again. 

Destination Recap:

• Nadiya Hussain - Paris
• Rachel Khoo - Paris
• Conde Nast Traveller’s Melinda Stevens - Le Bristol Paris hotel, La Reserve Paris hotel
• Royal Champagne Hotel & Spa
• Rick Stein - Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne; Jura; Collioure and Perpignan
• Ella Eyre - La Clusaz
• Jo Malone - Grasse; Mougins; La Colombe d’Or Hotel, St Paul de Vence, France 
• Raymond Blanc - Provence

Nicola Williams on…

• Ile de Ré
• Le Martiniere Ice Cream shop, Ile de Ré
• Haute-Savoie, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
• Nernier, Haute-Savoie 
• Château de la Treyne, Lots, Dordogne
• Les Prés d'Eugénie, Eugénie-les-Bains, Les Landes

Thank you so much for listening today. If you haven’t yet left a 5 star rating or a review, why not do so now! Your support is so greatly appreciated and most importantly, helps others to discover the podcast. Come and find me on Instagram, I’m @hollyrubenstein and I’d love to hear from you. And to delve into the back catalogue, visit thetraveldiariespodcast.com 

Don’t forget you can listen on Spotify, Apple podcasts, Castbox, Stitcher and pretty much all other podcast apps. Hit subscribe so that each new episode lands magically into your feed. 

See you next week!

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