Simon Calder
Use attributes for filter ! | |
Gender | Male |
---|---|
Age | 68 |
Date of birth | December 25,1955 |
Zodiac sign | Capricorn |
Born | Crawley |
United Kingdom | |
Spouse | Charlotte Hindle |
Siblings | Jo Calder |
Sarah Calder | |
Kate Calder | |
Penny Calder | |
Job | Book editor |
Travel writer | |
Movies/Shows | The Travel Show |
Knowitalls | |
Parents | Nigel Calder |
Liz Calder | |
Alma mater | University of Warwick |
Children | 2 |
Date of Reg. | |
Date of Upd. | |
ID | 467542 |
No frills
Travellers Survival Kit U. S. A. & Canada
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Cuba: A Guide to the People, Politics and Culture
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Australia & New Zealand: Travellers Survival Kit. Current Edition
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Simon Calder Life story
Simon Calder is a freelance UK travel journalist and broadcaster. He works for various news and travel publications as well as being travel correspondent for The Independent.
Gatwick back to normal after air traffic control staff shortages
... Travel expert Simon Calder on X, which is formerly known as Twitter, that flights had returned to normal on Friday morning " with a few knock-on delays following the latest issue with air-traffic control"...
Have airlines gone too far with their extra fees?
... Travel expert Simon Calder says he does not have a problem with most airline add-ons as the consumer always has the choice not to pay them...
Europe weather: How heatwaves could forever change summer holidays abroad
... So far this summer, demand for foreign holidays seems unchanged by the sweltering temperatures, says travel expert Simon Calder...
Greece fires: What are holidaymakers' rights?
... I just want to get home, what are my rights? Anyone who shortens their holiday because it is not a very pleasant experience or are concerned about being trapped is unlikely to be able to claim refunds, according to travel expert Simon Calder...
British Airways cancels dozens of Heathrow flights after IT glitch
... The Independent s travel correspondent Simon Calder calculated that at least 156 flights, mainly domestic and European, have been cancelled...
Dover delays ease after traffic 'buffer zone' cleared
... Border processing times have increased sharply after the UK left the European Union, travel expert Simon Calder told BBC News on Saturday...
Demand rises for passports as workers begin strike
... At peak times - including the month of April when the strike will take place - the Passport Office can receive 250,000 applications per week, travel expert Simon Calder has previously said...
Fresh warning of disruption on airport strike days
... Travel expert and commentator Simon Calder said he was concerned about whether staff will be able to cope with the rush of early morning passengers at Heathrow airport on Friday, as the Christmas getaway begins...
Georgia Toffolo: Can a damaged passport ruin your holiday?
Millions of Brits enjoy holidays abroad, But a damaged passport can overshadow or even destroy a foreign getaway.
TV star Georgia Toffolo was stopped on Sunday by officials at Malé airport in The Maldives after they spotted some of the pages of her passport were missing.
In tearful updates posted to her Instagram account, she begged followers to help her and said she feared being kept in a "centre" for four days until she could fly home to the UK.
In one video said: "I've been crying for hours and hours. This is a really horrible situation to be in, where you can't go But I also can't leave The Airport . "
She was later allowed to leave The Airport and continue to her holiday destination - But continues to be supported by The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO).
But can a damaged passport really ruin a foreign holiday and what are the pitfalls to avoid?
Toff's travel trouble stemmed from her passport being classed as damaged, because two of its pages were missing.
Not everyone's passport is going to be in pristine condition, But when is it too damaged to use for travel?
A damaged passport is one "which isn't in a condition to be accepted as proof of identity", and must be.
But passports that have reasonable "wear and tear" can be accepted.
Travellers whose passports contain multiple visas and stamps - indicating "heavy use" are more likely to have a problem, the guidance adds.
Possible issues could include:
Why is a damaged passport a big deal?Travel expert Simon Calder says: "The main problem that travellers encounter with frontier officials is if there is damage to the photo page in the passport.
"That is because, historically, it was easy for fraudsters to doctor The Details and replace The Photograph .
"If there is any obvious flaw in the lamination, that is enough to get you barred from a country.
"Missing pages From Within the passport are, generally, harder to Spot - and in many cases overlooked or ignored. "
The International Civil Aviation Organization, which is the global body responsible for passport standards, warns of a range of fraudulent "attacks" on passports.
These include "construction of a fraudulent document, or parts thereof, using materials from legitimate documents"; the "removal and substitution of entire page(s) or visas"; and the deletion of entries on visa pages and the observations page.
Mr Calder adds that airlines are "very sensitive to damaged passports because they are fined if they transport a passenger to a country where the document is ruled inadmissible".
"I Am horrified when I see fellow travellers shoving their passport into a back pocket, rather than treating it as a fragile document that is All That stands between you and deportation on the next homebound flight. "
'We couldn't take our flight to Venice'Julie Haydon, a director of a Bristol-based charity, said her partner was not allowed to travel to Venice because of "small damage" to his passport.
In a tweet posted in March, she says she was "gutted" the pair couldn't travel to The Italian city, because a page of his passport was "slightly coming away at the spine".
'Dog ate my passport' 'Mr Boots' (pictured right, next to Honey) is in the Dog HouseA dog chewing up your passport can also be classed as damage,
Mr Shepherd had been due to travel to Spain for an England Counties tour back in 2017.
But less than Two Weeks before he was meant to fly, he was forced to make an eight-hour Round Trip to to the Newport Passport Office in South Wales .
He had to replace his passport because his seven-month-old Cocker Spaniel had chewed it.
Speaking at the time, the Plymouth Albion player said he had got his passport out to check the expiry date ahead of The Trip , then left it on the table while he went out.
"When I got back I saw pieces of paper on The Floor and didn't know what it was. Then I saw him on the bed with the passport in his mouth," he said.
Thankfully, he said The Authorities were able to "speed Things up" as he was representing his country.
However not everyone has had the same experience.
'My passport got drenched - But I had no problem'Julian Hemsi, 55, from Kingston, in Devon, says he and his old blue passport got "absolutely drenched" whilst he was riding a motorbike in Bali, Indonesia in 1990.
He says: "The Cover , including my name, disintegrated. The inner pages were equally illegible.
"I went on from Bali to Java, And Then via Java to Australia, New Caledonia and New Zealand with the same passport, and when I returned to the UK I was questioned about it. "
While you're checking your passport for any damage, you might want to check these other Things . .
Valid dateSome countries require your passport to be valid for at least six months after the date you travel.
Not every country has the same rules, so people should check the before you travel.
Lost or stolen passportIf your passport is lost or stolen, you can cancel it immediately by.
If you're in the UK, you can, and you may need to attend an interview.
If you're abroad, you can apply online for an (ETD).
. . And make sure you have The Right passportIf you are travelling with other people, make sure you have The Right passport.
Earlier this year, Allan Poole, 43, after accidentally taking his friend's and leaving him Stranded .
Source of news: bbc.com