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Lonely Planet founder on the road again – 50 years after going Across Asia on the Cheap

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Simon Calder’s Travel Week March 17, 2023 ? Appropriately, Tony Wheeler was a no-show at Stan

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [SUBSCRIBE]( [SUBSCRIBE: £1 FOR 3 MONTHS]( March 17, 2023 [View in browser](   [The Independent]( [The Independent]( Appropriately, Tony Wheeler was a no-show at Stanfords travel bookshop in central London last night: he was thousands of miles away, about to embark on an adventure involving Korea, Japan and Alaska. Dune roaming: Lonely Planet co-founder Tony Wheeler on a sand dune in Yemen in 2020   [Get inspired...]( Secret Balearics]( An insider’s guide to lesser-known [Menorca and Formentera]( [I'm an image]( [Lisbon hotels]( Discover the [best places to stay]( on a trip to Portugal's charming capital [I'm an image]( Culture on the Continent]( Five cultural [European city break destinations]( you might not have considered   Simon’s dispatches The co-founder of Lonely Planet travel guides was chosen as winner of the Edward Stanford Award for Outstanding Contribution to Travel Writing. Tony joins Bill Bryson, Dervla Murphy, Michael Palin and Jan Morris in the premier league of people who have opened our eyes to the world. The bookshop boss, Vivien Godfrey, described Tony as “the pioneer in what has become an established genre of travel writing”. Exactly 50 years ago, he and his wife, Maureen Wheeler, launched a travel brand and published Across Asia on the Cheap: an instruction manual to experiencing the wonders of the planet beyond Dover for a generation of low-budget travellers. It was the beginning of the Jumbo jet age, but air fares were so stubbornly high that pioneering backpackers went overland to Asia. Terrestrial travel was easier than today, and some of the advice in the seminal guidebook has not aged well. On the subject of possession of marijuana in Afghanistan, the 1970s guide cheerfully says “small busts can be bribed out of”. Do not test this guidance in the 21st century. The shelves at Stanfords are heaving with new-generation travel guides packed with up-to-date information and inspiration. David Mantero, the head buyer at Stanfords, shared with me the bestsellers in the first two months of this year. The top 10 makes fascinating reading. Seven are Lonely Planet publications, of which one has a close DNA match to the wide-angle approach of Across Asia On The Cheap: the guide to Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. But the remaining half-dozen are close-up studies: Andalucia, Japan, Sicily, Jordan, Lisbon and Madeira. The outlier in the Stanfords top 10 is the excellent [Europe by Rail](by Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries. This guide to the the joys of travel by train and the Continent’s best rail routes was third-bestseller in 2022 and is second most popular so far this year. Top of the Stanfords list: the Mini Rough Guide to [Puglia](, the glorious heel of Italy. Rough Guides also makes ninth place with its St Lucia book, aimed at a rather better-heeled demographic than Across Asia on the Cheap. The role of picking up Tony's award – a hand-made globe – fell to me, as the closest travel match. Tony and I still hitchhike after all these years, trusting in the goodness of humanity. We are both graduates of Warwick University. And each of us held down a proper engineering job for a while before discovering life is much better spent permanently on holiday while pretending to work. [Maureen Wheeler, travel innovator, reveals her happiest travel memories](     Enjoying this newsletter? Unlock unlimited, ad-free reading on the website and in The Independent app when you subscribe – plus, benefit from our [welcome offer when you join today](.   Tip of the week: Strike at HM Passport Office More than one million passport applications could be stuck in a bottleneck when HM Passport Office staff strike for five weeks from the start of April. In a “significant escalation” of a dispute over jobs, pay and conditions, the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union says more than 1,000 members will walk out at all seven offices in England, Wales and Scotland from 3 April to 5 May. The Home Office says: "We are working to manage the impact of strike action, whilst ensuring we can continue to deliver vital services to the public, with comprehensive contingency plans in place.” At peak times – including April – HM Passport Office can receive 250,000 applications per week. Panic about the prospect of long waits could trigger a surge of unnecessary applications and become a self-fulfilling prophecy. That happened after Brexit when the UK Government put out inaccurate information on passport expiry rules for travellers to the European Union. The actual tests for British passport holders to the EU and wider Schengen area are as follows: - Passport issued less than 10 years before day of arrival in EU. - Passport expiry date at least three months from intended date of departure from EU. In many other countries, including the US and Australia, your passport is valid up to the date of expiry. Some nations, though, require six months’ validity. Deal of the week: Cheap West Coast intercity trains [Avanti West Coast is seeking to fill its key intercity trains]( to and from London Euston with a variation on standby travel. You book a “[Superfare](” ticket between one week and three weeks ahead, specifying a morning, afternoon or evening departure. A day ahead, you are told the exact train. One-way fare to/from Birmingham £12; Liverpool £15; Manchester £20; Preston £22. [Could the rail strikes finally be reaching the end of the line?](   Question of the week: A one-week road trip from Paris? Q We are booked to go to Disneyland Paris for six days at the start of April, taking our car over the Channel, but after that we have a week left before our ferry back from Dunkirk to Dover. Where do you recommend? A What an excellent opportunity to discover new parts of “near Europe” starting around 25 miles east of actual Paris. Aim east through Champagne country (pausing for a tasting or two along the way) to Reims, a stylish city with a fine cathedral and also a fascinating Musée de la Reddition – where Nazi Germany surrendered to end the Second World War in Europe. You could continue east to Luxembourg, resting the car and [exploring the Grand Duchy for free](thanks to the radical plan of abolishing fares on public transport. Or head north into the French and Belgian Ardennes, comprising exquisite countryside dotted with lovely towns. Depending on the remaining time, you can then parallel the Franco-Belgian border to Lille – definitely worth an overnight stop for its architecture and gastronomy – or explore the fine Belgian trio of Ghent, Bruges and Ostend. [Our guide to the most enticing hotels in Bruges]( STAT OF THE WEEK 40% Likelihood of cloud cover in Texas during[the Great American Eclipse on 8 April 2024](. What you might have missed... - Small wonder: [The hotel room in China that costs just £7 a night]( - Travel positive: [Is this the sustainable tourism blueprint of the future?](//link.e.independent.co.uk/click/30864386.18387/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaW5kZXBlbmRlbnQuY28udWsvdHJhdmVsL25ld3MtYW5kLWFkdmljZS9ibHVlLWFpci1yb21hbmlhLWZsaWdodHMtc3VzcGVuZGVkLWIyMTYxNTY1Lmh0bWw/583d2887487ccd777a8b7489Bdbee0fe8 - Fly and flop: World’s happiest country launches happiness masterclass]( SIMON'S DIARY Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](. Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](. I find the easiest way to rush out stories is to tweet them. It’s also an easy way to contact me. My direct messages are open and I read all DMs, though regrettably I can’t respond to every one. Let me know your thoughts [@SimonCalder]( I find the easiest way to rush out stories is to tweet them. It’s also an easy way to contact me. My direct messages are open and I read all DMs, though regrettably I can’t respond to every one. Let me know your thoughts [@SimonCalder]( Each Saturday and Sunday I take questions live at 5.30pm British time on Instagram Live – from wherever I happen to be in the world – so please do come and say hello. Follow me on [@Simon_Calder]( Each Saturday and Sunday I take questions live at 5.30pm British time on Instagram Live – from wherever I happen to be in the world – so please do come and say hello. Follow me on [@Simon_Calder]( Or you can find me on TikTok. Come and have a look at what I have been up to as I bring you top travel topics and report on the latest changes in a minute or less via [@caldertravel]( Or you can find me on TikTok. Come and have a look at what I have been up to as I bring you top travel topics and report on the latest changes in a minute or less via [@caldertravel]( [INDYBEST]( / [TRAVEL BEST BUY]( [9 best packing cubes and how to organise your suitcase for holiday]( From [rain-proof storage]( to [space-savers](, these are the [luggage lifesavers]( you need. [Shop now]( Trending: [Best reusable water bottles](   Essential reading [15 of the best ski resorts for late season snow](   Articles available exclusively to subscribers How to explore the world’s first Unesco trail responsibly and sustainably](   OTHER NEWSLETTERS YOU MIGHT LIKE [Climate News]( Climate News Every Friday, 12pm (UK time) Written by Louise Boyle [Join now]( [IndyEats]( IndyEats Every Saturday, 7am (UK time) Written by Hannah Twiggs [Join now]( [Climate News] Climate News Every Friday, 12pm (UK time) Written by Louise Boyle [Join now]( [IndyEats] IndyEats Every Saturday, 7am (UK time) Written by Hannah Twiggs [Join now]( If you can spare a minute we’d love your [feedback]( on our newsletters. Join the conversation or follow us [Facebook]( [Twitter]( Please do not reply directly to this email You are currently registered to receive The Independent's Travel newsletter. Add us to your safe list of senders. If you do not want to receive The Independent's Travel newsletter, please [unsubscribe](list_name=IND_Travel_Newsletter_CDP). If you no longer wish to receive any newsletters or promotional emails from The Independent, you can unsubscribe [here](. This e-mail was sent by Independent Digital News and Media Ltd, 14-18 Finsbury Square, London EC2A 1AH. Registered in England and Wales with company number 07320345. Read our [privacy notice]( and [cookie policy](.

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