You should have been there

We talk train journeys of all kinds with the guru of rail travel, Mark Smith, aka "The Man in Seat 61. "  Mark shares his own favourite journeys and experiences, particularly in the country where "the scenery inside the train is as enthralling as the landscape outside."  Mark's  hugely informative website is  at www.seat61.com.  Thanks as well to Monisha Rajesh, author of  "Around the World in 80 trains" 

We discuss hot locations for this year's travellers and some of the new trends and buzzwords that are making a splash.  Find out, for instance whether you are a set-jetter?    The website we mentioned is www.tripfiction.com. And the photo is of Marseille

Simon and Mick go head to head over 8 rounds. Can you do better than they did?   The website mentioned during the quiz is  "The Man in Seat 61 "

Our guest is Professor Jean Mcneil, who not only teaches writing but is an author of both novels and travel narratives.  Hear her thoughts on the differences between factual and fictional evocations of other places, but also her top tips for good travel reading. Amongst her favourites are the novels of Zimbabwean author Tsitsi Dangarembga.  Discover Jean's own work at https://www.jeanmcneil.co.uk/

We match France with Argentina to discover which of these football greats is the better travel destination. It's a game of dodgy decisions and dirty tricks with a thrilling climax

Are they as bleak as the weather? Join Mick Webb and Simon Calder for a summary of the festive disruptions, a lively listener exchange about business flights and a look back at the original Christmas journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem- challenging, to put it mildly.  With thanks to Christian Bjoerklund for his electronic track, Hallon. 

We are joined by Cleo Paskal, journalist, academic researcher and a pioneering digital nomad. On the agenda: Cleo's own travels and her thoughts about the new wave of visa-assisted laptop-toting workers who are not universally welcomed in their constantly-changing homelands.  Find Cleo on Twitter @CleoPaskal ,   or online at      https://www.fdd.org/team/cleo-paskal/

We take a peek behind the curtain that hides business class from economy to discover what life is like for that controversial traveller-the frequent flyer. Providing the low-down and behind-the-scenes gossip is Rob Burgess, founder and director of the website, headforpoints.com

We are joined, from her narrowboat home, by Anna Hughes, the director of Flight Free UK.  On the agenda are ways of travelling more responsibly and sustainably and how to at least mitigate the effects on the planet of our constant need to move around it.  The websites mentioned by Anna are flightfree.co.uk; byway.travel; raileurope.co.uk

We discuss our favourite travel conundrums and their enduring fascination.  Whatever happened to.......?   How did they get here... ? Why on earth......  ?  Flight MH 370, Easter Island statues and the bewildering seat numbers in Portuguese trains all make it onto the agenda