Welcome back to a brand-new season of The Travel Diaries podcast. Today’s guest is the brilliant Sam Heughan. Sam is best known as the star of Outlander, the historical drama that’s become nothing short of a global phenomenon. Based on Diana Gabaldon’s bestselling novels, the series blends romance, adventure and time-travel against the backdrop of Scotland’s most breathtaking landscapes.

Now having just wrapped the filming for its final season, Outlander has not only shaped Sam’s life and career - it’s also driven record-breaking tourism to Scotland as fans follow in the footsteps of its characters. Even if you’ve never watched the show, its cultural impact is impossible to ignore. Outlander has become one of the most-watched dramas worldwide - bringing Scottish history, folklore and scenery to millions - and transforming Sam into one of the most recognisable faces on television.

You’ll hear today that in a way, travel has shaped every part of his story: from his childhood in rural Dumfries and Galloway to filming across Scotland and trekking as far as Mt Everest. Whether it’s sipping coffee in Cape Town, diving with sharks in New Zealand, or discovering secret beaches in Sydney and Hawaii, Sam’s passport is as well-stamped as they come. He's an author, entrepreneur and adventurer. He hosted a hit travel series Men in Kilts, wrote a travel memoir, Waypoints, and he's the driving force behind his award-winning spirits brands The Sassenach Whisky and Sassenach Gin. His brand-new book The Cocktail Diaries, a collection of recipes and stories inspired by his favourite drinks and places, is out this September.

I caught up with Sam halfway across the world to talk about the places that matter most to him.

Destination Recap:

• Sydney, Australia
• Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland
• Edinburgh, Scotland
• Isle of Eigg, Scotland
• Hemel Hempstead, England
• San Francisco, USA tour
• Scotland, Outlander shooting locations
• The Green Welly, Glencoe, Scotland
• The King House Hotel, Glencoe, Scotland
• Mt Everest, Nepal
• Hawaii, USA
• Cape Town, South Africa
• Deluxe Coffeeworks, Cape Town, South Africa
• Willoughby & Co, Cape Town, South Africa
• Babylonstoren, Western Cape, South Africa
• Tamarama Beach, Sydney, Australia
• New Zealand
• Santa Cruz, California
• Bali, Indonesia
• Indian Himalayas

Sam’s new book, “The Cocktail Diaries” is out in September and is available to preorder now.

You can discover The Sassenach, Unique Spirits, here.

With thanks to Airbnb for their support of today's episode.

Thanks so much for listening today. If you want to be the first to find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok - I’d love to hear from you. And if you can't wait until then, remember there’s the first 14 seasons to catch up on, that's over 155 episodes to keep you busy.

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On today’s bonus Destination Special we’re heading to Ireland, one of my favourite places in the world. Ireland has this special kind of magic. It asks you to slow down, to dig beneath the surface, to chat to the people behind the bar and to take your time - to walk, to wander, to just sit and soak it all up.

Joining me is someone who knows the country inside and out - the brilliant comedian and actor, Ardal O’Hanlon. You’ll know Ardal, of course, from TV's Father Ted, where he stole the show as the endlessly lovable Father Dougal - and from the extremely popular BBC series Death in Paradise, where he swapped windswept clifftops for tropical crime-solving in the Caribbean. He’s also an incredible writer, stand-up, and most recently, travel presenter, in The Emerald Isles, his BBC series which explored Ireland’s lesser-known islands, uncovering their culture, music, and wild beauty.

In this episode, Ardal shares the places in Ireland that have stayed with him, from childhood summers in Galway and Donegal to his all time favourite destination, a lunar landscape in County Clare, and my favourite part of the episode, his hidden gems, which really bring to life some of the wild islands off the mainland that he visited while making his TV series - a lot to add to your bucket list. We talk about the joy of slowness, the quirks of island life, and his new tour - Not Himself - which he’ll be taking across the UK and Ireland soon.

So whether you’re planning a trip to Ireland, dreaming about one, or you’re just here for the stories - settle in and enjoy!

Destination Recap:

• Crockwell, Galway, Co. Galway
• Connemara National Park, Co. Galway
• Magheragallan Beach, Gweedore, Co. Donegal
• Errigal Mountain, Co. Donegal
• The Burren, Co. Clare
• Skellig Michael, Co. Kerry
• Great Blasket, Co. Kerry
• Tory Island, Co. Donegal
• Rathlin, Co. Antrim
• Sligo, Co. Sligo
• Saltee Islands, Co. Wexford

Visit Ireland.com for more inspiration planning your trip.

Ardal is heading back on tour this autumn with his brand new stand-up show, Not Himself. You can find all the tour dates and ticket info at ardalohandlon.com.

Thanks so much for listening today. I’ll be back with a brand new season - Season 15 - in a couple of weeks! In the meantime, come and follow me on Instagram - I’m @hollyrubenstein - and you’ll also find me on TikTok.

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Today’s guest is a titan of political journalism - someone whose calm, incisive reporting helped us make sense of the madness during one of the most dramatic chapters in American political history. It’s Jon Sopel, the former BBC North America Editor, who spent eight rollercoaster years covering the United States, through Trump, through Covid, through history being made in real time.He’s interviewed presidents, grilled press secretaries, and yes - even been shouted at by Donald Trump himself.

Now, Jon’s back on home turf - though the country he’s returned to isn’t quite the Britain he left behind. In his brilliant new book Strangeland, Jon turns his razor-sharp eye on post-Brexit Britain, peeling back the layers of a nation that feels unfamiliar even to someone who grew up here. It’s part political memoir, part social commentary, and entirely unputdownable.

These days, you’ll know Jon as one-third of the brilliant trio behind The News Agents, one of the UK’s most popular news podcasts, which he co-hosts with Emily Maitlis and Lewis Goodall. It’s completely redefined how many people consume the news - and it’s an absolute must-listen if you don’t already.

In this episode, we dive into the shifting political landscapes of both the UK and the US and of course, we set off on Jon’s Travel Diaries - from his long stint in Washington D.C. to the sun-drenched Riviera, the energy of Rio, and the beauty of Sydney.

Holly’s Destination Recap:

• Puente Romano Hotel, Marbella, Spain

Jon’s Destination Recap:

• New York City, USA
• French Riviera, France
• St Paul de Vence, France
• La Colombe D’or, St Paul de Vence, France
• Paris, France
• Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris, France
• Jardin du Ranelagh, Paris, France
• Andia (formerly Restaurant La Gare), Paris, France
• Afghanistan
• Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Tokyo, Japan
• Sydney, Australia
• Noosa, Queensland, Australia
• Blackberry Farm, Smoky Mountains, Tennessee, USA
• Maine, USA
• Nantucket, Massachusetts, USA
• Shelter Island, New York, USA
• Costa Rica
• The Galapagos
• Rwanda

Strangeland: Is This Britain’s New Normal? By Jon Sopel is out in paperback on 29th May (Penguin £10.99).

With thanks to my sponsors -

UPPAbaby -The new UPPAbaby Minu V3 is available to pre order at all UK stockists nationwide now.

Airbnb - Visit Airbnb.com and find out more. Prospective Hosts can learn more about how much they can earn sharing their space through the What’s My Place Worth Tool.

Saily - Download the SAILY app and use our code TRAVELDIARIES at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase.

Thanks so much for listening If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram, I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok.

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This week’s guest is someone who many of us will feel we already know. A calm and trusted presence in our living rooms each evening, she’s one of the most familiar faces in British broadcasting - BBC News presenter, correspondent, and author, Reeta Chakrabarti.

Raised in Birmingham, Reeta spent part of her teenage years in Calcutta, India - an experience that would later shape her global perspective both as a journalist and a writer.

Her career has taken her all over the world, from covering the war in Ukraine from Lviv, to reporting on the 70th anniversary of Indian and Pakistani independence and most recently, covering the Pope's funeral from Rome. She began her career behind the scenes in radio before making the leap to become a correspondent, and finally landing in the iconic BBC News presenting chair - at the age of 49, no less. Proof that there’s no one path to success and it’s never too late to pivot.

Her travel diaries today take us from Italy to Chile, Greece to India and much more.

Destination Recap:

Holly -

• Cothelstone Manor, Somerset, England

Reeta -

• Calcutta, India
• Rome, Italy
• St Peter’s Basilica, Rome, Italy
• Castel Sant’Angelo, Rome, Italy
• Lahore, Pakistan
• Santiago, Chile
• Valparaiso, Chile
• France
• Lviv, Ukraine
• Paris, France
• Taj Mahal, Agra, India
• Amorgos, Greece
• Brazil
• Argentina

Finding Belle by Reeta Chakrabarti, published by HarperFiction, out in hardback, ebook and audio on 8th May

*COMPETITION*

For your chance to win a 3 night all inclusive stay at LUXME hotel on the Greek island of Kos, head to my Instagram @hollyrubenstein. The winner will be announced on May 20th, T&Cs apply!

With thanks to my sponsors today -

Citalia - Discover the real Italy with Citalia, the UK’s leading Italian holiday specialists. Let the Italy Experts craft the perfect holiday for you and experience Italy like a Citalian.

Airbnb - Visit Airbnb.com and find out more. Prospective Hosts can learn more about how much they can earn sharing their space through the What’s My Place Worth Tool.

Saily - Download the SAILY app and use our code TRAVELDIARIES at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase

Thanks so much for listening today. If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok.

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Today we’re joined by Gaby Roslin. Gaby first burst onto our screens in the early 1990s, co-hosting The Big Breakfast with Chris Evans - a show that would become one of the most iconic breakfast TV programmes in the UK. Since then, she’s carved out an extraordinary career as a presenter and broadcaster, spanning television, radio, and podcasting interviewing everyone from Michael Jackson, to the cast of Friends.

Gaby is also a passionate traveller, with a deep-rooted sense of wonder about the world. In this episode, she takes us from the thundering majesty of Victoria Falls in Zimbabwe, a country close to her heart, to the timeless beauty of Rome and Florence in Italy, and the rhythm and soul that captivated her in Havana, Cuba.

So let’s dive into the travel diaries of Gaby Roslin.

Holly's Destination Recap:

• Ikos, Andalusia, Spain

Gaby's Destination Recap:

• Zimbabwe
• Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe
• Rome, Italy
• Florence, Italy
• Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
• San Juan Islands, Washington, USA
• Alonissos, Greece
• Havana, Cuba
• No 15 Guesthouse Hotels, Bath, England
• Thailand
• India
• Himalayas, Nepal
• The Nest, The Treehouse Hotel, London, England

With thanks to my sponsors today -

Citalia - Discover the real Italy with Citalia, the UK’s leading Italian holiday specialists. Let the Italy Experts craft the perfect holiday for you and experience Italy like a Citalian.

Airbnb - Visit Airbnb.com and find out more. Prospective Hosts can learn more about how much they can earn sharing their space through the What’s My Place Worth Tool.

Saily - Download the SAILY app and use our code TRAVELDIARIES at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase

Thanks so much for listening today. If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok.

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

Today’s guest is quite literally a national treasure. She’s a Dame, a queen of the kitchen, an author, a restaurateur, and of course, the judge who has been serving up wit and wisdom alongside cakes and crumbles on The Great British Bake Off since 2017… it is the one and only Dame Prue Leith.

Born and raised in South Africa, Prue moved to London in the swinging Sixties and quickly became a force to be reckoned with in the culinary world. She founded Leith’s - a hugely successful restaurant in Notting Hill that went on to earn a Michelin star - and later opened Leiths School of Food and Wine, which has trained generations of top chefs and food writers.

Over the decades, she’s written best-selling cookbooks and novels, been a newspaper columnist, a judge on the Great British Menu, and has sat on countless boards and advisory panels, all while campaigning tirelessly for better food in schools, hospitals, and prisons. Her impact on British food culture is hard to overstate. And now, at 85, she’s showing no signs of slowing down. She’s back on our screens in the new season of her wonderfully warm and personal ITV series, Prue Leith’s Cotswold Kitchen, filmed in her beautiful country home, where she shares family recipes, chats with friends, and brings a bit of sunshine to our screens.

If you thought Prue’s adventures were limited to the kitchen, though, you can think again. From the deserts of Turkmenistan and the ancient silk roads of Uzbekistan to beach drives in Western Australia and mountain drives in Bhutan, her travel diaries are as rich and surprising as her legendary glasses collection.

So settle in for a deliciously inspiring chat with a woman whose life has been anything but ordinary.

Destination Recap:

Holly:

• Elkstones, Chipping Campden, England (Part of Simon Escapes' collection)

Prue:

• Turkmenistan
• Uzbekistan
• Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
• Kruger National Park, South Africa
• Umhlanga Rocks, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
• Ipswich, England
• Paris, France
• Cape Town, South Africa
• Perth, Western Australia
• Kalgoorlie, Western Australia
• Lucky Bay, Western Australia
• Core by Clare Smyth, London, England
• Cotswolds, England
• Bhutan
• Amir Temur Mausoleum, Gur-e Amir Complex, Uzbekistan
• Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt
• The Kimberley, Australia

Prue Leith’s Cotswold Kitchen continues on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player on Saturday 19th April 2025

With thanks to Wexas, Airbnb and Saily for their support of today's episode - Download the SAILY app and use our code TRAVELDIARIES at checkout to get an exclusive 15% off your first purchase

Thanks so much for listening today. If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok.

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Welcome to our first Budget Travel Special! This is one that you, the listeners, have been asking for a lot - and I get it! Travel can feel expensive and overwhelming, but what if I told you that it really doesn’t have to be?

That’s why I knew I had to bring on the ultimate budget travel expert - someone who has made it her mission to help people travel smarter, stretch their money further, and still enjoy incredible experiences, Chelsea Dickenson, aka the Cheap Holiday Expert.

Chelsea has built a huge following all thanks to her easy-to-follow, no-nonsense travel hacks. You’ve probably seen her viral videos on how to snag the best hotel upgrades, fly for less, or even go on an amazing holiday for under £100. And if you’re a fan of This Morning, you’ll recognise her as their go-to expert for low-cost travel. She’s also the co-host of Passports Please, the travel podcast that helps you hack your holidays.

Now, I know budget travel is something so many of you are interested in, and you’ve sent in loads of brilliant questions on Instagram for this one. We’re covering everything, from whether five-star hotels are actually worth it to the best destinations where your money goes furthest, plus Chelsea’s ultimate flight-booking hacks that will save you time and money.

So, whether you’re planning your next getaway or just love hearing about the best travel tricks out there, this episode is packed with useful tips and plenty of fun stories too.

Destination Recap:

• Berlin, Germany
• Krakow, Poland
• Wroclaw, Poland
• Gdansk, Poland
• Budapest, Hungary
• Kozmo, Budapest, Hungary
• Vilnius, Lithuania
• Seville, Spain
• Turkey
• Nidum Casual Luxury, Innsbruck, Austria
• Vietnam
• Ha Long Bay, Vietnam
• Cat Ba Island, Vietnam
• Koh Lanta, Thailand
• Dubai
• Iceland
• Chill out hostel, Zagreb, Croatia
• South Korea
• Uzbekistan

Today's episode was produced by Alexandra Calder.

With thanks to Airbnb for their support of today's episode.

Thanks so much for listening today. If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok - I’d love to hear from you. And if you can't wait until then, remember there’s the first 13 seasons to catch up on, that's over 145 episodes to keep you busy there.

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My guest today is a true force of nature. From the moment she burst onto the scene as a child prodigy with that voice, she became one of the most famous classical singers in the world, performing for presidents, popes, and royalty. It is of course, Charlotte Church. Her early career was a whirlwind - global fame, relentless travel, and a life that few could truly understand. We talk about what that was really like behind the scenes, the highs and the inevitable challenges of growing up in the spotlight, and how travel became both an escape and a source of inspiration for her.

But Charlotte’s journey didn’t stop there. These days, she’s also the founder of The Dreaming, a magical retreat space in rural Wales dedicated to healing, creativity, and connection. Throughout the year, The Dreaming hosts a range of immersive retreats - some focused on families, others on music and self-discovery, including Charlotte’s own deeply personal Song of the Soul retreat. It even celebrates ancient traditions with gatherings around the folkloric calendar, from the Spring Equinox to Halloween.

Charlotte’s travel diaries take us from the neon-lit streets of Tokyo to the wild beauty of Dominica, the savannahs of Kenya, and, of course, the rolling green hills of Wales, her home. Her outlook on life is truly unique - spiritual, alternative, and deeply connected to nature and the world around her. So, this is a conversation you won’t want to miss. Let’s get started - here’s Charlotte.

Holly's Destination Recap:

• Homewood, Bath, England
• Calcot & Spa, Tetbury, England via PoB hotels

Charlotte's Destination Recap:

• Brazil
• Lake Geneva, Switzerland
• Los Angeles, California
• Tokyo, Japan
• The Dreaming, Elan Valley, Wales
• Kenya
• Elan Valley, Wales
• St David’s, Pembrokeshire, Wales
• Llanidloes, Wales
• Anglesey, Wales
• The Gower, Wales
• Merthyr Mawr, Wales
• Dominica
• Pittsburgh, USA
• Peru
• Japan
• Yellowstone National Park, USA
• Costa Rica

You can find out more about Charlotte's retreats at The Dreaming.co.uk

With thanks to Airbnb for their support of today's episode.

Thanks so much for listening today. If you want to be the first find out who is joining me on next week’s episode come and follow me on Instagram I’m @hollyrubenstein, and you’ll also find me on TikTok - I’d love to hear from you. And if you can't wait until then, remember there’s the first 13 seasons to catch up on, that's over 145 episodes to keep you busy there.

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