I am in Brno in the Czech Republic, where I have come to meet Kevan Vogler – a Canadian who has been living in his adopted homeland of the Czech Republic for more than 20 years, and is therefore the ideal person to write Culture Smart! Czech Republic: The Essential Guide to Customs & Culture.

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I've been covering airport expansion in south-east England for decades. Could this finally be the moment when an additional runway is pressed into service, or will it get tangled up in controversy?

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That's the recommendation of the International Air Transport Association (Iata). Opponents say the airlines see raising the age limit as an attempt to deal with a temporary shortage of pilots. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency says the risk of a serious health incident on the flight desk increases with age, and that skills decline with the years.

But Willie Walsh, a former pilot himself and now director general of Iata, believes the age limit can safely be raised.

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Flying is incredibly safe. But as we have seen over the past nine months, accidents happen with tragic consequences. I am talking to Elmarie Marais, the chief executive of GoCrisis – a company that works with airlines to prepare emergency procedures, and gets to work to care for the loved ones of the victims. As I make clear, aviation has an outstanding safety record.

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I am still in southwest France, specifically at Toulouse airport departure lounge, where I am talking to Jackie Banfill and Frank Epstein – who have been in the high Pyrenean co-principality of Andorra. I know the place mainly from winter, but they say it is glorious in summer.

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I'm just on the French side of the Pyrenees, but I reached here – with my hiking friend Mick – after some extreme stress, when our Vueling flight from Gatwick to Barcelona was cancelled at the airport.

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Steve is Head of Engineering at the UK's second-busiest airport, and responsible for the baggage systems. Almost all the time things work well for the passenger, the airport and the airline.

But sometimes bags with loose straps and the like can gum up the system. And if you leave old barcodes on your case (those little labels) your bag might end up in Bangkok while you are waiting in Barcelona.

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All week I have been covering the strike by members of the RMT union working for London Underground, which has paralysed the capital. While some Tube trains have been running on each day, they represent only a tiny fraction of the network.

I took one of the rare trains running from Baker Street to Harrow-on-the-Hill, sharing the journey with a pigeon and a handful of humans.

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The summer has actually been excellent in terms of coming out of the UK," says Jeremy. While the peak day for flights from the UK is still back before Covid, in October 2019, and UK-US flights are showing a downturn, the trend is unrelentingly upwards. North Africa bookings doubled this summer and the Middle East is expanding ... 

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Today is the day that Intrepid Travel has revealed its Not Hot List – places off the tourism mainstream, from Nevada to Sierra Leone. I've been speaking to Hazel Maguire, chief marketing officer for the adventure travel company.

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Paul Goldstein, adventurer and wildlife campaigner, successfully completed 25 Marathon-length walks from Tigerton in Scotland to Tiger Bay in Wales to raise money for the conservation of four-legged animals – particularly the tiger. He's been telling me the highlights ...

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I'm talking to Martina Jamnig, director of the Austrian National Tourist Office in London, about the activities on offer in autumn and winter – which range from Christmas markets to ice-bathing in Carinthia. News about more flights to Austria, too.

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5 September is the day to celebrate travel professionals, and therefore a good day to hear from Julia Lo Bue-Said OBE, chief executive of the Advantage Travel Partnership. She believes school holidays need to be transformed so that they better meet the needs of families – and wants to start a national conversation on cutting the summer break to a month, with extra weeks added in May and October.

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Nicky Gardner, co-author of Europe by Rail, tells me the best places to make the most of all-you-can-travel rail.

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At the end of the summer I'm talking to Kaya Niedenthal of Currency Online Group in London about trends in the currency markets: what's worth buying now, the use of the dollar and euro in many developing countries, and the currency that is selling extraordinarily well to Brits.

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The Caribbean is a mosaic of delectable isles - but what makes St Lucia distinctive? Senior travel writer Natalie Wilson was there in the summer and was smitten by the island's beauty, friendliness and culture.

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"The pearl of the Adriatic" has been enticing millions of tourists every year, with its spectacular setting and mighty walls wrapping around the old city. More recently Dubrovnik's starring role as a backdrop in Game of Thrones has brought even more visitors. The pressure from tourism has been evident – but the Mayor, Mato Frankovic, has been telling me how he plans to rebalance the relationship between visitors and the citizens.

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From 12 October, the EU's much-delayed entry-exit system (EES) will begin to be rolled out. Using some mathematical modelling, Oliver Ranson from Airline Revenue Economics has worked out the European airports most at risk of collapse on first contact with the EES. Milan Malpensa, Bucharest and Athens top the chart.

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Since he took over as chief executive of Ryanair in 1994, Michael O'Leary has guided what was an ailing Irish regional airline to become Europe’s biggest budget carrier.

I've been talking to him about a crackdown on cabin baggage, his plan for smartphone-only boarding passes and the EU entry-exit system. Listen up!

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My guest is travel expert Gilly Bachelor, who is a champion of solo travel for women. Tomorrow (Thursday 28 August) she is organising a special evening aimed at women preparing to go it alone abroad – under the brand "No stopping her".

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