In a new episode of The Pod Well Travelled, hosts Penny Thomas and Megan French chime into the airport hotel conversation.

Penny shares her experience staying at the Novotel & ibis Styles Melbourne Airport hotel — Victoria’s most significant hotel development being the first new-build internationally branded hotel to open at Melbourne Airport in two decades.

The duo also discuss what factors make an airport hotel not just good but great, and debate if a bathtub truly is a hotel travel necessity.

+ Subscribe and listen to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.

+ Sign up for eTravel via thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.

In a new episode of The Pod Well Travelled, hosts Penny Thomas and Megan French chime into the airport hotel conversation.
Penny shares her experience staying at the Novotel &amp; ibis Styles Melbourne Airport hotel — Victoria’s most significant hotel development being the first new-build internationally branded hotel to open at Melbourne Airport in two decades.
The duo also discuss what factors make an airport hotel not just good but great, and debate if a bathtub truly is a hotel travel necessity.
+ Subscribe and<a href="https://omny.fm/shows/the-pod-well-travelled"> listen </a>to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.
+ Sign up for eTravel via <a href="https://thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences">thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences</a>. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.

A weekly podcast with Travel Editor Stephen Scourfield and the West Travel Club Team, filled with travel news and stories, in conversation and through the speech and sounds we collect on the road.

A weekly podcast with Travel Editor Stephen Scourfield and the West Travel Club Team, filled with travel news and stories, in conversation and through the speech and sounds we collect on the road.

The Pod Well Travelled

What makes a good airport hotel

On this week’s episode, Penny Thomas, Megan French and Stephen Scourfield recap the recent Jackets Of The World exhibition, which took place in Fremantle last month and featured over 50 hand-sewn jackets from Stephen’s travels.

During the show, we also hear a special live recording from the event, where Stephen performed a moving piece about Africa accompanied by the captivating rhythms of musician and composer Steve Richter.
Subscribe to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.
Sign up for eTravel via thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.

On this week’s episode, Penny Thomas, Megan French and Stephen Scourfield recap the recent Jackets Of The World exhibition, which took place in Fremantle last month and featured over 50 hand-sewn jackets from Stephen’s travels.
During the show, we also hear a special live recording from the event, where Stephen performed a moving piece about Africa accompanied by the captivating rhythms of musician and composer Steve Richter.
<ul>
<li>Subscribe to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.</li>
<li>Sign up for eTravel via <a href="https://thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences">thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences</a>. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.</li>
</ul>

Words, music and jackets of the world

Earlier this month, Old Customs House in Fremantle was transformed into a vibrant gallery for Stephen Scourfield’s Jackets Of The World exhibition, which featured an impressive collection of hand-sewn denim jackets that Stephen stitched together with fabrics, tapestries and other bits and bobs he’s collected from his travels.

As part of the two-day event, The Pod Well Travelled hosts Penny Thomas and Megan French recorded a live Q&A session with Stephen, where they answered questions from the audience on a wide range of travel-related topics, including insurance options for over-80s, the challenges and benefits of travelling solo, plus age limits for car rentals and why you should consider booking direct with certain travel companies to avoid hidden costs.

They also discuss the Jackets Of The World exhibition, with Stephen sharing details on how he sourced many of the unique materials on display and the emotional significance behind each piece.

Thank you to everyone who attended the live podcast recording during the Jackets Of The World exhibition. It was a pleasure to see you, and we thank you for coming.

As promised, below are the links we reference throughout this week’s show.

Insurance options for over-80s

+ Consider companies like NIB, COTA or Chubb.

+ Comparetravelinsurance.com.au is Australia’s leading comparison site solely focused on travel insurance.

+ Probus Clubs are clubs for retired or semi-retired people that often provide good insurance for their members. It’s also worth noting that you can get insurance through Probus, even if you’re not a full member.



Quality tour operators we recommend using, especially for solo travellers 

+ Of course, our own West Travel Club tours are great for solo travellers.

+ Another nice little company based here in Western Australia is called Travel with Me (TWME). They cater to individuals, couples, friends and groups.

+ If you’re after a European tour specialist, Albatross Tours are brilliant at what they do.

+ Intrepid Travel is another reputable company from Australia that provide small group tours in over 100 countries that we can happily recommend.

+ Collette offer an incredible range of small group tours. They are a third generation family-owned business and the longest-running tour operator in North America, with a history dating back to 1918.

+ To get the latest travel deals and offers, the best thing you can do is sign up to the newsletters of preferred travel companies.



Travel Tips for ageing travellers

+ Listen to our previous podcast episode on how to survive a long-haul flight here.

+ Consider train travel. Europe, the US, India and Australia all have great train journeys. Broadly speaking, there are two main types of train journeys — the sort where you buy a pass or ticket to get from A to B and touring trains.

+ River cruising in Europe is a really good way to see a lot, really easily.

+ Travelling to Vietnam has never been easier or more affordable with both VietJet Air and Vietnam Airlines flying direct between Perth and Ho Chi Minh City. If you do, consider visiting Hoi An and Hanoi, they offer more charm than Ho Chi Minh.

Car Hire and International Driving Permits

Read Stephen Scourfield’s story on navigating car hire & its many pitfalls here.



THE POD WELL TRAVELLED 
Subscribe to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.
Sign up for eTravel via thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.

Earlier this month, Old Customs House in Fremantle was transformed into a vibrant gallery for Stephen Scourfield’s Jackets Of The World exhibition, which featured an impressive collection of hand-sewn denim jackets that Stephen stitched together with fabrics, tapestries and other bits and bobs he’s collected from his travels.
As part of the two-day event, The Pod Well Travelled hosts Penny Thomas and Megan French recorded a live Q&amp;A session with Stephen, where they answered questions from the audience on a wide range of travel-related topics, including insurance options for over-80s, the challenges and benefits of travelling solo, plus age limits for car rentals and why you should consider booking direct with certain travel companies to avoid hidden costs.
They also discuss the Jackets Of The World exhibition, with Stephen sharing details on how he sourced many of the unique materials on display and the emotional significance behind each piece.
Thank you to everyone who attended the live podcast recording during the Jackets Of The World exhibition. It was a pleasure to see you, and we thank you for coming.
As promised, below are the links we reference throughout this week’s show.
Insurance options for over-80s
+ Consider companies like <a href="https://www.nibtravelinsurance.com.au/?gad_source=1&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwxsm3BhDrARIsAMtVz6N4-LBeT2uqlHhc4cE7jR-Ui_guzD54YX2RpuhUVY7ybrKYsdvGnUsaAuFAEALw_wcB">NIB</a>, <a href="https://www.cota.com.au/insurance/travel/">COTA</a> or <a href="https://www.chubbtravelinsurance.com.au/cti/au-en/home.html.html">Chubb</a>.
+ <a href="https://www.comparetravelinsurance.com.au/">Comparetravelinsurance.com.au</a> is Australia’s leading comparison site solely focused on travel insurance.
+ Probus Clubs are clubs for retired or semi-retired people that often provide good insurance for their members. It’s also worth noting that you can get insurance through Probus, even if you’re not a full member.
 
Quality tour operators we recommend using, especially for solo travellers 
+ Of course, our own <a href="https://westtravelclub.com.au/tours">West Travel Club</a> tours are great for solo travellers.
+ Another nice little company based here in Western Australia is called <a href="https://www.travelwithme.com.au/">Travel with Me (TWME)</a>. They cater to individuals, couples, friends and groups.
+ If you’re after a European tour specialist<a href="https://www.albatrosstours.com.au/?source=GoogleSearchNetwork&amp;device=c&amp;campaign=21223500898&amp;adgroup=166667038252&amp;keyword=albatross%20tours&amp;matchtype=e&amp;placement=&amp;adposition=&amp;location=9070540&amp;gad_source=1&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwxsm3BhDrARIsAMtVz6O1ZrmrQ-iZprCeVr_Ake6C5g9I-R--5mtvNOrVA_kyoeKF-e2lH5MaAl02EALw_wcB">, Albatross Tours</a> are brilliant at what they do.
+ <a href="https://www.intrepidtravel.com/au?gad_source=1&amp;gclid=Cj0KCQjwxsm3BhDrARIsAMtVz6MY_A68mg5R7DQ-au38U78OOISYAJcKe3tg2p-To_AKjEZs3QXuQmMaAu89EALw_wcB&amp;gclsrc=aw.ds">Intrepid Travel</a> is another reputable company from Australia that provide small group tours in over 100 countries that we can happily recommend.
+ <a href="https://www.gocollette.com/en-au">Collette</a> offer an incredible range of small group tours. They are a third generation family-owned business and the longest-running tour operator in North America, with a history dating back to 1918.
+ To get the latest travel deals and offers, the best thing you can do is sign up to the newsletters of preferred travel companies.
 
Travel Tips for ageing travellers
+ Listen to our previous podcast episode on how to survive a long-haul flight <a href="https://thewest.com.au/news/travel/packing-guide-for-long-haul-flights-c-15460418">here.</a>
+ Consider train travel. Europe, the US, India and Australia all have great train journeys. Broadly speaking, there are two main types of train journeys — the sort where you buy a pass or ticket to get from A to B and touring trains.
+ River cruising in Europe is a really good way to see a lot, really easily.
+ Travelling to Vietnam has never been easier or more affordable with both VietJet Air and Vietnam Airlines flying direct between Perth and Ho Chi Minh City. If you do, consider visiting Hoi An and Hanoi, they offer more charm than Ho Chi Minh.
Car Hire and International Driving Permits
<a href="https://thewest.com.au/travel/navigating-car-hire-its-many-pifalls-c-9819261">Read Stephen Scourfield’s story on navigating car hire &amp; its many pitfalls here.</a>
 
THE POD WELL TRAVELLED 
<ul>
<li>Subscribe to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.</li>
<li>Sign up for eTravel via <a href="https://thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences">thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences</a>. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.</li>
</ul>

Your travel questions answered 

Packing too much. Packing too little. Forgetting to label your case. Toiletries exploding. Leaving it to the last minute. Using the wrong bag.

These are packing mistakes we’re all guilty of at some point, no matter how experienced a traveller we are. But sometimes you just have to learn the hard way.

Tune into the latest episode of The Pod Well Travelled’s Packing Series with co-hosts Penny Thomas and Megan French as they explore the contentious topic of packing mistakes, confessing their worst packing blunders and offering tips on how to avoid common mistakes we can all succumb to along the way.

The duo cover everything from cultural and weather considerations to travel hacks from the travel veteran himself, Stephen Scourfield, that have unsurprisingly proven successful.

+ Subscribe and listen to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.

+ Sign up for eTravel via thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.

Packing too much. Packing too little. Forgetting to label your case. Toiletries exploding. Leaving it to the last minute. Using the wrong bag.
These are packing mistakes we’re all guilty of at some point, no matter how experienced a traveller we are. But sometimes you just have to learn the hard way.
Tune into the latest episode of The Pod Well Travelled’s Packing Series with co-hosts Penny Thomas and Megan French as they explore the contentious topic of packing mistakes, confessing their worst packing blunders and offering tips on how to avoid common mistakes we can all succumb to along the way.
The duo cover everything from cultural and weather considerations to travel hacks from the travel veteran himself, Stephen Scourfield, that have unsurprisingly proven successful.
+ Subscribe and<a href="https://omny.fm/shows/the-pod-well-travelled"> listen </a>to The Pod Well Travelled where you get your podcasts — and share it to your family and friends.
+ Sign up for eTravel via <a href="https://thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences">thewest.com.au/manage-email-preferences</a>. It’s our free digital edition of travel that gets delivered to your inbox once a week and is full of new stories, fresh podcast episodes, upcoming events and more.

What makes a good airport hotel

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