You should have been there

We attempt to hack our way through the red tape and labyrinthine protocols surrounding foreign travel. Fortunately we are joined by an expert guide, Julia Lo Bue-Said, who is chief executive of Advantage Travel Partnership-the UK's largest group of independent travel agents.  Follow Julia on Twitter at @jlo_said 

The heart of any self-respecting town or city is its square. So which is the world's best square, what are the essential ingredients for a good one and why are we in the UK so bad at them? Simon offers his opinions from the not very renowned Kings Cross Square in London though I thought the Piazza del Duomo in Pisa was a bit more photogenic!  

Mick's prejudices about the world's largest country are robustly challenged by Simon and the travel writer and photographer, Frances Linzee Gordon. Enjoy her tales of smiling policemen, two-way mirrors and learning to fire a Kalashnikov.

Join Simon in Gibraltar as he meets the residents and tries to avoid the light-fingered macaque monkeys. The famous "Rock" is just one of the tiny states that dot the map of Europe. Cleo Paskal, Associate Fellow of Chatham House kindly shares her research passion for these Microstates and we revisit a journey to Andorra.  

A gorilla mother and baby are among the most wonderful sights that a rainforest can provide. But there are also snakes, scorpions and mosquitoes that you would prefer not to come across. We get inside nature's miraculous but disappearing hot houses with the help of Joe Taylor and Silas Webb. Thanks are also due to Ernesto, the Colombian guide who helped Simon and me across a small part of the treacherous Darien Gap. The website with details of our very own UK temperate rainforests is https://lostrainforestsofengland.org/  

....... and of course Simon was on it, taking the Covid tests and checking out sunny Algarve as the UK's oldest ally gets a green light from the government. But how complicated is it to get there and what kind of holiday experience awaits the intrepid visitor to Portugal?  Many thanks to Paul Goldstein for joining in the Faro fun.   

Taking our cue from the famous novel by Jules Verne, we hear travellers' tales of trials and tribulations with some unexpected bonuses. A free hotel stay in Antigua can't be bad, can it? Thanks to Carolyn Pearson, Dr Claire Corkhill and David Else for their stories and to everyone who kindly sent their tales of delay via Twitter. 

We shed light on the government's forthcoming strategy for foreign travel with the help of Carolyn Pearson. Her company, Maiden Voyage, advises business travellers on safety and well-being (maiden-voyage.com). An unexpected accompaniment is provided by some dogs that Simon befriended outside Swindon Railway Station. 

35 years since the melt-down of Chernobyl's nuclear reactor, the site of the catastrophe has become a top tourist attraction. Nuclear scientist, Dr Claire Corkhill, joins us to talk about "dark tourism" and the ethics of visiting places like this. Claire has recently taken part in the documentary "Russia versus the World" which you can see on My5. 

We investigate the twinning movement, looking back at some of the more interesting and bizarre connections that it has thrown up. Did you know, for instance, that one English town has chosen Narnia as a partner? We'd love to receive your ideas for any new kinds of twinning via twitter, @youshouldhaveBt