What did Brexit ever do for travellers? You may not enjoy finding out

Simon Calder’s Travel Week [SUBSCRIBE]( [SUBSCRIBE: £20 FOR 1 YEAR]( June 23, 2023 [View in browser](   [The Independent]( [The Independent]( What were you doing on 23 June 2016? Perhaps, like me, voting in the EU referendum. Seven years ago, the world changed overnight for UK travellers. And the consequences are still unravelling. The UK voted to make travel to locations across the European Union, including Santorini, much more difficult and expensive   [Get inspired...]( [Grand Canyon by rail]( Cowboys and bandits: expect a Wild West extravaganza when you hop on board this one-of-a-kind [train experience through Arizona]( [I'm an image]( Take a dip]( The best [UK hotels with swimming pools](, whether you're booking a couples or friends spa break or travelling with children [I'm an image]( [Cruise control]( Get to know the the Continent’s waterways with our selection of [Europe's best river cruises](, from the Douro to the Danube   Simon’s dispatches The most immediate – and lasting – impact of Brexit was to push up costs for British travellers abroad. When the “Leave” result came in, sterling immediately slumped as international financial markets anticipated the economic damage caused by Brexit. Against the US dollar, which dictates costs across the airline industry, the pound is currently down 13 per cent compared with the day before the referendum; the cruel arithmetic of reciprocals means aviation fuel, aircraft leases or Florida theme-park tickets cost British travellers 15 per cent more. In the eurozone, that coffee or car rental is about one-eighth more expensive. If you were among the majority who, as a perfectly respectable political choice, voted successfully to Leave, here are seven more changes you helped bring about for British travellers to Europe (and sometimes within the UK): [Strict limits on the time you can spend in the EU]( and wider Schengen Area. Take a winter break for the first three months of the year in Spain and you can't return to anywhere in Schengen until the end of June. You must also prove to EU frontier officials you can afford your stay, and show an onward or return ticket. [Also, don](['t bring a cheese or ham sandwich with you]( (unless you are travelling direct from Northern Ireland to the EU). [Chaotic scenes at ports never designed to house a hard EU external frontier]( due to the passport checking rules we asked to become subject to. [Fewer seats and higher fares on Eurostar](, which cannot sell all its tickets because of overcrowding at stations resulting from those extra passport checks. The cross-Channel train firm also blames extra Brexit red tape for ending links from Ebbsfleet, Ashford and [Disneyland Paris](. [Bringing back roaming charges]( for British mobile phone users in Europe. [Making it far more difficult and expensive to take a pet abroad](, or from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. [Damaging inbound tourism to the UK]( by banning more than 200 million EU citizens who have national identity cards but not passports. [Ending London-Belfast flights by the Irish airline, Aer Lingus](. But enough remoaning: seven years on is an excellent time to celebrate the majority decision to go it alone. Ministers insist leaving the EU “has given the UK a world of future opportunities”. With the help of the government’s [Benefits of Brexit]( document, I have identified all three of the travel advantages so you don’t have to. Duty free: Cheaper alcohol and tobacco when travelling from the EU to the UK. Domestic tourism: The government says putting up barriers to European workers will “enable UK workers to view the hospitality roles as a rewarding career”. Blue passports: Ministers have proudly “reintroduced our iconic blue passports”. Only a cynic still lamenting losing the democratic vote would point out that any government could have changed the colour of British passports at any time while we were in the EU. For example, Croatia’s passports are as deeply blue as the Adriatic. Next time you’re sweltering in the non-EU line at Split or Dubrovnik airport, you might catch a glimpse of one as the holder breezes past. [Read more about the travel benefits of Brexit; it won't take too long](     Tip of the week: More strife on the railways [One year on from when the first national rail strikes since the 1980s]( began, the disputes over pay, jobs and working conditions appear as intractable as ever. While ScotRail and Transport for Wales have already settled, rail passengers on the leading English train operators cannot plan more than two weeks ahead; this is the minimum notice the unions must give of action. The main rail union, the RMT, [has called strikes on 20, 22 and 29 July](. The train drivers’ union, Aslef, [resumes national industrial action on 2 July]( with a six-day overtime ban. The impact will vary according to the individual rail firms' dependence on overtime and levels of staff sickness. Deal of the week: More competition to Morocco Tangier, the northernmost city in Morocco, becomes more accessible from tomorrow when [Royal Air Maroc]( launches flights from London Gatwick. The new link competes directly with [Air Arabia](, and also with [Ryanair]( from London Stansted. The extra capacity will help keep a lid on fares in July and August – currently £300 or more return. By the first week in October, round-trip tickets are down to £64 on Ryanair. [Everything you need to plan a trip to Morocco]( Enjoy a year of unlimited digital access for just £99 £20 ✓ Full access to Premium news analysis ✓ Advert-free reading across web and app ✓ The Independent Daily Edition newspaper ✓ Puzzles, virtual event tickets and more [SUBSCRIBE NOW](   Question of the week: Is Cincinnati worth a visit? Q We are thinking of trying the new British Airways route to Cincinnati. What is there to see and do around the area and in neighbouring states? A This month British Airways started flying five times a week between London and Cincinnati. I am a fan of “secondary cities” in the US, which I often find more authentic than the premier league destinations. For a city of its size, the Cincinnati Art Museum is well endowed with European art – including Rubens, Matisse, Monet and Picasso. Cincinnati also has some attractive 19th-century architecture, best appreciated at Findlay Market: “Ohio’s oldest continuously operated public market” dates from 1855. And a boat trip on the Ohio River provides a good perspective on the city. Northern Kentucky is well worth exploring: Lexington is at the heart of the equestrian and bourbon industries, and easily combined with Louisville, Kentucky (home of America’s oldest horse race, the Kentucky Derby, with an impressive tourist experience at the course). Old Louisville is strewn with Victorian mansions, while the free and welcoming 21c Museum Hotel has a 30-foot sculpture of David planted on the sidewalk outside (like you do). And the Ali Center celebrates the life and philosophy of “the greatest” – boxer and activist Mohammed Ali, who was born in Louisville. [Spiritual hospitality in Louisville]( STAT OF THE WEEK 238 Number of seats aboard the Qantas Airbus A350-1000, being equipped for [nonstop 10,573-mile flights from London to Sydney](. What you might have missed... - Keep watch: [Scammers target victims of easyJet cancellations]( - ‘Minglegate’: [Travel leaders deplore party at]([Tory HQ]([shortly before 19-week Covid travel ban]( - Lightning reaction: [Flight from Auckland to Rarotonga forced to turn back]( SIMON'S DIARY Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](. Every day from Monday to Friday I tackle a top travel story, or explore a topic in more detail than usual in ‘Simon Calder's Independent Travel Podcast’ – available free on [Spotify](, [Apple Podcasts](, [Pocket Casts]( or [Acast](. I find the easiest way to rush out stories is to tweet them. It’s also an easy way to contact me. My direct messages are open and I read all DMs, though regrettably I can’t respond to every one. Let me know your thoughts [@SimonCalder]( I find the easiest way to rush out stories is to tweet them. It’s also an easy way to contact me. My direct messages are open and I read all DMs, though regrettably I can’t respond to every one. Let me know your thoughts [@SimonCalder]( Each Saturday and Sunday I take questions live at 5.30pm British time on Instagram Live – from wherever I happen to be in the world – so please do come and say hello. Follow me on [@Simon_Calder]( Each Saturday and Sunday I take questions live at 5.30pm British time on Instagram Live – from wherever I happen to be in the world – so please do come and say hello. Follow me on [@Simon_Calder]( Or you can find me on TikTok. Come and have a look at what I have been up to as I bring you top travel topics and report on the latest changes in a minute or less via [@caldertravel]( Or you can find me on TikTok. Come and have a look at what I have been up to as I bring you top travel topics and report on the latest changes in a minute or less via [@caldertravel]( [INDYBEST]( / [BEST TRAVEL BUYS]( 13 best aftersun lotions and creams to soothe and hydrate sun-damaged skin From [face masks]( to moisturising[bath milks](, reach for these cooling aftersuns. And don't forget [daily SPF]( for your [face](, [sensitive skin](and [eco-friendly sunscreen](this summer. 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