Monty Don has opened up about the gruelling reality of filming his travel shows, revealing that they are far harder work than Gardeners' World. The 71-year-old presenter is leaving the BBC programme after the current series, but he is not retiring from television.
Travel shows are 'a labour of love'
Don has been hosting travel series alongside his Gardeners' World duties for almost 20 years, starting with Around the World in 80 Gardens. He has since visited Italy, France, Spain, Japan and the USA, among other countries. Following his latest series, Rhineland Gardens, which aired earlier in 2026, he now has his sights set on Scandinavia and South America.
Speaking on the Good Food podcast, Don described the travel programmes as "a labour of love" and detailed the demanding schedule involved in each shoot.
Long days and no rest days
He said: "It's harder work doing that than Gardeners' World, for example. Very often leave the hotel early, at six or something like that. Film all day. Travel, as well. Get to our next location if we're lucky about half past six, seven, if we're unlucky, nine.
"Then all the kit has to be unloaded, the batteries charged, I have to do my research for the next day, we have to eat, you get to bed about midnight, up at half past five the next morning, and that's what we do.
"There are no rest days. A lot of travelling which is tiring in itself. When we filmed British Gardens, which was shot over two years, there were five trips. Each trip, I personally drove 1,000 miles. Huge amounts of travelling around. When we did the Rhineland, one day we filmed in four separate countries on the same day."
Commissioning challenges
Don also refuted suggestions that Rhineland Gardens would be his last travel show, explaining that each series, which normally features only a few episodes, is a huge undertaking. He noted that the same production crew works on every series, calling them the "oldest TV team in the world" as most are in their 60s and 70s.
He added: "That was never the intention (for it to be the final show). It's getting harder and harder to get these programmes commissioned. They are a lot of preparation, they are an awful lot of filming. They are a labour of love."
Gardeners' World airs tonight (Friday, September 25) from 8pm to 9pm on BBC Two.
