Travel Briefs | International Travel News

March 2013 issue

Maya Museum, Cancún

In the hotel district of Cancún, Mexico, the Maya Museum (Kukulkan Blvd., phone 01 998 885 3842, [website in Spanish only]) opened Nov. 1, 2012. Its three 4,400-square-foot exhibition halls, with sections of architecture, include more than 350 artifacts (pottery, everyday objects, etc.) plus 14,000-year-old Maya skeletons discovered in underwater caves. Open 10 a.m.- 7p.m. Tues.-Sun.; closes 10 p.m. Thurs. Admission near $5 but in pesos; adults over 60 and children under 13, free.

Next door, the San Miguelito archaeological site also is open.

January 2013 issue

Donate Hero Miles

You can donate frequent-flyer miles to the Hero Miles program so that wounded, injured or ill military men and women who are undergoing treatment and need transport to a military or VA medical center, and their family members, can get free round-trip airfare.

Seven airlines are participating: AirTran Airways, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Airlines, Frontier Airlines, United Airlines and US Airways. Each has a different contribution procedure, as described on the website of the Fisher House Foundation (Rockville, MD; 888/294-8560).

More than 30,000 flights have...

May 2013 issue

Macau Grand Prix

The 60th Macau Grand Prix will be held in Macau, China, Nov. 14-17, 2013. The race is known as the only street-circuit racing event with both motorcycle and car races. The difficult, 3.8-mile track features sharply twisting corners and long straightaways.

Tickets cost $6.25 on practice days and $16.25-$112.50 on race days and are available in advance online and via the ticket hotline. Contact the Macau Grand Prix Committee (phone 853 87962268; www.macau.grandprix.gov.mo).

November 2012 issue

Canada’s plastic cash

Transitioning from paper to polymer currency, Canadian banks began issuing plastic 100-dollar bills in November 2011. In March 2012, plastic 50-dollar bills were issued, followed by 20-dollar bills in November; these are available through ATMs. The remaining denominations should become available in 2013. The partly transparent bills have holographic features difficult to counterfeit.

This summer, an urban legend spread, wrongly claiming that the plastic bills would melt in the heat of a parked car. They actually have a melting point of 266°F and in one test were boiled in water for...

July 2013 issue

Dolphin Academy, Curaçao

On the southern Caribbean island of Curaçao, visitors of all ages can interact with some of the 21 trained dolphins at the Dolphin Academy (phone +5999 4658900), located at the Curaçao Sea Aquarium in Willemstad.

In the “Dolphin Encounter” package, up to six people and a trainer stand in water and gently interact with a dolphin (15-20 minutes for $89 adult or $44.50 child).

“Dolphin Swim” is in the lagoon (30 minutes, $159).

In “Dolphin Free Dive,” snorkelers can dive, then hold the dorsal fins of two dolphins and be...

December 2013 issue

Southwest tightens policy

The domestic airline Southwest Airlines (800/435-9792) announced in September a change to its “no show” policy.

Previously, a customer who missed a flight could use the full value of his ticket toward a replacement flight or accept a voucher for a future ticket. Now if he is a “no show” at the gate and has not contacted the airline at least 10 minutes before departure to change or cancel a nonrefundable- fare ticket, he will lose the value of the entire ticket, including the value of the unused legs of the flight and the return flight.

Unlike most US airlines, Southwest...

April 2013 issue

Visit Mexico app

With the México Tourism Board’s free “VisitMexico” app, travelers can find information from Mexico’s six regions and 32 states, with in-depth content for 27 destinations. News, weather, maps, events, videos and activities are featured.

The app is available for Apple, Android and Blackberry platforms and can be used in English or Spanish. Download from the Apple App Store, Google Play (for Android users) or on BlackBerry App World.

November 2013 issue

New Zealand winery motorhomes

In New Zealand, you can stay at a vineyard overnight in a stationary motorhome that sleeps two (double bed), with facilities en suite, as offered by the motorhome company Maui (phone 011 800 200 80 801).

Vineyards are located on the North Island at Mercury Bay (Coromandel Peninsula, near Auckland), the Linden Estate (on the coast near Napier) and Coney Wines (near Wellington) and in central South Island at Carrick Wines.

A stay costs NZD140 (near $111) per night per home and includes a sampling of each vineyard’s signature wine. Sites are not powered, but each motorhome...