Travel Briefs

April 2008 issue

‘How to Drive on the Left’

The Ashford Castle hotel (800/346-7007, www.ashford.ie), near Galway City in Ireland’s west country, offers the program “How to Drive on the Left.”

Including an hour of instruction and an hour of behind-the-wheel training in a manual or automatic car, the class focuses on concentration, navigating roundabouts and judging distances plus offers info on remote road signs in Gaelic.

The package costs €180 (near $270) per couple. Including breakfast, dinner and taxes, room rates at the deluxe, 83-room hotel, set on 350 acres, go from €452 (near $652) to €710 ($1,025).

November 2009 issue

Reina Sofia free times

Madrid’s Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia (Santa Isabel 52, 28012 Madrid, Spain; phone 91 774 10 00, fax 10 56, www.museoreinasofia.es) now offers free admission hours every day (closed Tuesday). Free hours are 7-9 p.m. weekdays, 2:30-9 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Sunday. 

Regular admission costs €6 for the permanent collection and temporary exhibitions, and €3 for temporary exhibitions only. Open 10-9 Mon-Wed & Thur-Sat and 10-2:30 Sun.

February 2008 issue

Burgundy wine barge

The 6-night cruise “Grand Cru Special” on the 12-passenger barge Napoléon will focus on the 33 wines that come from plots of land certified as Grand Cru (great growth), the highest classification for vineyard land in Burgundy, France.

Guests will take the Eurostar to the TGV express from London to Macon to embark July 20, 2008, cruise the canals and arrive in Dijon July 26, returning to London by train. There will be wine classes, tastings and receptions plus meals from the ship’s Cordon Bleu chef.

The cruise costs £3,510 (near $7,000) per person. Orient Express (Charleston,...

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September 2014 issue

Cunard Line at 175

To celebrate Cunard Line’s ties to Liverpool, England, the line’s ships — Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth — will line up in the city’s River Mersey on May 25, 2015, for the “Three Queens in Liverpool” event. Liverpool was the home of Cunard from 1840 until 1967, and the Cunard Building still stands on the pier head.

To celebrate the 175th anniversary of the first departure of Cunard’s Transatlantic Crossing service, the Queen Mary 2 will retrace the 1840 voyage of the steamship Britannia from Liverpool to Halifax and Boston. The 12-night cruise begins in Southampton...

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January 2014 issue

Quito travel app

Quito Tourism has launched a new app for Apple and Android called “Quito Ecuador Travel Guide.” 

The app, which works offline, has listings of tourism attractions in each area, including restaurants, hotels and bars. Nearby attractions have listings with directions, phone numbers and entry fees. Download the app from the App Store or Google Play.

June 2010 issue

Guide on food allergies

For people with food allergies, the 400-page book “Let’s Eat Out with Celiac/Coeliac & Food Allergies!” offers guidelines for eating safely anywhere, covering seven international cuisines and hundreds of menu items.

Focusing on 10 common food allergens — corn, dairy, eggs, fish, gluten, peanuts, shellfish, soy, tree nuts and wheat — it showcases common ingredients, hidden allergens and food-preparation techniques used by restaurants. $26.95 from various sources, including Amazon.com. Visit www.allergyfreepassport.com for info.

May 2014 issue

2014 British Birdfair

The 2014 British Birdfair takes place Aug. 15-17 at the Rutland Water Nature Reserve (Egleton, Oakham, Rutland, England, LE15 8BT, U.K.; phone 01572 770651, fax 755931). 

Supporting international conservation projects, the 26th-anniversary event will feature workshops and hundreds of exhibitors, including nature reserves worldwide plus tour operators. Children’s activities include bug hunts, pond dipping and crafts. Tickets went on sale March 1.

February 2010 issue

Theatre Passport, London

Available only online from VisitBritain (phone +44 020 7482 1500), the Theatre Passport offers savings on ticket prices in London for the best-available seats at participating musicals and plays like “Chicago” and “The Woman in Black.” 

The price is $33 per person per ticket. To use the passport, purchase a ticket for a show through VisitBritain and print a voucher. Take the voucher to the Britain & London Visitor Centre (1 Regent St., London, SW1Y 4XT, U.K.) on the day you wish to go to the theater and exchange it for tickets at the Encore Tickets desk (open 10-6 Monday-Friday...

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