Travel Briefs

May 2021 issue | Appears on page 31

Bike tour on BC train trail

Near the city of Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada, visitors can take a guided bicycle tour along an old train route, the Kettle Valley Railway, in Myra Canyon, crossing 18 hundred-year-old trestles and passing through two tunnels. The largest trestle is 721 feet long and 180 feet high. The trail, 15 miles round trip, has no climbs and can be biked comfortably, with rest stops, in about four hours.

Guided tours are offered daily by Myra Canyon Bike Rentals (Myra Station Parking,...

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 5

Canada bans cruises until 2022

Canada announced on Feb. 4 that it would ban ships carrying 100 or more passengers from its territorial waters until March 1, 2022. In addition, boats carrying more than 12 people are banned from Arctic waters. (This does not include boats operated for pleasure or hunting/fishing by Arctic residents.)

The ban includes the Canadian portions of the Great Lakes and waters around Puget Sound, which means that cruises to Alaska cannot leave from or return to Seattle.

 

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 20

COVID testing in Mexico

At press time, three international airports in Mexico were offering rapid COVID-19 antigen tests for outgoing international passengers. A COVID-19 test showing a negative result must be presented by any traveler flying into the US, even a returning US citizen. (At press time, the land border between Mexico and the US was closed to all but essential traffic until at least March 21.)

The three airports offering testing are Benito Juarez International Airport (MEX) in Mexico City,...

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 29

New Tokyo ferry

Designed for ease of access by passengers with limited mobility, a new ship in the Tokai Kisen fleet, the Salvia-Maru, began passenger service between Tokyo and the Izu Islands of Japan in June 2020. Salvia-Maru makes one 12-hour voyage from Tokyo Harbor to Kozushima island each day, stopping at Toshima, Niijima and Shikinejima islands along the way.

Tickets can be purchased for reclining seats, shared cabins or a private cabin for two. ¥6,030-¥16,890 (near $57-$160) per...

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 29

Trinidad cave tours

In Trinidad & Tobago, visitors can take a 3-hour guided tour of the Gasparee Caves on Gaspar Grande island, a 15-minute boat ride from Chaguaramas. The limestone cave system features stalactites and stalagmites and, in the largest cave, a tidal pool called the Blue Grotto, 100 feet underground and illuminated by natural light.

The cost is TTD120 (near $18), adult, or TTD90, child. Call +1 866 225 4232, ext. 191, or email Melissa Bernard-Patel (mppatel@chaguaramas.com).

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 30

Maldives resort bubble

Visitors to the Indian Ocean island nation of Maldives can enter a resort bubble, allowing them full access to all of the facilities and activities at their resort while protecting the country’s general population.

While in a resort bubble, visitors are required to wear masks and social-distance in any indoor public space and also while participating in any guided or supervised activities. With prior permission, guests can stay in more than one bubble resort during their stay....

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 30

Northern Cyprus beach resort ‘opens’

Turkish soldiers removed barriers at the abandoned Northern Cyprus resort town of Varusha on Oct. 8, 2020, allowing visitors in for the first time in 46 years. The town, once famous for its beaches and luxury hotels, is now mostly ruins. The entire town had been off-limits to visitors since Turkish soldiers invaded the island in 1974 and occupied the area.

The 1974 invasion created two countries: the Turkey-backed Northern Cyprus and the internationally recognized Republic of Cyprus,...

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April 2021 issue | Appears on page 31

Japan stork tour

In Toyooka, Honshu, Japan, visitors can take the private “Oriental White Stork Observation Tour” to see the endangered birds in their natural habitat. Thanks to a captive breeding program, about 140 storks, once extinct in Japan, now breed in the area.

With an English-speaking guide, the 6-hour tour, offered only during breeding season (April-November), visits wetlands, rice paddies and the Oriental White Stork Museum. Based on group size (two to six), the per-person price...

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