Travel Briefs

June 2017 issue | Appears on page 5

Visit the Titanic

With trips beginning in May 2018, travelers may visit the wreck of the Titanic in a submersible on a tour with Blue Marble Private (London, England; phone +44 20 3411 2191, www.bluemarbleprivate.com). The 8-day trip, costing about $105,129 per person, will depart from Newfoundland, Canada, for the North Atlantic wreck site, roughly 700 miles east. Tour members (limit, nine) will have three days, with up to three hours per day, to explore the wreck with experts, 13,000 feet down, in a...

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June 2017 issue | Appears on page 5

Madrid’s oldest restaurants

Restaurantes y tabernas centenaries de Madrid (100-year-old restaurants and taverns of Madrid) comprise 12 eateries in Spain’s capital that have been operating for at least 100 years. Listed as the eldest, Casa Pedro (Calle de Nuestra Señora de Valverde 119, Madrid; phone +34 917 341 201, www.casapedro.com) claims to have opened in 1702, while the youngest, La Casa del Abuelo (Calle Victoria 12, Madrid; phone +34 902 027 334, www.lacasadel abuelo.es), opened only in 1906....

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June 2017 issue | Appears on page 39

Pianola Museum, Amsterdam

Music from one of 25,000 original music rolls played on any of several antique player pianos can be experienced in the Pianola Museum (Westerstraat 106, 1015 MN, Amsterdam, Netherlands; phone +31 20 627 9624, www.pianola.nl/Pianola_ Museum/Welcome.html). Visitors also will learn about the history and mechanics of player pianos.The museum is open for general admission 2-5 p.m. on Sundays only. €5 (near $5.50). Private visits can be arranged.Except for July and August, concerts are held...

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June 2017 issue | Appears on page 63

Private-access Stonehenge tours

Visiting England? You can visit Stonehenge when the site is closed to the general public, either before the park opens or after it closes, with Stonehenge Guided Tours (67-68 Hatton Garden, London, England, EC1N 8JY, U.K.; phone +44 845 643 4428, www.stonehengetours.com).  

Many tours have a group size of 16, maximum. Times vary with the season. Dawn tours also visit Salisbury Cathedral and return about 2:30 p.m., while dusk tours also visit the Avebury Stone Circle and return at...

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June 2017 issue | Appears on page 63

Snowdonia a Dark Sky Reserve

South Downs National Park, just south of London, England, was granted Dark Sky Reserve status in 2016 by the International Dark Sky Association (http://darksky.org), a nonprofit group that seeks to protect areas of excellent night-sky viewing from pollution by light. 

To qualify for this status, the Snowdonia National Parks Authority made assurances to reduce or eliminate artificial light. Light pollution cannot be completely eliminated in the park, as there are some villages...

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June 2017 issue | Appears on page 64

Underground boats, Israel

Under the city of Ramla in central Israel, visitors can take a rowboat through an ancient underground reservoir, the Pool of Arches, built in AD 789 during the Abbasid Caliphate. It measures 20 by 21 meters and maintains a constant level of water. 

The pool’s entrance is between HaHagana and HaShomer streets, across from HaHagana Garden. Open 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Sun.-Thurs. and 8-2 Fri. Entry, ILS8 (near $2), adult, and ILS6, child; includes use of boat. To reserve a boat,...

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June 2017 issue | Appears on page 64

Sushi course in Tokyo

Travelers to Tokyo with a taste for sushi can get an education along with their meal through Sushi University (sushiuniversity.jp). Diners are paired with an English-speaking interpreter, who will teach them proper sushi-eating techniques and etiquette and help them converse with the chef to learn about ingredients and preparation.

June 2017 issue | Appears on page 64

Aussie sea turtle tours

In Mon Repos Regional Park, eastern Australia, the most populated loggerhead sea turtle rookery in the South Pacific can be visited at Mon Repos Turtle Centre (141 Mon Repos Rd., Mon Repos, Queensland, 4670, Australia; phone +61 7 4159 1652, www.nprsr.qld.gov.au/parks/mon-repos/turtle-centre.html).

Sightings are not guaranteed and may not occur until late in the night, but turtle nesting and egg-laying occur November-January, and turtles hatch January-March. During season, visitors...

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