Travel Briefs

May 2008 issue

Open Skies Agreement

The Open Skies Agreement went into effect in March 2008, easing restrictions on which airlines could fly into which airports and opening competition for flights between the U.S. and the European Union.

Travelers should expect more direct flights but also more congestion at airports, as several new airlines will be competing for gates. Ticket prices are NOT expected to go down (because of high fuel prices and the purchases of new planes to fly the added routes).

September 2009 issue

Neues Museum, Berlin

When the Neues Museum opens in Berlin on Oct. 16, 2009, after an 11-year, $255-million restoration, it will be the first time in 70 years that all five museums on Museum Island will be open to the public.

Originally opened in 1855, the Neues Museum (Bodestraße 3, 10178 Berlin, Germany; phone +49 [0] 30 20 90 55 44, www.egyptian-museum-berlin.com) has been closed since its aerial bombardment in World War II. New, modern wings have been combined with the partially destroyed building, and it once again will house the Egyptian Museum & Papyrus Collection (including the bust of Queen...

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August 2010 issue

Kurhaus, Netherlands

The Steigenberger Kurhaus Hotel (Gevers Deynootplein 30, 2586 CK Den Haag, Netherlands; phone +31 [0] 70 4162636, fax 646) has hosted heads of state, painters, film stars, etc. Built in 1818, the monumental, North Sea beachside resort hotel has withstood fire, wars and getting trashed during a Rolling Stones concert.

With VAT but excluding city tax and breakfast, nightly room rates range from €295 (near $360), superior, to €1,050 ($1,282), Presidential Suite. Packages available. 

October 2009 issue

Monkeys’ pig-out

To thank monkeys for attracting tourists, over 2,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables are set out for monkeys to consume at the Monkey Buffet Festival, held on Nov. 26 every year in front of Pra Prang Sam Yot temple in Thailand’s Lopburi province, 94 miles north of Bangkok. About 600 monkeys normally arrive for the massive buffet, watched by hundreds of people.

January 2009 issue

Brussels’ antiques

In Brussels, the antique market at Place du Grand Sablon is open 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and 9-2 Sunday. For info, contact Marché des Antiquaires du Sablon (32, rue Remi Soetens, 1090 Brussels, Belgium; phone/fax [02] 478 23 16, www.sablonantiques market.com).

The 54th annual Brussels Antiques & Art Fair (Tour & Taxis building, avenue du Port 86 C/ B - 1000, Brussels, Belgium; phone 32 02 513 48 31, fax 32 02 502 06 86, www.brafa.be) will be held Jan. 23-Feb. 1, 2009. Entry, €20 ($25). Catalog, €10. Guided tours daily at 3.

July 2009 issue

Homecoming Scotland

There are hundreds of free attractions during “Homecoming Scotland 2009” (www.homecomingscotland2009.com or www.cometoscotland.com).

• Hundreds of buildings that are rarely, if ever, open to the public may be visited for free every weekend this September during “Doors Open Days” with the Scottish Civic Trust (The Tobacco Merchants House, 42 Miller St., Glasgow G1 1DT, U.K.; phone 0141 221 1466, www.doorsopendays.org.uk).

Among the offerings — Vennel (in Irvine, Ayrshire), where Robert Burns learned about “heckling” (preparing flax fibers to be spun), and Trongate 103, a 6-...

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May 2009 issue

Van Gogh landscapes

Seventy of Vincent van Gogh’s landscapes, including some works rarely seen outside of private collections, will be shown by Kuntsmuseum Basel (St. Alban-Graben 16, CH-4010 Basel, Switzerland; phone +41 [0] 61 206 62 62, fax 62 52, www.vangogh.ch), April 26-Sept. 27, 2009, along with 40 landscape paintings from van Gogh’s contemporaries.

Open 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday-Sunday. CHF28 ($24).

December 2009 issue

Steves iPhone apps

Rick Steves (425/771-8303, www.ricksteves.com) has four iPhone and iPod Touch apps for travelers: Historic Paris Walk & Tour, Louvre Tour, Orsay Museum Tour and St. Peter’s Basilica Tour. Content is from his guidebooks and PBS travel show, including info on hotels and restaurants (open hours, costs, etc.). A pull-down audio/video player offers audio commentary or a video feature for certain sites.

Apps cost $4.99 each and, once downloaded, are self-contained and do not use the phone’s data connection. A demo is available at www.ricksteves.com/iphonesupport