Travel Briefs

September 2010 issue

Musée d’Orsay

In the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, renovations of level 5 (top floors) should be finished by March 2011. Until then, the Impressionist and Post-Impression galleries will remain closed. However, Level “O” (lower floor) is still open with works by Manet, Monet, Cezanne et al. Open 9:30-6, Tues.-Sun. €8; special exhibits, €9.50.

August 2010 issue

Sistine Chapel after hours

Select Italy (303 W. Erie St., Ste. 410, Chicago, IL, 60654; 800/877-1755) offers after-hours guided tours of the Sistine Chapel. The two-hour visit also includes the Raphael Rooms, the Galleria of Candelabra, the Gallery of Tapestries and the Hall of Maps. 

Offered a day or two each week throughout 2010, the group tour (10 people maximum), in English, costs $449 per person, including taxes and entrance fees.

April 2008 issue

Discoverer

In September, Silversea Cruises (Ft. Lauderdale, FL; 800/722-9955, www.silversea.com) purchased the 6,072-ton expedition ship World Discoverer from Sembawang Shipyard in Singapore. 

The ship began life in 1989 as Delfin Cruise Lines’ Delfin Clipper, cruising between Turku and Tallinn. In 2002, Society Expeditions purchased it and named it World Discoverer after another vessel the company lost when it ran aground on an uncharted coral reef off the Solomon Islands in 2000. When financial problems caused Society Expeditions to cease operations in 2004, the Discoverer was repossessed by...

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November 2009 issue

Christmas in Edinburgh

In Edinburgh, Scotland, a traditional German Christmas market in the city center will have stalls with toys, gifts and German food, while a Christmas market featuring locally produced food, jewelry and crafts will be set up at the East Princes Street Gardens.

Both are open Nov. 27-Dec. 24 from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday-Wednesday and 10-10 Thursday-Saturday. For info, contact the British Tourist Authority (800/462-2748, www.visitbritain.us) or visit www.edinburghschristmas.com.

February 2008 issue

Elizabeth I

In the wake of the new film “Elizabeth: The Golden Age,” on the website www.eet.org.uk an information sheet can be downloaded that allows visitors to follow in the footsteps of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603), from her childhood home in Hertfordshire to Tilbury Fort in Essex, where she rallied the troops about to face the Spanish Armada. 

July 2010 issue

Costa Rica wildlife guide

“The Wildlife of Costa Rica, A Field Guide” (2010 Comstock Publishing Associates [Cornell University Press]. ISBN 0801449057 — 360 pp., $29.95) covers 450 of the region’s most common and interesting species.

With 600-plus illustrations, the 8½"x5½"x½" book provides details on animals’ habitat, range and behavior as well as tips on identification.

From Amazon.com for $19.77 + $3.99 shipping or from Cornell University Press for $29.95 + $6 shipping (607/277-2211).

December 2009 issue

Beatles museum

The museum The Beatles Story (Britannia Vaults, Albert Dock, Liverpool, England; phone +44 0 151 709 1963, www.beatlesstory.com) celebrates Liverpool’s most famous musicians. 

Displays are now at two locations, the Albert Dock district and Mersey Ferry Terminal, and include an audio tour narrated by John Lennon’s sister, a short movie on the “Fab 4,” rooms that celebrate their solo careers, an interactive children’s area and a Starbucks.

 Open 9 a.m.-7 p.m. daily. £12.25 (near $19.50) adult.

October 2008 issue

North American border ID

Beginning in June 2009, any traveler entering the U.S. by land or sea from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean or Bermuda will be required to show a document proving both citizenship and identity. A U.S. passport will suffice, but many travelers living in border communities who frequently cross the land borders are signing up for “passport cards.”

Issued by the State Department after application and verification, the credit-card-sized card has a photo and ID information printed on it and encoded in a chip.

The card is good for 10 years and costs $45 ($35 for children under 16). It...

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