After a few days in busy, congested Bogotá, you might be ready to relax in a quieter and slower-paced small town. If so, do what the Bogotanos do and visit Villa de Leyva, a colonial village three to four hours north of Bogotá. However, you may want to visit during the week, since the town’s population (normally 10,000 to 15,000) can triple on weekends.

Well known and very popular in Colombia, Villa de Leyva is virtually unknown among Americans. Not surprisingly, almost all of...

Having completed a privately guided tour of WWII Battle of the Bulge sites in Belgium in September 2015, I would like to share some observations for those considering a visit to that historically significant area.

After the Allies landed on the beaches of Normandy in June 1944, they swept north, largely driving the Nazi forces out of Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. The front line of battle in that region stretched from north to south near the German border with Belgium.

In a letter about the Norwegian cruise line Hurtigruten (Bellevue, WA; 866/552-0371, www.hurtigruten.us), a reader complained about their policy of not permitting guests to take their own water to the dinner table (July ’15, pg. 26). 

I agree that the policy of not allowing guests who pay full board to have free tap water with their evening meal is abhorrent, and I would encourage the cruise line to change that policy, which, at best, earns them a pittance at a high cost in hard-won...