Travel Briefs

Before visiting Barcelona, Spain, you can purchase a Gaudí Pass that provides entry to, and allows you to skip lines at, La Sagrada Família church and La Pedrera building. The pass also includes an audio guide at La Pedrera; a one-day ticket on Barcelona Bus Turístic with city guide, and free access to the top of the Columbus Monument, near the port of Barcelona, with wine tasting.

Visits to Sagrada Família and La Pedrera must be scheduled in advance. To purchase a pass (€65 [...

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In Oamaru, New Zealand, an underpass was built under a busy road in November 2016 to allow penguins to return to their nests from the ocean without the risk of being hit by cars. 

A 30- to 40-minute day tour run by Blue Penguin Colony (2 Waterfront Rd., Oamaru, New Zealand; phone +64 03 433 1195, www.penguins.co.nz), offered once an hour between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., takes visitors to the penguins’ nesting site in a converted rock quarry while most of the penguins are away in...

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At the Ayers Rock Resort (phone +61 2 8296 8010, www.ayersrockresort.com.au), in central Australia, Astronomy Weekend will be held Sept. 14-16, 2018. Many events are scheduled, including astrophotography and lectures on Aboriginal astronomy and astrophysics. 

Entry to Astronomy Weekend is free for guests of the resort. Six hotels are located at the resort, with nightly rates for a double ranging from AUS220 to AUS2,800 (near $177-$2,248). A campground is also available.

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In central London, you can ride on one of four converted traditional narrowboats on the Regents Canal between Camden and Little Venice, enjoying simple commentary. Depart from Brownings Pool at Little Venice, Paddington, or from Camden Lock Market, with its craft, clothing and food shops. Pass part of Regents Park plus 19th-century buildings and bridges.

Tickets are sold on board (card only; no cash) and subject to availability; it’s most busy 11 a.m.-1 p.m. One way (50 mins...

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A 3-hour walking tour of Barcelona begins with a tasting of three Spanish foods (such as cheeses or meats) before members are led through the city’s Gothic and La Rambla quarters to stop at two tapas restaurants for food and wine. La Boqueria food market is also visited.

One tour is held each day, Mon.-Sat., starting at 5 p.m. €70 (near $87.50) per person includes eight tapas plates and two drinks. Group limit, 15. With notice, dietary restrictions can be accommodated....

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Hundreds of classic vehicles — cars, motorcycles and bicycles — on the Portuguese island of Madeira are gathered annually over two days each May at the Madeira Classic Car Revival. Awards are announced in a number of categories, such as best pre-1945 vehicle and best military vehicle. A classic sports car race follows.

The revival is held at the Praça do Povo on the waterfront in Funchal. Admission is free. For more info and, once announced, the dates in 2018, visit www....

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Travelers to Japan’s capital can take a 2½-hour dinner cruise of Tokyo Bay and the Sumida River aboard a yakatabune, a leisure boat with traditional tatami-mat-covered floors. English is not spoken by staff on any of the cruises, which travel round trip from Shinagawa to the Tokyo Skytree, passing under the Rainbow Bridge.

Yakatabunes vary in size, holding from 20 to 120 people. Guests, who are seated on the floor (one boat has tables and chairs), are each served an...

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On the 3-hour “Raft & Snorkel with Salmon” day tour, guests will take a boat up the Campbell River on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, and snorkel with any of the five species of salmon that spawn in the river. The season starts in late July with pink salmon, followed by chinook, coho and sockeye in August and, in September, the chum. Bears, beavers, seals and other wildlife may also be seen.

Snorkeling tours begin July 18 and continue till the end of the salmon...

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