December 2015

13 days, 12 nights with British cook specializing in Chinese cuisine, May 15-27, 2016. Highlights: In Beijing, outdoor market, noodle-making demonstration, picnic on Great Wall/in Chengdu, Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, spice market/in Shanghai, taste xiaolongbao (soup-filled dumplings)/Sichuan and Hangzhou culinary museums. From $7,390 ppdo. Single supp., $1,520. WildChina (803 Oriental Place, 9 East Dongfang Rd., Chao­yang District, Beijing 100027, P.R. China; in US, 888/902-8808, www.wildchina.com).

8 days, 7 nights, March 20-27, 2016. Highlights: In Ashgabat, city tour includes Ertug˘rul Gazi mosque/ruins of Nisa/at Nawruz festival village, music and crafts/Akhal-Teke horses at private farm/warm sulfur lake in Kov-Ata cave/overnight with Nokhur village family/Yangykala Canyon. Land, £699 ($1,080) ppdo. Single supp., £99 ($153). Lupine Travel (12 Warnford St., Wigan, Lancashire, England, WN1 2EQ, U.K.; phone +44 [0] 1942 704525, www.lupinetravel.co.uk).

10-day, 9-night tour in western UKRAINE, April 25-May 4, 2016. (Eastern Orthodox Easter is May 1.) Highlights: In Lviv, St. George’s Cathedral, Lychakiv Cemetery, walking tour of 15th-century Rynok Square/Easter fairs with crafts, dancing/see eggs decorated at open-air museum of eggs. $1,090 ppdo. Single supp., $400. Scope Travel (Elkins Park, PA; 201/463-4656, www.scopetravel.com).

14 days, 13 nights, May 8-21, 2016, by minibus in ITALY. Highlights: Transfer from Catania/in Pantalica, Bronze Age necropolis/in Siracusa, Paolo Orsi Archaeological Museum, Castello Eurialo/in Modica, chocolate from Aztec recipe/in Agrigento, Valley of the Temples/Temple of Segesta/mosaics at Villa Romana del Casale/guided hike on Mt. Etna/Taormina. £3,995 (near $6,175) ppdo. Single supp., £665 ($1,030).

10-day, 9-night cruise-tour on 184-passenger M/S Alemannia. April-October 2016. Highlights: In Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS, Zaanse Schans windmills, Anne Frank house, board ship/in Cologne, GERMANY, Haymarket, Cathedral/in Strasbourg, FRANCE, Cathédrale Notre-Dame, EU Parliament/in Basel, SWITZERLAND, city hall, Antonius Church/in Lucerne, disembark, city tour/Zürich Old Town. Twin cabin, land + cruise, $2,299-$2,599 per person, double occupancy (ppdo), or cruise only, $1,699-$2,099. $500 discount for ITN readers. Single supp., 50% of ppdo.

Tell us about the funniest thing that happened to you while traveling in a foreign country. (ITN prints no info on destinations in the United States.) There are no restrictions on length. ITN staff will choose each month’s winner, who will receive a free one-year subscription to ITN. Include your full mailing address. Entries not chosen cannot be acknowledged. 

This month’s winner is KATHLEEN ROBERTS of Pleasant Hill, CA:

Paris passes

I agree with Rick Steves’ recommendation about using city passes to keep from standing in long ticket lines in certain cities in Europe (Oct. ’15, pg. 54). During a week-long visit to Paris in September 2015, I found a Paris Pass* to be very useful. I bought the 6-day pass, though I didn’t get the full value from it because I didn’t have time to visit all of the attractions for which admission was included.

I saw the item stating that travelers no longer will be able to get pages added to their US passports after Dec. 31, 2015 (Aug. ’15, pg. 58).

While serving as a volunteer for Travelers Aid International (www.travelersaid.org)* at Washington Dulles International Airport in 2012, I heard about a case in which Immigration agents in South Africa had refused to check in a passenger who didn’t have enough blank pages (six, I think) in his/her passport.** 

With thumbnail descriptions of countries and territories, covering population, currency, etc., along with regional maps and blank pages for making notes, the pocket-sized “Traveler’s Passport: Caribbean, Central America, South America” by Ron Snipe (6"x4½", 64 pages — $7.99 on Amazon.com) serves as a quick-reference guide and trip keepsake. Designed with cruise ship passengers in mind. Also available, “US & Canada,” with other regions in the works. Visit snipe-international.com.