In Dubai, United Arab Emirates, the dhow-sail-shaped landmark hotel Burj al Arab Jumeirah (toll-free in the US, 877/854-8051, www.jumeirah.com/en/hotels-resorts/dubai/burj-al-arab) is offering a “Best of the Burj” package that includes a one-way transfer from the airport in a Rolls-Royce, a 2-story suite, daily breakfast en suite and a private butler.
The package rates start at AED7,990 (near $2,175) per person, double occupancy, per night. Minimum, 2-night stay.
In the Gulf of Tonkin off of northeastern Vietnam, Ha· Long Bay is known for its 1,600 naturally sculpted limestone islands and islets. From one of those islands, Tuãn Châu (accessible by road), 25-minute flightseeing trips above the bay are operated daily by Hai Au Aviation (70-72 Ba Trieu Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi, Vietnam; phone +84 [0] 96 296 0689, www.seaplanes.vn/en). A ticket costs VND5,912,500 (near $274). The seaplane departs from and returns to the Tuãn Châu Marina.
The opening date for Shanghai Disney Resort (www.shanghaidisneyresort.com.cn), initially set for December 2015, has been pushed back to spring 2016.
The resort will include a traditional Disney theme park (at the center of which will be the largest Storybook Castle of any of their parks) with Disneyland-style rides, two themed hotels and a 495,000-square-foot shopping-and-dining complex called Disneytown.
The village parliament of the beach town of Salvador do Mundo, in the Indian state of Goa, passed a resolution banning kissing in public on March 22 after locals complained that displays of affection were “obscene” and “indecent.” The resolution also banned drinking and smoking in public and loud music.
The China National Tourism Administration is building 13,000 new toilets and upgrading 9,000 more at tourist sites, transport hubs, entertainment venues and restaurants throughout China in 2015. The administration has set a goal to build 33,000 toilets and upgrade 24,000 more by 2017.
At the Magao Grottoes in northwestern China’s Gansu Province, a $50 million “digital exhibition center” opened in September 2014.
Also known as Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, this Silk Road site in the Gobi Desert dates back 1,600 years and comprises almost 500 caves covered in Buddhist murals and holding more than 2,000 sculptures.
In late March, the US Department of State announced that, as of Dec. 31, 2015, it no longer will add additional pages to existing passports. Instead, travelers who need more blank pages will have to renew their passports. (No other country allows visa pages to be added to passports.)
The VoiceTra4U app can translate spoken English into 26 languages. To use the app, select the input and output languages, speak into your phone as you would on a call, and the app will translate your words into text and (in 13 languages) audible speech.
Your phone must have network access for the app to work. Available on iTunes and Google Play, the app is free, but a user may have to pay for data usage, depending on his phone contract.
At the Museum of Russian Vodka in St. Petersburg, a 30-minute tour covers the history, production and traditions of vodka and concludes with an optional tasting of some of the 213 varieties. Tour, RUB300 (near $5.30); tour plus tasting, RUB450. Open daily 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
On weekend mornings, visitors to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, now can ascend to the 124th floor of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, to watch the sunrise. With early-morning visits lasting 30 minutes each, access is from 5:30 to 8 a.m. Tickets, purchased at www.atthetop.ae, cost AED125 (near $34) adult or AED95 child 4-12.