For cultural attractions situated around Amsterdam’s Museumplein, through 2014, a ticket package grants purchasers entry into the Rijksmuseum, Stedelijk Museum and Van Gogh Museum and a concert at the Royal Concertgebouw (even for sold-out concerts), all for €90 (near $123).
Open until March 31, 2015, in London, the exhibit “Aerofilms: Britain From Above” showcases Aerofilms, Ltd.’s, archive of 95,000 aerial photographs of Britain and Europe from the firm’s beginnings in 1919 through World War II.
In Florence, Italy, cracks in the feet of Michelangelo’s statue of David threaten its survival. The 17-foot-tall figure on a 6-foot base, which had stood in Florence’s Piazzo della Signoria since 1504, was moved into a domed room at the Galleria dell’Accademia in 1873. (A replica still stands in the piazzo.)
Restoration work on Rome’s Trevi Fountain began June 5. Part of the city’s campaign to clean and repair some of its public antiquities, the work, funded by fashion company Fendi, is expected to last 18 months.
Visitors will be able to watch the restoration from behind a metal barrier or from a walkway constructed above the central part of the fountain. The water was drained for the restoration, but people still will be allowed to toss coins in the fountain for luck.
Sections of the Taj Mahal in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, northern India, will undergo a mud-pack treatment in an effort to reverse pollution damage that is yellowing the white marble building. Authorities began discussing this in June, with no starting date set yet.
Affected portions of the Taj Mahal will be covered in lime-rich clay overnight. The clay will be removed with soft nylon brushes and distilled water, hopefully taking stains and grime along with it. The process will be done one section at a time over six months in order to maintain the building’s appearance for visitors.
Scandinavian Airlines, or SAS (800/221-2350), has simplified and reduced its checked-luggage charges. To qualify for the lower charges, you must purchase your ticket online or from a ticket machine in the airport.
Starting in early 2014 at select subway stations in Beijing, China, the city began instituting airport-like security measures, including metal detectors, x-ray machines and pat-downs, causing long wait times at the busiest stations. Antiterrorism security procedures were upgraded in three more stations in May, bringing the total up to nine.
Beijing’s subway system comprises nearly 200 stations.
In Abu Dhabi, the package “Desert Safari Half Day,” 2-8 p.m., visits the Rub' al-Khali, the world’s largest sand desert, and includes pickup and drop-off, Arabic coffee and dates, sand boarding, ATV dune bashing, horse and camel riding, a goat farm visit, a falcon show, henna tattoos, a barbecue dinner and a viewing of the desert sunset. $68 adult, $48 child (age 4-12).
Visitors to Japan who are looking for a home-cooked meal can sign up with Nagomi Visit (based in Japan), a nonprofit service that matches visitors with local families.
Hikers in Iceland can enter the massive, empty magma chamber of the dormant volcano Thrihnukagigur, which rises 100 feet above Bláfjöll County Park and last erupted 4,000 years ago.
From May 15 to Sept. 30, five tours a day are led by 3H Travel (phone +354 863 6640). On a 50-minute “moderately difficult” hike, the group walks two miles across hilly and uneven but mostly level lava fields; the last 10 minutes to the top of the volcano are the most challenging.