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Travel Briefs

Tours under Berlin

Day tours of historic locations under the city of Berlin are offered by Berliner Unterwelten (Brunnenstrasse 105, 13355 Berlin, Germany; phone +49 0 30 49 91 04 17).

Among six guided tours are “Dark Worlds,” exploring a bunker from WWII, and “Breaching the Berlin Wall,” looking at tunnels, subways and empty sewers once used by those fleeing East Germany.

Travel-sized products

E-retailer Minimus.biz offers over 2,000 travel- and trial-sized products, many not available for retail sale elsewhere. A few examples — in addition to shampoos, soaps, shaving creams, toothpastes, mouthwashes and lotions, it offers all-natural insect repellent towelettes (39¢ each), gluten-free Wild Garden hummus (1.76 oz. tetra pack for 87¢) and mini board games (travel-sized Scrabble, $7.60), plus reflexology socks to promote circulation ($5 per pair). All orders over $20 ship in the US for free.

Copenhagen’s rainbow

In Copenhagen, the art installation “Your Rainbow Panorama,” by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson, is like a giant halo on a building. A circular “hallway” sided with colored glass, 150 meters long, three meters tall and three meters wide, it’s permanently installed on the rooftop of the ARoS Aarhus Kunstmuseum (Aros Allé 2, DK-8000 Århus C., Copenhagen, Denmark; phone +45 8730 6600). Visitors can see Århus Bay while walking through the elevated pathway.

Copen­hagen discounts

The “cOPENhagen Card” provides free and discounted access to city museums and attractions (including Tivoli); free train, bus and metro transport, and discounts at selected restaurants, shops and sights.

The card can be purchased in the city at the airport, major train stations, tourist offices and many hotels or online (www.visitcopenhagen.com) up to 10 days before you plan to use it. A 24-hour card costs €31 ($46) adult, €15 child, and a 72-hour card, €62 adult, €30 child.

Pousada packages

Pousadas de Portugal (Lisboa, Portugal; phone +351 218 442 001, fax 442 085) is offering three- or five-night “Circuit Deals” with selected pousadas (traditional or historical hotels). No need for multiple bookings!

For two people (sharing), packages start at €285 (near $422) for a three-night circuit, including breakfast, or at €465 including dinner each night. Five-night stays, including accommodations, breakfasts and one dinner, start at €515.

Ryanair seat reservations

Ryanair, the low-cost airline based in Ireland, is allowing passengers to, for a fee, reserve seats in Rows 2 and the emergency exit rows 1, 16 and 17 on routes between Dublin and either Málaga or Gatwick. The seat reservation fee is £10/€10 per person, one way, paid at the time of booking online or by phone but not available for purchase at the airport.

The reserved seating includes “Priority Boarding,” which also can be purchased on its own for £4/€4 per person, one way, when booking the ticket or £5/€5 if purchased at the airport.