Luxembourg will make public transit free throughout the country starting in March 2020. This includes all inter- and intra-city buses and state-run trains, provided the departure and destination cities are both within Luxembourg.
The Luxembourg government is hoping that free public transportation will help relieve traffic congestion in the country, which has one of the higher rates of car ownership in the EU.
Months after agreeing in principle to accept its neighboring nation's name change (Aug. '18, pg. 4), on Jan. 25 Greece's parliament narrowly approved an official endorsement of North Macedonia (Severna Makedonija) as the new name chosen for the Former Yugoslav Republic (FYR) of Macedonia, despite resistance from many Greek citizens.
On its website, travel-guide publisher Rough Guides now can help travelers customize and book trips to numerous countries (including Iceland, India and Vietnam) with the help of experts local to the destinations. Visit go.roughguides.com/tailor-made-trips.
In Dakar, Senegal, the Museum of Black Civilization, or Musée des Civilisations noires (Autoroute prolongée x Place de la gare, Dakar; phone +221 33 959 19 21, www.mcn.sn [in French only]), opened in December. It displays art from across Africa as well as from the African diaspora in the New World, with works in its opening exhibits from Mali, Burkina Faso, Cuba and Haiti.
Through 2019 in Prague, the exhibit "Parades of Glass: 1958-2018" features glass sculptures from Czech artists at the Museum of Decorative Arts, or Uměleckoprůmyslové museum (17 listopadu 2, 110 00 Praha 1, Czechia; phone +420 778 543 900, www.upm.cz). Many pieces then will go on permanent display.
Open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Wed.-Sun. and 10-8 Tues. CZK150 (near $7), adult, or CZK80, senior.
Travelers age 60 and over now get a 10 percent senior discount on first- and second-class Eurail Global Passes and Eurail One Country Passes purchased from Rail Europe.
Eurail Global Passes offer unlimited train travel within and between 31 countries in Europe, including, added in 2019, Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland), Lithuania and Macedonia. The passes can be purchased for a minimum of three days of travel within one month up to a maximum of three months of continuous travel.
Running from east to west, the Gambia River is completely encompassed by the country of The Gambia, which is in turn surrounded by Senegal except along its western Atlantic coast. Situated roughly in the center of The Gambia and near the city of Farafenni, the Senegambia Bridge, spanning the Gambia River, opened to traffic on Jan. 23 after seven years of construction, greatly reducing the travel time between northwestern and southwestern Senegal.
Located in Al Mujarrah Park, on Corniche Street in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates, the Rain Room art installation features a constant downpour of rain that you can walk through without ever getting wet. As you walk across the room, tracking cameras follow your progress, and the water is shut off in a 6-foot radius above you. The facility's 2,500 gallons of water is filtered and recycled.
• In Japan, as of Jan. 7, 2019, a departure tax of ¥1,000 (near $9) is being charged to any traveler departing the country by air or sea.
• As of January, each passenger arriving in Amsterdam, Netherlands, by cruise ship is being taxed €6 (near $7) for a one-day visit or, for an overnight stay, even if it's on the ship, €8 per day, starting on the day of the ship's arrival. This tax is included in the cruise fare.
As of Dec. 17, all airlines in Australia now weigh carry-on bags on domestic flights to ensure they meet weight requirements. Any carry-on bag over the weight limit will need to be checked. The allowed one additional "personal item," such as a handbag or similar small bag, will not be weighed.
Qantas and Virgin Australia both limit carry-on bags to 7kg (near 15.4 pounds). The budget airlines Tigerair Australia and Jetstar Airways also have a weight limit of 7kg, but each offers an upgrade at extra cost that increases the limit to 12kg and 10kg, respectively.