Travel Briefs

In the landlocked desert city of Henley-on-Todd, Northern Territory, Australia, the Henley-on-Todd Regatta is held every year on the third Saturday of August (in 2018, Aug. 18).

In multiple competitions, participants race on foot while carrying facsimile boats. At the end, a Battle of the Boats is held in which three motorized land-boats fire cannons full of flour and water at each other.

Visit henleyontodd.com.au or call the Henley-on-Todd Rotary Club (phone +61 417 864 085).

Carrying passengers 270 meters (885 feet) above a ravine in Australia’s Blue Mountains, the upgraded Scenic Skyway gondola began operation in November 2017 at Scenic World (phone +61 2 4780 0200, www.scenicworld.com.au), located at Violet Street and Cliff Drive in Katoomba, New South Wales.

For the 720-meter trip, dozens of riders stand atop a glass floor (one section has seating and solid flooring), with views of Katoomba Falls, the Three Sisters rock formation and Jamison Valley.

Saudi Arabia announced on Jan. 11 that it would begin accepting applications for tourist visas from solo women travelers over the age of 25, allowing them to travel to and within the country without male escorts. The visas are single-entry and good for 30 days.

Also, the Saudi visa form no longer requires the applicant to declare a religion.

The fourth and fifth levels of the Colosseum in Rome opened to visitors for the first time in 40 years in October 2017. These top levels, reserved for lower-class citizens when the Colosseum was operational, are about 260 feet above the ground. 

The upper decks can only be visited on a guided tour, which costs €9 (near $11), booked in advance by calling +39 06 399 67 700 or online at www.coopculture.it/en/colosseo-e-shop.cfm. 

The tour includes a previously unopened corridor with remains of first-century Roman toilets.

In celebration of the 100-year anniversary of the People Act 1918, which gave women the right to vote in the United Kingdom, events are scheduled throughout the country.

In celebration of the 100-year anniversary of the founding of an independent Latvia, the National History Museum of Latvia (Brīvības bulvāris 32, Rīga; phone +371 6722 1357, lnvm.lv/en) has collected historical artifacts from around the country for the exhibition “Latvia’s Century,” running May 4, 2018, through the beginning of 2021. Open 10 a.m.-5p.m. Tues.-Sun. €3 (near $4) adult or €1.50 senior or child.

In a partnership with France, the Louvre Abu Dhabi (Saadiyat Cultural District, Abu Dhabi, UAE; phone +971 600 56 55 66, www.louvreabudhabi.ae/en) opened to the public in November 2017. In addition to temporary exhibits, it features 12 permanent galleries, with works of art from the ancient world to the modern. 

Open 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Tues.-Wed. & Sat.-Sun. and 10-10 Thurs.-Fri. AED63 (near $17). 

Australia’s Waltzing Matilda Centre (50 Elderslie St., Winton, QLD, Australia; phone +61 07 4657 1466, www.matildacentre.com.au) is scheduled to reopen in April 2018, almost three years after being completely destroyed by a fire. 

The museum is dedicated to the song “Waltzing Matilda,” written by Banjo Paterson in 1895 and considered Australia’s unofficial national anthem. Also housed at the center will be the Qantilda Pioneer Place Museum, which displays artifacts pertaining to the area’s pioneer history.

Before visiting Barcelona, Spain, you can purchase a Gaudí Pass that provides entry to, and allows you to skip lines at, La Sagrada Família church and La Pedrera building. The pass also includes an audio guide at La Pedrera; a one-day ticket on Barcelona Bus Turístic with city guide, and free access to the top of the Columbus Monument, near the port of Barcelona, with wine tasting.

In Oamaru, New Zealand, an underpass was built under a busy road in November 2016 to allow penguins to return to their nests from the ocean without the risk of being hit by cars. 

A 30- to 40-minute day tour run by Blue Penguin Colony (2 Waterfront Rd., Oamaru, New Zealand; phone +64 03 433 1195, www.penguins.co.nz), offered once an hour between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., takes visitors to the penguins’ nesting site in a converted rock quarry while most of the penguins are away in the ocean. NZD15 (near $11) adult and NZD8 child.