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Travel Briefs

New NCL drinks policy

As of July 15, passengers on Norwegian Cruise Line (866/234-7350, www.ncl.com) ships are not allowed to take any beverages on board (including water) other than sealed bottles of wine (no boxed wine). Norwegian said it had been taking too long to inspect each beverage during boarding, causing delays.  

Wine must be checked upon boarding and will be held until it's consumed on board or until disembarkation at the final port. There is a corkage fee of $15 for a 750ml bottle or $30, 1,500ml.

Ferris wheel in Osaka

At over 403 feet, the tallest Ferris wheel in Japan, the Redhorse Osaka Wheel, opened on July 1 at Expocity (2-1 Senribampaku Koen, Suita-shi, Osaka, Japan; www.expocity-mf.com/en/access). The wheel has 72 glass-bottomed cars, including two luxury cars, which take 18 minutes to make one full revolution. A standard car seats six people and a luxury car, four. A ticket costs ¥1,000 (near $10), standard, or ¥8,000, luxury.

Located at the Bampaku-kinen-koen monorail station, Expocity also offers shopping, a zoo and an aquarium.

London museum overnight

Overnight stays at London’s Natural History Museum (Cromwell Road, London, England; phone +44 20 7942 5000, www.nhm. ac.uk) are scheduled periodically throughout the year.

For adults over 18, “Dino Snores for Grown-ups” (£180, near $238, each) includes a night of museum exploration, live music, an all-night movie marathon, dinner and break- fast. With “Dino Snores for Kids” (£60), children age 7 to 11, accompanied by an adult, get to explore the museum and take part in educational activities and have a cold breakfast.

Mongol Museum, China

Near the first capital of the Yuan Dynasty, in the province of Inner Mongolia, northern China, selections of more than 60,000 Mongolian artifacts are on display in the Xanadu Museum, which opened on May 1. The 6,991-square-meter site includes eight buildings, with display descriptions in Mongolian, Chinese and English. Entry is free. 

Breakfast at Angkor Wat

Guests at Anan­tara Angkor Resort (National Road no. 6, Khum Svay Dangkom, Siem Reap, Cambodia; phone +855 63 966 788, angkor.anantara.com) can book a guided dawn tour of Angkor Wat Archaeological Park followed by breakfast at a secluded temple. Guests are then free to explore the complex, with its ninth- to 15th-century temples, the rest of the day.

Tokyo hedgehog lounge

Visitors to Tokyo, Japan, can spend an hour or more playing with harinezumi (hedgehogs) at the pet store Harry (Harinezumi) Café (Tokyo, Minato-ku, Roppongi 6-7-2 IWAHORI Building 2F; phone +81 03 3404 8100, www.harinezumi-cafe.com/cafe-english). Up to 30 hedgehogs of multiple species call the café home at any given time.