Under the US Visa Waiver Program (VWP), citizens of participating countries are allowed to visit the US without first applying for visas. Each must first fill out the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) form online and receive approval before traveling to the US (whereas, in contrast, a visa must be applied for at a consulate). The ESTA application can be found at https://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta.
Low-cost Icelandic airline WOW Air (phone, in the US, 866/512-8364, www.wowair.us) will begin flying from San Francisco (SFO) and Los Angeles (LAX) airports to Reykjavik, Iceland (KEF), in June 2016. WOW Air began flying out of Boston Logan (BOS) and Washington Dulles (IAD) in 2015.
The Schengen Agreement, ratified 30 years ago, allows for passport-free travel between 26 cooperating European countries. To combat the influx of migrants from North Africa and the Middle East, some countries within Europe’s Schengen zone have made plans to suspend free movement between their borders for up to two years.
Located on the National University of Singapore campus, the Lee Kong Chian Natural History Museum (2 Conservatory Dr., Singapore 117377; phone +65 6601 3333, http://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg) opened in April 2015.
In a building that looks like a corner of it has been sliced off, the museum displays more than 2,000 of its one million animal and plant specimens, including insects, spiders, reptiles, mammals, etc., anchored by three nearly complete, long-necked diplodocus skeletons from Wyoming.
For viewing the little (fairy) penguins without disturbing them as they march to and from the waves at Phillip Island Nature Parks, a special platform, Penguins Plus, has been built that blends into the environment. Visitors to the north end of Phillip Island, which is just south of Melbourne in the state of Victoria, Australia, can watch the penguins from a raised platform or observe them at eye level from an underground room.
A platform ticket costs AUD47.20 (near $34); online, visit www.penguins.org.au and click on “Buy tickets.”
Those planning trips to Europe can find a few helpful tips at www.european-vacation-planning-made-simple.com. Also, click on “SAVE IN EUROPE” to find a list of discounts of up to 20% on selected day tours, day cruises and city passes in Europe that are available when booked through the sister website www.agents-traveltoeurope.com. On the latter website, select a country, then find the applicable deal. The discount is automatic when booking from this website.
Visitors to Florence can take a 3-hour cooking class on how to make traditional Italian pizza and gelato ice cream. The lesson, from Italian chefs, includes all the necessary ingredients and tools and ends with pizza and gelato paired with wine.
€39 (near $42) per person for up to 12 people, maximum. Book with ItalyXP at http://italyxp.com/en/florence (click on “Pizza and Gelato Cooking Class”).
With the new Fast Skytree Ticket, a visitor to the 2,080-foot-tall Tokyo Skytree (1 Chome-1-2 Oshiage, Sumida, Tokyo 131-0045, Japan; phone +81 570 550 634, www.tokyo-skytree.jp/en) who is a nonresident of Japan now can bypass the line to the elevator to the building’s viewing Tembo Deck, 1,148 feet up. The Skytree is the world’s hightest freestanding broadcast tower.
The Italian town of San Vitaliano, just east of the customary birthplace of pizza, Naples, has banned the use of traditional wood-fired pizza ovens until March 31, 2016, in order to decrease pollution. San Vitaliano has suffered from poor air quality, with pollution exceeding European Union standards 114 times in 2015.
Chefs and restaurants found in violation of the ban face fines of up to €1,032 (near $1,133).
Beaches, castles, wild ponies…. Near Swansea, Wales’ Gower Peninsula is a designated “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.” Visitors can download the “This is Gower” app, containing maps and directions for 14 walking trails. It also has audio and visual guides (with pictures and videos) on 80 locations, using GPS to notify walkers when they’ve reached an area of interest. The app is free on Android and iOS.