History

Augsburg is the second-oldest city in Germany and was the home of the Fugger family (a German mercantile and banking dynasty), Leopold Mozart and Bertolt Brecht.

In France, the Château of Vaux le Vicomte (77950 Maincy, France; phone +33 1 64 14 41 90, fax 33 1 60 69 90 85, www.vaux-le-vicomte.com), upon which the design for the castle of Versailles was based, is open to visitors in 2008 from March 15 to Nov. 9, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. and 2-5:30. 

Entry at €12.50 (near $19) includes access to the castle, gardens and carriage museum. Night visits cost €15.50 ($24). An audioguide costs €2.50.

The castle’s gardens, open 8 p.m. to midnight, with last admission at 11 p.m., are lit with 2,000 candles on Saturdays, May 3-Oct. 11.

15 days/13 nights, April 23-May 7, Sept. 3-17, 2009.

Highlights: From Shannon, travel through County Clare to Killarney/Ring of Kerry/Blarney Castle and Woolen Mills/in Cobh, Heritage Centre, Titanic Trail/Castle of Cahir, Rock of Cashel/Viking town of Waterford, crystal factory/Book of Kells at Trinity College/ancient burial ground at Newgrange/coastal Donegal/in Clifden, archaeology lecture/Burren to the Cliffs of Moher.

Land only, $4,595 April, $4,995 September. Single supplement, $1,095.

11 days/10 nights in North and South Korea, Sept. 19-29 & Oct. 3-13, 2008.

14 days/13 nights.

Highlights: In Helsinki, FINLAND, tour includes Church in the Rock, historical center/medieval Porvoo/ferry to Tallinn, ESTONIA; 13th-century Dome Church, Rocca Al Mare open-air museum, baroque Kadriorg Palace/historical manor houses in Lahemaa National Park/Turaida, LATVIA, with its walled castle and “Folk Song Garden”/Art Nouveau architecture in Riga/in LITHUANIA, Hill of Crosses, Thomas Mann House in Nida, seaport of Klaipeda/14th-century Trakai Castle, now the National Art Museum/Vilnius’ Old Town.

Land only, $3,945. Single supp. $665.

Jolly olde England and the Emerald Isle of Ireland continue to enchant and entice, even with the pound whomping the dollar nearly two to one. Here’s what to expect if you visit in 2008.

Great Britain

• The Heathrow Express train connecting LONDON’s Paddington Station with Heathrow Airport is now the most expensive rail journey per mile in Britain. Save money by riding the tube (London’s underground) or using the regular train.

Available at Tourism Ireland offices, the brochure “Ireland’s Cultural Explorer” features information on the country’s 130 castles, museums, monuments, parks, distilleries and gardens. At www.irelandvisitordiscounts.com, you can print out a pass that gives you savings on all 130 venues.

Contact Heritage Island (Marina House, 11-13 Clarence St., Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin, Ireland; phone 353 1 236 6890, fax 236 6895, www.heritageisland.com).

After decades of restoration, the garden and some of the public spaces of Emperor Augustus’ palace on Palatine Hill in Rome, Italy, have reopened to the public. The 2,000-year-old palace is next to the House of Livia, built for Augustus’ wife. (Inquire about times of tours visiting the garden and receiving hall.)

The Namdaemun, a 600-year-old gate that guarded the ancient walled city of Seoul, Korea, was reduced to its foundations on Feb. 10 in a 5-hour fire fought by 100 firemen. The structure allegedly was set ablaze by a 69-year-old man who felt he had not been sufficiently compensated by the government for property.

Completed in 1398, the 2-story Great South Gate, which in 1962 was designated South Korea’s number-one national treasure, was made of wood and stone with a pagoda-shaped roof. Officials have stated it will take $21 million and three years to rebuild the landmark.

In February ’07, I visited a number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Southeast Asia. Among the sites was the Royal Citadel, a walled fortress surrounded by a moat, in Hue, Viet Nam. Modeled after Beijing’s Forbidden City, the citadel is surrounded by outer walls pierced by 10 gates, each allowing access over the moat by a bridge.