If you’ve been thinking about visiting Rome in 2012 you might just want to confirm things sooner than later—especially if you want to visit the Colosseum during your trip.
It’s not like the ancient Colosseum is being relocated or demolished, but there is a little bit of a concern that the thing is starting to crumble. Obviously it has seen its share of history, and 2,000+ years of wear and tear is starting to show its effect. ]]>
It's happening! That ban on selling marijuana to tourists and allowing them in Dutch pot cafes—the one Holland's been discussing since earlier this year—will begin taking effect next year. And while "next year" seems like a far enough time away to not freak about this, may we remind you that next year is little more than a month-and-a-half away, and the ban hits January 1, 2012.
Don't go booking the first KLM direct to Amsterdam quite just yet, however. This first phase of the pot-for-tourists ban will only reach the southern parts of the country—Limburg, North-Brabant and Zeeland—where drug tourism is more of a problem (the rest of Europe just comes across the border down there for a joint or two, you see). Maastricht has been trialling the program since October, actually. Regardless, officials promise to include Amsterdam and the rest of the country in the ban come January 2013. ]]>
There’s a new tourist attraction headed to Big D, and it might just change the city’s skyline. Great City Attractions has been chatting up the city about installing a giant Ferris wheel in downtown Dallas, around the intersection of Houston and Elm streets—that’s in Founders Plaza for those who call the city home.
Right now it sounds like things are very much still on the drawing board. However, Texas has quite the reputation for going big or going home, so we think as long as the pricing is right it’s practically a sure thing. The wheel could be as high as 200-feet tall, and apparently may be ready to go in around ten days or so once approval is granted. The Ferris wheel at the state fair—that’s the one in our picture—already soars to around the same height. ]]>
If you don’t have a standing date with Brian Williams each evening then you might have missed that there’s some bad stuff going down south of the border. In a nutshell, there are some pockets of pretty violent drug-related crimes, and this alone is keeping away would-be tourists from checking out typical hot spots like Acapulco, Cancun, and beyond. Mexico is trying to clean up its image—at least with the tourists—and they’re doing so by throwing a lot of pesos at the problem.
In total the tourism board is looking to shell out around $30 million to create commercials and other advertisements to encourage plenty of travel—especially from Americans—to the fun in the sun that’s only a quick flight away. Some of the commercials are still a couple weeks away, but we do have an idea of what they’ll be all about. Of course they aren’t just going to show stunning beaches and crystal clear water, and that’s because it’s way better to create a mini reality show! ]]>
The first thing you need to know is that we checked out this story as thoroughly as we could, because we don't want to be that site that posts an Onion story as if it's real news. Here's the Kickstarter page for the art project, which is—quote—"to transform [the George Washington statue in Union Square] into a contemporary monument to tourism [with] large scale props such as an 'I Love NY' hat, camera, NYC subway map, and local shopping bags." ]]>
We're not going to say "I told you so," but we kind of did back in May when Holland first announced plans to possibly close "coffee shops" to tourists after crime rose. Now, from this last Saturday, the hammer has dropped and foreign tourists are not permitted in the coffee shops of Holland's southernmost city of Maastricht.
There are exceptions: Germans and Belgians are still welcome, but no Americans or Italians or English or French or...we could continue but you get the point. And if you are German or Belgian, then be prepared to show your passport and allow the coffee shop to retain your identity information for up to two days, even if you're only in the shop to smoke weed for fifteen minutes. ]]>
Ever wanted your picture with the famous white "HOLLYWOOD" sign above Los Angeles? Of course you do, who doesn't? Well, LA residents apparently aren't a fan of the practice of hiking up into the hills for the bucket list photograph, especially LA residents who happen to live in the shadow of the letters themselves. They're fuming about a recent increase in tourists trekking near their property, and they're meeting to (try to) do something about it.
NBC Los Angeles fills us in on the NIMBY debate:
The homeowners trying to discourage sightseers, led by the Hollywoodland Homeowners Association, say the roads beneath the Hollywood sign are too narrow to accommodate both the residents and tourists who often come in tour vans and buses.
Tourists using smartphones can find a variety of suggestions when it comes to finding a viewing area, and some "rogue" websites encourage visitors to use private roads to reach the sign.
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