Travel tips

Nov 15, 2011, 3:06 GMT

Snow sculpture festival in Colorado

Breckenridge, Colorado (dpa) - The 22nd International Snow Sculpture Championships take place January 24-28, 2012, in the US ski resort of Breckenridge in Colorado when 16 teams from around the world compete to make the most beautiful artwork out of snow.

The artworks are hewn out of almost four-metre-high blocks of snow that weigh approximately 20 tonnes. Entrance to the event is free. (www.gobreck.com)

Children dress up as Krampus at Lienz Advent market

Lienz, Austria (dpa) - The Advent market in the Austrian city of Lienz has an unusual attraction this year when on December 6 around 150 children make their through the old town dressed up as Krampus.

According to Alpine tradition, the mythical creature accompanies Saint Nicholas during the Christmas season, warning and punishing bad children.

The market runs from November 25 until Christmas Eve and includes an Advent calendar in front of the town hall where a new window is opened daily at 18:30 to reveal an artwork by an East Tyrol artist. (www.osttirol.com)

Flora festival in Thailand

Bangkok (dpa) - The International Horticultural Exposition Royal Flora 2011 in Chiang Mai, Thailand offers over 2,500 plants as well as plenty of culture.

The three-month event was originally postponed due to the floods in Thailand and is now scheduled to run from December 14 to March 14, 2012.

Exhibits from countries throughout the world, including Pakistan, Kenya and Switzerland, can be enjoyed on the 80-hectare exhibition space, while visitors can also experience traditional Thai buildings and dance performances. (www.royalflora2011.com)

Joanneum Universal Museum gets new visitor centre

Graz, Austria (dpa/tmn) - The Joanneum Universal Museum in Graz has been extended and given a new underground visitor centre.

The new Joanneum Quarter opens on the museum's bicentenary on November 26 and includes the Neue Galerie, Multimedia Collections, the Styrian State Library and, from 2013, the Natural History Museum.

Two new exhibitions also mark the event: 'Land of Images' which is a multimedia history of Styria, and 'Modern - suicide or art' which deals with the high points of the art collection. Entrance for adults is 12 euro (16.50 dollars) while children up to the age of six can visit the museum for free. (www.museum-joanneum.at)

Northstar expands its skiing area for winter season

Northstar, California (dpa) - The Californian resort of Northstar is increasing its skiing area by nearly 690,000 square metres for the upcoming winter season.

Skiers can use the new space for off-piste skiing and snowboarding. Freestyle and cat skiing are also on offer for the first time at Northstar, which is situated around 10 kilometres from Lake Tahoe. (www.snowusa.com)

Learn about Florida travel tips by chat

Florida Keys, Florida (dpa) - Tourists looking for travel tips on what to do in the Florida Keys can avail themselves of a new chat function on the www.fla-keys.com website where they can click on the 'Chat with us live' symbol to reach a contact person.