Numerous Festivals Await Travelers in Europe

Variety abounds more than ever in Europe this year.

Journey in any direction and you can touch on the history, culture, people, pageantry and landscape of an ancient country.

As a result, choosing what to see and do can be a fairly painstaking process. While it’s impossible to name all the attractions, what follows is a brief outline of events that will draw travelers in 1989.

France’s Bicentennial

The “Bicentennial of the French Revolution” is expected to attract 2.5 million Americans this year. One of France’s best-known landmarks, the Eiffel Tower (built in 1889 to mark the centenary of the French Revolution), will celebrate its 100th anniversary with fireworks, shows and exhibits May 13-15.

Bicentennial festivities accelerate in July with a parade of tall ships in Rouen Harbor, the inauguration of the Bastille opera in Paris and the opera festival in the palace and gardens of Versailles.

Concerts, historical pageants, films and exhibitions will be prominent throughout France all year. Featured through April 30 is the centennial of Van Gogh in Arles.

The Normandy region will commemorate the 45th anniversary of the Allied landing June 6, 1944. To mark the struggle, a new memorial was inaugurated in Caen last June. Open to the public, the Memorial of Caen features a film retrospective of the area’s history 1918-1989.

The French Government Tourist Office is offering two complimentary publications to help plan trips this bicentennial year.

A 32-page “Paris” guide lists more than 110 moderately priced hotels, more than 230 restaurants, wine bars and tea rooms, plus helpful hints for shopping, entertainment and transportation.

“Let’s Celebrate Together” is a pocket-size guide to the history of the French Revolution and major events commemorating the Bicentennial.

To request the booklets, contact the French Government Tourist Office, 9454 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 303, Beverly Hills 90212, (213) 271-6665.

Down to the Port in Ships

One of the top celebrations will be a yearlong birthday party for Hamburg’s 800-year-old port. A highlight will be the grand opening of the jubilee festivities May 3-7 along Port Mile, reaching from Landungsbrucken to the fish market. Downriver celebrations are scheduled at Ovelgonne Museum Harbor. German and foreign naval vessels will welcome visitors during the jubilee festivals, and guided tours will be offered by launch.

More than 250 ships are expected to participate in the “Sail Hamburg ‘89/International” tall ships’ meeting July 13-23.

An international ballet festival will be held June 3-26. Theatrical events at the International Theater of World Festival ’89 will feature dramas from South America, China and Hamburg’s twin city of Leningrad, and for film fans, a Hamburg film festival and European film forum will take place.

In addition Bonn, the capital of the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany), this year will celebrate its 2,000th birthday with a series of celebrations, festivals and ceremonies.

For more information, contact the German National Tourist Office, 444 S. Flower St., Suite 2230, Los Angeles 90071, (213) 688-7332.

The Danish Experiences

Like other European countries, Denmark is less expensive in the fall, winter and spring months when theaters, concert halls, cabarets and clubs of Copenhagen celebrate with music, drama, comedy, opera and ballet. The Royal Danish Ballet appears in Copenhagen through May, with the Danish Ballet Festival highlighting the season.

Music continues into summer with such entertainment as the Copenhagen Jazz Festival (July), Hans Christian Andersen Festival (August) and Aarhus Festival Week (September). On July 4 the largest celebration of America’s Independence Day outside of the United States will be staged in the Rebild Hills of Jutland with parades, marching bands and musical performances.

At Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens (open April 26 through Sept. 10) more than 100 concerts will be held, many of them free. In addition, the Copenhagen marathon run is scheduled for May, followed by yacht races June 23-27.

Details from the Scandinavian National Tourist Offices, 655 3rd Ave., 18th Floor, New York 10017, (212) 949-2333.

Gathering of the Clans

The Scottish International Gathering and international music festivals in Wales will highlight events in Britain this year. The city of Inverness in the Scottish Highlands will be host May 6-14 when clans gather for music, drama, crafts and seminars.

Wales’ International Musical Eisteddfod will be held in Llangollen July 4-9, and the Royal National Eisteddfod of Wales will take place Aug. 5-12 in Llanwrst, North Wales.

Other events for Britain include Queen Elizabeth’s London birthday parade June 17, and the Lord Mayor’s procession and show Nov. 11, also in London.

From July 12 to 29 the Royal Tournament, featuring the Royal Air Force and a cast of 2,000, will be held at Earl’s Court in London. The program will include a laser show on the story of flight, music, bands, fireworks, horsemanship, police dogs, motorcycles and navy field-gun competition.

Major sporting events are the Wimbledon tennis championships June 26 to July 9; the Henley Royal Regatta June 28 to July 2 and the British open golf championship at Royal Troon, Scotland, July 20-23.

Britain’s cultural calendar for this year includes the Royal Shakespeare Company season at Stratford-on-Avon, March to January, 1990; Glyndebourne Festival Opera Season, May to August; Bath International Festival, May 29 to June 11, and the Aldeburgh Festival of Music and Arts, June 9-25.

For more information, contact the British Tourist Authority, 350 S. Figueroa St., Suite 450, Los Angeles 90071, (213) 628-3525.

Old Dublin

The beginning of Dublin’s second millennium, following the yearlong celebrations of 1988, will feature the Irish Life Viking Adventure Center, an authentic re-creation of a Dublin street from 988, complete with actors. The city will also show a film that highlights the evolution of Dublin.

Contact the Irish Tourist Board, 757 3rd Ave., 19th Floor, New York 10017, (212) 418-0800.

The Italian Connection

“Splendors of Semiprecious Stones--Court Art in the Florence of the Grand Dukes” is being exhibited in the Sala Bianca of Pitti Palace in Florence through April 30 to mark the 400th anniversary of the founding of Florence’s semiprecious stone factory, Opificio delle Pietre Dure di Firenze.

Opera offerings through July will include Gioacchino Rossini’s “William Tell,” with tenor Chris Merritt and conducted by Riccardo Muti. Other performances include Rossini’s “L’Occasione fa il Ladro,” Puccini’s “Tosca” and Weber’s “Oberon,” with Seiji Ozawa as conductor.

Details from the Italian Government Travel Office, 360 Post St., Suite 801, San Francisco 94108, (415) 392-6206.

Palaces and Windmills

Tourists to the Netherlands are discovering the eastern province of Gelderland with its former royal palace, Het Loo, in Apeldoorn, the popular Kroller-Muller Museum in Otterlo, with its huge collection of Van Gogh paintings and an international sculpture garden, and the national open-air museum in Arnhem.

In addition, travelers will visit a restored 17th-Century village of wooden houses and working windmills north of Amsterdam along with the open-air Zuiderzee Village museum in Enkhuizen, the Keukenhof Gardens in Lisse (for tulip lovers) and the Aalsmeer flower auction, the world’s largest.

Contact the Netherlands Board of Tourism, 90 New Montgomery St., Suite 305, San Francisco 94105, (415) 543-6772.

Good Sports in Norway

Norway is featuring an extended sports program this year. The North Cape march, to be held in June, will start from Honningsvag, and the Oslo Marathon is set for Sept. 3. Other events: the Bergen International Music Festival, May 24 to June 4, and the Molde International Jazz Festival, July 17-22. Performances are scheduled by the Norwegian State Opera and the Norwegian Ballet.

Write to the Scandinavian National Tourist Offices, 655 3rd Ave., 18th Floor, New York 10017, (212) 949-2333.