There are changes ahead for the infamously conservative Parisian RATP. On July 1, the price of a single trip metro ticket will increase from €1.40 to €1.50.

Some slight improvements will come with this price hike. Metro tickets will be valid for an hour and a half after purchase, enabling passengers to transfer between buses and trams. (Transfering from buses or trams to the metro, however, will not be an option.)

Popularity: 6% [?]

Photo by supermonkey_pekin

While Barcelona’s underground train system reaches just about every corner of the sprawling metropolis, the metro isn’t really the best way to “see” the city.

The Catalan capital’s new Bici bike system, however, is just that. Barcelona’s city hall has set up about 100 stations across the city, most near the Barri Gòtic, offering bike rentals for close to nothing. After paying an initial fee of either €1 for a week’s membership—or €24 for a year’s membership—Bici users will pay have to cough up just €0.30 per half hour of bike use. Until July 6, a year’s membership will go for just €6.

For a list of rules, rates, and information, visit the club’s site (in Spanish and Catalan only.)

Popularity: 11% [?]

Photo by pnoid00

On June 23, 2007, Budapest will hold its third Night of Museums to celebrate St John’s Midsummer Night. Traditionally, this is the night when fires are kept burning for unmarried girls to jump over and so guarantee themselves a husband, and fruit is thrown into the fire to guarantee a good harvest.

Torches and candles will be lit and fire-blowers will perform outside the National Museum—one of 29 museums and public collections taking part in this year’s Night of Museums. All 29 places will stay open from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. and will host special programs, concerts, and dance performances in addition to their usual exhibitions. In previous years, some venues have been known to offer a snack and a glass of wine—or a hot chocolate. But the highlight of the night has to be the special show of erotic Roman artifacts at the Aquincum Museum!

The night is marvellous fun and a paradise for Cheapos. Free buses transport culture hounds to museums, departing from Erzsébet Tér every 30 minutes. Tickets for all events can be bought from the Budapest Transport Company (BKV) for HUF500 (€1.95; $2.65). For details of exhibitions and programs, check out the night’s schedule.

Popularity: 8% [?]

Photo by pentimento

Writers, get your pencils, pens, and laptops ready! Every Wednesday, the Irish Writers’ Centre hosts a free Scribblers Corner from 1 p.m. until 2 p.m., a time slot that corresponds with the city’s lunch hour. City residents and visitors alike are welcome.

Each week, writers receive a topic and then spend approximately 20 minutes writing whatever comes into his or her head. At the end of writing time, each participant will read out their work, with no feedback given. Scribblers Corner is not a writing class, but rather a time for writers to become inspired and listen to the work of others in a relaxed atmosphere.

For more information, email the Irish Writers’ Centre.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Photo by temp13rec.

Parents! Don’t forget to take Mieze Katze, Bello der Hund, and Petzi Bär along, because the kids are flying too.

Austrian Airlines is adding another Aktion to its summer repetoire by offering free flights to all children under the age of 11. Mothers and fathers who want to bring their tots along can book through the end of June to take advantage of the Kids for Free program. The promotional fare is valid from June 30 until August 31 to destinations across the European Union, Russia, and Ukraine.

Flights can be booked online. Taxes and fees are included and booked flights count toward frequent flyer program credit.

Popularity: 6% [?]

If you’ll be in the Louvre any time soon, don’t be confused by rather anachronistic installation pieces scattered throughout the museum.

In the Puget and Marly sculpture galleries, contemporary artists have put up resin statues and fake trees next to the marble figures of greek gods. It’s all part of the Counterpoint program, which runs through June 25. This is the third edition of Counterpoint, which features the work of 11 sculptors: Elisabeth Ballet, Richard Deacon, Luciano Fabro, Gloria Friedmann, Anish Kapoor, Robert Morris, Claudio Parmiggiani, Giuseppe Penone, Didier Trenet, Michel Verjux, and Jacques Vieille.

Many museum-goers appear to be annoyed at the juxtaposition of new and old, but we appreciate the impulse to shake things up a little.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Directly outside of the Saint Peter’s Metro station is the delicious Federici B&B. Aside from the fabulously convenient location, rooms are big and bright, ranging from €80 to €120 for a double.

Francesco and Roberta (an adorable couple) run the the place with their son, Fabio, who speaks a smooth Australian English. The hotel is located inside a giant palazzo, with an entrance from within an inner courtyard.

They’ve also got apartments at negotiable, reasonable rates near the Vatican and in Trastevere. Our recommendation: check Federici out!

Popularity: 9% [?]

Photo by Kaymaria Daskarolis

When you have decided to leave the clubs in Psirri in the wee hours of the morning and are hungry—but not so hungry that you feel able to consume one of Kosta’s delicious crepes from Picasso di Crepa—consider going by the bakery at 23 Karaiskaki Street and picking up a freshly-baked, warm, scrumptious koulouri. The koulouria made by the bakery at 23 Karaiskaki are distributed to koulouri stands throughout Athens.

A koulouri is a wreath-shaped piece of slightly-sweet bread with sesame seeds all over it. (We suggested them long ago as Syntagma Square pigeon feed.) People in Greece love koulouri so much that the snack is sold on corners throughout the city every morning, typically disappearing by mid-day.

If a mid-morning koulouri from a kiosk is tasty, a post-clubbing koulouri straight out of the oven is a little slice of heaven.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Photo by Re:echo

If there’s a publication you can’t live without while you’re traveling in France, the prospect of tracking it down just got a whole lot easier with the launch of a new multi-lingual press finder.

Just type in the name of the paper or magazine you’re looking for, along with your address and postal code in France, and you’ll recieve a list of all the vendors within a five-kilometer range displayed on a handy Google map. To locate kiosks open on Sundays and public holidays—as well as opening hours—click on the clock icon alongside the address listing.

Unfortunately, the New York Times doesn’t currently feature in the references, but many other publications—including the New Yorker, Vanity Fair, the Wall Street Journal—do, along with the main titles of the British and European press.

Popularity: 4% [?]

This is probably the biggest music festival in central London beyond the (BBC) Proms.

Tickets aren’t cheap. Day passes are going for £40. A two-day pass costs £75, a three-day pass costs £105, and a four-day pass costs £135.) So, yeah, not cheap. But we bet you could just walk by and enjoy yourselves, listening to The White Stripes, The Klaxons, Gotan Project, Air, LCD Soundsystem, Modest Mouse, Kaiser Chiefs, and many more.

Popularity: 6% [?]