Planning a Millennium Getaway

According to the Greenwich Royal Observatory in England - the official timekeeper of the world - the first populated place that will experience the new millennium will be near the Chatham Islands of New Zealand. The first place on the globe to truly experience the new millennium before anyone else, however, will be near Balleny Island in Antarctica.

Around the world, famous tourist attractions are filling up with reservations for millennium parties and celebrations. People from all parts of the world are looking to travel to such places as:

France and England have both erected giant clocks counting down to January 1, 2000. The clock in England is located in Greenwich; the clock in France is atop the Eiffel Tower.

England is planning to reconstruct the sailing of the Mayflower 2000 - based on the famous ship that brought the Pilgrims to America. Several ships will sail from England to the United States, reaching ports in Boston and other destinations all around the world.

World-famous Times Square in New York will be one of the most densely populated places in the world. While many landmark hotels are already booked with private parties, the Empire State building will be open to the public. Hotels near other popular American tourist attractions are filling up just as quickly, including Walt Disney World in Florida, San Francisco Bay, and the casinos of Las Vegas, Nevada.

Members of The Millennium Society, a nonprofit organization in Washington, D.C., are planning to sail on the Queen Elizabeth II to the Pyramid of Cheops in Egypt for a World Millennium Charity Ball.

A travel agency in Japan is planning a ship cruise from Japan to Hawaii that will cross the International Date Line at the stroke of midnight on December 31, 1999. Because the ship will be traveling eastward, cruise passengers will get to experience the arrival of the new millennium more than once.

Brazil is planning a grand-scale beach party in Rio de Janeiro. North Cape in Norway will host New Year Eve music celebrations, and the citizens of Iceland will light great bonfires to celebrate the arrival of the new millennium.