The queen of England can still pull in a crowd, judging by the throngs of tourists and locals at Buckingham Palace on her official birthday in June. Because our digs at the newly refurbished InterContinental London Park Lane were just across the street from the palace, we joined the crowd, sharing in its enthusiasm.

Visitor arrivals to the Dominican Republic from January through June increased 6.6 percent from a year ago, to 2.2 million, according to the country’s ministry of tourism.

Leave it to Finland to come up with some quirky competitions. There’s the popular Air Guitar Championship, the Wife Carrying World Championship and Iittala’s Glass Blowing Challenge.

Uniworld is offering three cruise itineraries aboard its newest ship, the River Tosca, which will make its maiden voyage down the Nile in April. On all three programs, Uniworld is offering savings.

Bonaire is scheduling a program of daily boat dives, educational seminars and activities, for Love Our Planet Week, part of Bonaire Dive Into Summer 2008. Each day of Love Our Planet Week offers the option to take part in interactive dives and seminars.

Jamaica’s Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett is projecting that the tourism sector will employ an additional 58,000 workers over the next ten years. This, he said, is based on the level and rate of infrastructural development and expansion now taking place in the industry. Mr. Bartlett said the sector currently has a capacity of some 30,000 rooms and provides direct employment for approximately 80,000 persons, while an additional 180,000 to 200,000 were indirectly employed.