New trend: Touring destinations in 3-D

A play starring Cate Blanchett, a production of "Romeo and Juliet," and a peace concert hosted by Jude Law are among the hundreds of events planned for a 12-week festival celebrating the London 2012 Olympics. The Cultural Olympiad will run between June 21 and Sept. 9, 2012. Book your tickets in advance, later next year. We'll let you know when the mix of free and paid performances become available. Oscar-winning Australian actress Blanchett will star in a new adaptation of "Gross und Klein," with the Sydney Theatre Company. A staging of "Romeo and Juliet" will be set in present-day Baghdad, with Sunnis and Shias instead of Montagues and Capulets. Other highlights include the screening of a series of short new films by Mike Leigh and other acclaimed directors, and art exhibitions by artists such as David Hockney, Lucian Freud, and Olafur Eliasson. Some events will be held outside of London. Actor Jude Law, for instance, will host a Peace One Day concert in Belfast, Northern Ireland. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL London theatre: Once-a-year discounts available London: 5 best December values London: Rent a bike for nearly nothing

Much has been made of the many cringe-inducing moments—both of the predictably horrifying, arm-sawing variety and of the more surprisingly gruesome, extreme-close-up, contact-lens-insertion sort—in Danny Boyle's trapped-hiker film 127 Hours. But where some see a surefire way to lose their appetites for movie popcorn, the state of Utah sees a built-in marketing opportunity. The Utah Office of Tourism recently launched a series of five 127-hour (or roughly five-day) itineraries throughout the state, including everything from cross-country skiing and mountain biking to bird-watching and touring historic towns—and yes, even some hiking. All of which raises the question—does this make you want to see Utah more? Certainly, the state's unique and majestic natural beauty has long drawn both adrenaline-seekers and the adventure-averse, but does associating the landscape with Aron Ralston's tragic/heroic self-rescue increase or decrease its appeal? You tell me, BT reader: Are travel-disaster movies a selling point or a turnoff?