Day Tour

by Don Morris, Pismo Beach, CA

My husband, Bernie, and I love flying, not only in big jets but by many different methods.

For a week’s stay in Paris, Feb. 27-March 6, 2010, I found the Paris Métro system just excellent.

Although I ordinarily travel independently and avoid tours, for a visit to Iguazú Falls with a friend in March ’10 I requested quotes from the travel agencies listed in the Lonely Planet guide.

We booked the “Circle South America” cruise aboard the Seven Seas Mariner of Regent Seven Seas Cruises (Ft. Lauderdale, FL; 877/505-5370), Jan. 9-March 16, 2010, and one of the optional excursions offered was a two-night, three-day trip to Machu Picchu in Peru.

The excursion cost $2,600 per person, with only six hours actually at Machu Picchu. That seemed expensive, and I found a similar tour on the Internet for much less, but, in the end, we thought it might be safer to take the ship’s excursion.

My husband, Ken, and I went on the 15-day tour “Japan’s Cultural Treasures” with Overseas Adventure Travel (Cambridge, MA; 800/493-6824, www.oattravel.com), April 25-May 15, 2009.

by Mary Beltran, ITN

I stood on deck, feeling the cool breeze of our passage and realized, again, that river cruising is one of my favorite ways to travel.

On a trip to India, July 5-23, 2008, my daughter and I created our own itinerary, choosing not to travel with a group. However, we did use the services of two India-based travel agencies to help with some of our arrangements.

I consider myself a fairly canny and frugal traveler, arranging my own trips so that I spend time on the cultural and scenic attractions that interest me and don’t waste money on fancy accommodations I would only occupy while asleep. I thought I had stumbled on a great deal when I received a brochure in the mail in late December ’08 from Holland America Line (HAL) advertising a 34-day cruise, March 17-April 19, from Rio around the Horn and up the coast of South and Central America to San Diego. The “air included” price was a slim $2,499 per person.

My husband, Jerry, wanted a beach vacation — somewhere warm in the middle of the winter. I love to sit and read on the beach. . . but not for a whole 10-day vacation. The solution? A beach resort from which we could take day trips to see new things.