Beaches and Islands

12-day/11-night tour of SRI LANKA, through October 2008.

Highlights: From Negombo, drive to Dambulla Cave Complex, visiting the Elephant Orphanage en route/bicycle tour of medieval capital, Polonnaruwa/en route to Kandy, visit spice garden, enjoy a cultural performance/city tour of Kandy, visit a tea plantation, watch dancers, fire walkers, drummers/Horton Plains, World’s End/Rawana Ella Waterfalls/Jeep safari in Ula Walawe National Park/in coastal Bentota, boat ride, water sports, white-sand beaches/Negombo.

Land only, $1,200. Single supplement, $235.

Several companies are quickly selling trips for the July 22, 2009, total solar eclipse, which will be visible for nearly five minutes on a path through China and the Pacific Islands.

TravelQuest International (Prescott, AZ; 800/830-1998, www.travelquestinternational.com) offers two China itineraries, with the eclipse to be viewed from a beach near Shanghai: a 9-day trip at $2,840 (plus $800 single supplement) and a 6-day, $2,230 (plus $600). 

14 days/13 nights, March 16-31, 2010. Highlights: swim with dolphins in Christchurch/hike and kayak in Abel Tasman park/horseback ride in Palaroa National Park/helicopter to Fox Glacier/nature cruise on Milford Sound. Land only, $5,595. Adventure Women (Bozman, MT; 800/804-8686, www.adventurewomen.com).

21 days/20 nights in OMAN and YEMEN. Highlights: four UNESCO World Heritage Sites: Oman’s Bahla Fort and Frankincense Trail plus Yemen’s old walled city of Shibam and Old City of Sana’a/desert tent camping/remote beaches on Socotra Island. Land only, from $7,690 (with four travelers). Single supp., $1,580. Bestway Tours & Safaris (Burnaby, BC, Canada; 800/663-0844, www.bestway.com).

9-day/7-night cruise-tour aboard M.V. Lord of the Glens. Highlights: Sail Caledonian Canal to Loch Ness for kayak excursion/Great Western Railway to Glenfinnan/medieval abbey on Iona/Duart Castle/Isle of Skye. Land and cruise, from $5,990. Single supp., from $1,345. Round-trip airfare, New York-Inverness, $1,040. National Geographic Expeditions (Washington, DC; 888/966-8687, www.nationalgeographicexpeditions.com).

Soon after an 8.0-magnitude earthquake occurred southwest of American Samoa on Sept. 30, a series of tsunami waves hit Samoa, American Samoa and the Tonga islands, killing at least 129, injuring hundreds more and destroying villages, tourist resorts and roads along the coast. Many people fled to safety when the tsunami warning was broadcast on the radio.

Fiji and the Cook Islands had large waves but no reported damage.

13 days/11 nights, Feb. 2-14, 2010. Highlights: On Tahiti Nui, Paul Gauguin Museum, ancient temple of Marae/on Easter Island, Rano Raraku Volcano/moai, petroglyphs, caves/Tapati festival/on Moorea, feed a stingray/handcrafts and maraes (stone temples) on Huahine. Land price, $9,495. Single supp., $1,395. Far Horizons, Inc. (San Anselmo, CA; 800/552-4575, www.farhorizons.com).

An oil spill struck at least 40 miles of beaches on the coast of Queensland, Australia, and nearby Moreton and Bribie islands. In rough seas during Cyclone Hamish on March 11, thirty-one containers of ammonium nitrate fertilizer fell off a cargo ship, subsequently puncturing two of the ship’s tanks and releasing 250 tons of heavy fuel oil.

16 days/15 nights; departs July 30, 2009, and July 8 & Aug. 12, 2010. Highlights: Inveraray Castle, home of the Duke of Argyll/distillery tour in Oban/ferry to Isle of Skye/Hebrides islands of Harris, St. Kilda, Lewis/on Orkney island, Skara Brae archaeological site/hit golf balls on the Old Course at St. Andrews/in Edinburgh, attend the Military Tattoo/return via Glasgow. Land only, $5,395. Single supp., $1,000.  Celtic Dream Tours (Tampa, FL; 813/317-6039, www.celticdreamtours.com).

In Fiji, the tour company Feejee Experience (Fiji International Airport, Nadi, Fiji; phone +679 672 5950 or 672 3311, fax 672 0097, www.feejeeexperience.com) offers hop-on, hop-off bus itineraries to take at one’s own pace.

A minimum number of nights of accommodation are provided, and extras can be purchased at a discount. Each itinerary includes some meals, guided tours, cultural events and activities such as rafting. The basic pass is good for 12 months from purchase date.