Tours in Review

A query in ITN’s “Person to Person” section led to a deluge of recommendations for Africa 2000 (P.O. Box 1204, Hilton 3245, South Africa; phone +27 33 3433911, fax 3431786).

My husband, Frank, and I and three other couples (a very nice group size) worked for many months with the Africa 2000 owners, Gill and Graham Maskell, to develop a trip which suited all our interests and budgets. The result was the trip of a lifetime, March 25-April 17, 2008.

The cost, including our airfare from Phoenix, was about $28,000 for my husband and me. Everything was included except lunch and...

To celebrate their 10th anniversary as a company, Orient Odyssey (1385 Gulf Rd., Ste. 203, Point Roberts, WA 98281; 800/637-5778, www.orientodyssey.com) offered a 10-day trip for September ’06 that I could not resist. It was to Guizhou Province in southeastern China, and the price was $1,430 from Vancouver, B.C. (In 2007, Orient Odyssey offers this trip as a 12-day itinerary for $1,990 from Los Angeles or New York.)

Guizhou is a place of beautiful scenery and 48 ethnic minorities, many of whom still maintain their original lifestyles, dress and unique cultural traditions. Now an...

The ms Tolstoy was our home for a wonderful 2-week adventure in Russia with Amadeus Waterways (Chatsworth, CA; 800/626-0126, www.amadeuswaterways.com).

Our cruise, Sept. 28-Oct. 10, 2007, cost $2,450 per person and included most of the tours. We spent an additional $800 for personal expenses, souvenirs, tips and optional tours. Our flight from New York on Austrian Air cost $993 per person.

The Tolstoy is a small riverboat, carrying 200 passengers and a crew of 100. The all-Russian crew and staff were some of the hardest-working people we have ever met in our travels. We once...