Tours

13-day/11-night tour, Sept. 17-29, 2009, emphasizes historical sites and pub visits in GREAT BRITAIN. Highlights: In SCOTLAND, Linlithgow, birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots/15th-century Rosslyn Chapel/walk Hadrian’s Wall/in ENGLAND, Theakston Brewery/York Minster/ale at The Abbey Inn/Creswell Crags/the Uffington White Horse/Cadbury Castle/Iron Age Old Sarum/Stonehenge. Land only, $8,495. Single supp., $895. Far Horizons (San Anselmo, CA; 800/552-4575, www.farhorizons.com).

13-day/12-night tour of ARGENTINA.  Highlights: In Buenos Aires, Plaza de Mayo, Metropolitan Cathedral, La Boca, Recoleta, tango lesson and show/in the Lake District, boat across Anchorena Bay to Isla Victoria/fly to Iguassu Falls/train ride to Devil’s Throat gorge/winelands of Vistalba Valley. Land, from $6,150. Single supplement, from $3,260. Internal air, approx. $1,160. Big Five Tours & Expeditions (Stuart, FL; 800/244-3483, www.bigfive.com).

25 days/23 nights, Sept. 13-Oct. 7, 2009, and May 2010. Highlights: In-depth exploration of six major preserve areas throughout the island/see lemurs, chameleons, geckos, frogs, tortoises, birds/snorkel the reefs of Ambola/in Bekopaka village, learn of the Sakalava people/karst landscapes of Petit Tsingy and Grand Tsingy/in Tana, Queen’s Palace, Tsimbazaza Zoo, artisan handicraft market. Land only, €5,650 (near $7,200). Galapagos Travel (Aptos, CA; 800/969-9014, www.galapagos travel.com).

 9-day/7-night tour of UGANDA, Sept. 15-23 & Nov. 3-11, 2009. Highlights: In Entebbe, Lake Victoria and Botanical Gardens, home to casqued hornbills, turacos, colobus monkeys/in Mburo wetlands, canoe papyrus swamps to view goliath herons, pygmy geese/in Lake Mburo National Park, zebras, leopards, hippos, otters/in Queen Elizabeth National Park, grey kestrel, chanting goshawk, griffon vulture/in Kibale Forest National Park, track chimpanzees (local cost $90) and many birds. From London, £1,895 (near $2,736); from Entebbe, £1,445 ($2,086). Single supplement, £325 ($469).

19 days/18 nights, Jan. 22-Feb. 9, 2010. Highlights: In Vientiane, National Museum, Great Stupa of That Luang, Talaat Sou market/Pak Ou Caves/Kwang Si Falls/in Luang Prabang, Old Palace, street fair, Wat Xieng/Plain of Jars/Ho Chi Minh Trail/caves at Vieng Xai/hill tribe villages/tribal weavers of Houaphan. Land and air from Bangkok, $1,770. Single supplement, $430. Mekong Tours (Tillamook, OR; 503/842-7198, www.mekongtours.com).

19 days/18 nights, Jan. 22-Feb. 9, 2010. Highlights: In Vientiane, National Museum, Great Stupa of That Luang, Talaat Sou market/Pak Ou Caves/Kwang Si Falls/in Luang Prabang, Old Palace, street fair, Wat Xieng/Plain of Jars/Ho Chi Minh Trail/caves at Vieng Xai/hill tribe villages/tribal weavers of Houaphan. Land and air from Bangkok, $1,770. Single supplement, $430. Mekong Tours (Tillamook, OR; 503/842-7198, www.mekongtours.com).

6-day/5-night tour of SPAIN includes cooking classes. Highlights: In Seville, “tapas crawl,” Jewish Quarter, wine tasting/two classes on cooking local specialties/sherry bodegas in Jerez/vineyard tours/Arabic baths in Ronda/Iberian ham tasting. Land only, from $2,050. Single supplement, $325. Discount if not participating in cooking classes. Epicurean Ways (Charlottesville, VA; 866/642-2917, http://epicureanways.com).

9 days/8 nights, June 18-26 & Aug. 20-28, 2009. Highlights: In Munich, GERMANY, city tour and BMW plant/in Bavaria, visit Neuschwanstein and Linderhof castles/Oberammergau, home to the Passion Play/in Salzburg, VIENNA, walking tour includes Mozart’s birthplace, Mirabell Castle, “Sound of Music” locations/Bad Ischl and Hallstatt in the Lake District/in Vienna, Stephansdom, Hofburg Palace, Spanish Riding School, Hapsburg treasures, Schönbrunn Palace. Land only, $7,950 (June departure) or $8,200 (August). Single supplement, $2,750.

22 days/18 nights, Aug. 14-Sept. 4, 2009. Highlights: At De Wildt Cheetah & Wildlife Trust, cheetahs, red and blue duikers, riverine rabbits/see the Big Five at Tembe park/Cape buffalos, giraffes, zebras at Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve/200-year-old fisherman’s village of Kassiesbaai/ostriches at Oudtshoorn/Cango Caves/wine route and Stellenbosch/250 species of wildflowers at Ramskop Nature Reserve/in Cape Town, Table Mountain, Malay Quarter, Company Gardens, Boulder Beach penguins. From New York, $6,995; from Los Angeles, $7,395. Single supplement, $1,080.

17 days/15 nights. Highlights: In Mumbai, Gateway of India, Prince of Wales Museum, Dhobi Ghat/in Udaipur, Garden of Maidens and boat on Lake Pichola/in Jaipur, Jantar Mantar Observatory, Amber Fort, Palace of Winds/track tigers and bird-watch at Ranthambore National Park/Taj Mahal at Agra/sensuous sculptures on temples at Khajuraho/at Hindu pilgrimage city of Varanasi, boat on holy Ganges/Sarnath Museum/in Delhi, Red Fort, Humayun’s Tomb, Qutub Minar. From $6,419 from New York. Single supplement, from $1,397.