Tours

On a 161-passenger boat, 8-day, 7-night cruise-tour from Vilshofen, GERMANY, to Budapest, HUNGARY, Dec. 27, 2014-Jan. 3, 2015. Highlights: Learn of new knitting techniques and patterns with textile expert and author Barry Klein. Create items to wear at New Year’s Eve on-board celebration in Vienna, AUSTRIA. In Melk, Benedictine abbey tour/city tours in Vienna and Budapest. From $2,799 per person, double occupancy. Optional three nights in Prague, $750.

AmaWaterways (Calabasas, CA; 800/626-0126).

16 days, 15 nights, Nov. 17-Dec. 2, 2014. Highlights: Meet in Bangkok/fly to Ventiane, site of Mekong River craft sellers, Army Museum, Wat Inpeng temple/in Luang Prabang, Pak Ou Caves/in Phonsavan, Plain of Jars, silk weaving/in Xam Neua, visit hill tribe villages & Yao schools, see karst formations. Land, $1,995. Single supp., $383.

Mekong Tours (Tillamook, OR; 503/842-7198).

14-day, 13-night luxury tour, departing Dec. 3, 2014, and Jan. 4 and Feb. 26, 2015. Highlights: Two nights each in palaces in Mumbai (Taj Majal), Jaipur and Udaipur. Two nights each at Oberoi hotels in Ranthambhore Tiger Preserve, Agra and Delhi. Jungle safaris in Tiger Preserve, home to tigers, leopards, cheetahs, blue bulls/cluster of temples at Ranakpur/in Mumbai, Hanging Gardens, Elephanta Caves. Land, $5,830. Single supp., $2,195. Internal flights, $472.

Exotic Journeys (Chicago, IL; 800/554-6342).

11 days, 10 nights. Departures Nov. 6, 2014 and March 5, 2015. Highlights: Istanbul/Topkapi Palace, St. Sophia, Blue Mosque, Grand Bazaar/in Ankara, Mausoleum of Ataturk/in Cappadocia, Kaymaklı Underground City/Sultanhan Caravanserai/in Selçuk, Temple of Artemis/ancient Hierapolis at Pamukkale/in Kusadasi, ruins of Ephesus/at Troy, Trojan War site. From Vancouver, British Columbia, 2014, CAD2,385 (near $2,188) or 2015, CAD2,485 ($2,279). Single supp., CAD550 ($505).

12 days, 11 nights; Oct. 1-11, 2014. (Departures after Oct. 11, call for new rates.) Highlights: In Athens, Acropolis, Syntagma Square, National Library, Hadrian’s Arch and Panathenaic Stadium/fly to Mykonos, island of narrow streets, windmills/overlook ancient caldera on Santorini/hydrofoil to Crete and see Minoan palace at ancient site of Knossos/walking tour of Heraklion. Land, double from $3,871 (4-star) to $4,797 (5-star); single $4,886 (4-star) to $6,410 (5-star).

9-day, 7-night “learning journey” in Tuscany, ITALY, Oct. 11-19, 2014. Highlights: Learn Italian in five 4-hour-long morning classes, taught by professional instructor/2-part cooking course/culinary and historical walking tours/taste wines and local produce at winery in hills above Lucca. Land, from $2,360. Single supp., $602.

Italy Vacations (Woodcliff Lake, NJ; 800/482-5925).

8 days, 7 nights. Departures Dec. 18 through Dec. 25, 2014. Highlights: In Krakow, regional food, hot mulled wine, handcrafts in UNESCO-listed medieval Market Square/make pierogi with private chef, ride a sleigh, tour glass factory. In Warsaw, see pottery, crèches, gingerbread ornaments/sample traditional dishes in Polish family’s home/midnight Christmas carols. Land, $3,395. Single supp., $495.

MIR Corporation (Seattle, WA; 800/424-7289, www.mircorp.com).

10-day, 9-night tour through GERMANY, AUSTRIA, FRANCE and SWITZERLAND. Departures Nov. 27 through Dec. 13, 2014. Highlights: In Munich, Christkindlmarkt in Marienplatz/in Salzburg, Mozart’s family home/Hall of Tirol, 700-year-old town near Innsbruck/island town of Lindau/Black Forest/Freiburg carriage ride/Strasbourg, home to France’s oldest Christmas market/in Zurich, huge indoor market with 3-story Christmas tree. Land, $2,150. Single supp., $440.

Insight Vacations (Rye, NY; 888/680-1241).

15 days, 14 nights, Sept. 20-Oct. 4, 2014. Highlights: From Lima, head to Paracas. Tour Ballestas Islands, home to sea lions, cormorants, Humboldt penguins/in Ica, sand dune oasis of Huacachina/short flight over ancient Nazca Lines/Pampa Cañahuas, home to vicuñas, llamas, alpacas/Colca Canyon, home to Andean condors/floating islands on Lake Titicaca/Andean Explorer train to Cuzco/Sacred Valley of Incas/Machu Picchu. Land, starting at $3,340.

South America Travel (No. Am. office, Seattle, WA; 800/747-4540).

20 days, 19 nights, Nov. 4-23, 2014. Highlights: In Benin, pivotal location of slave trade for nearly 300 years and birthplace of voodoo, see stilt villages/in Burkino Faso, see cultural mix of people known for music and crafts/in mountains of Togo, fortress-like mud houses built in 17th century. From New York, $7,625. Single supp., $1,250.

In Focus with Michele Burgess (Huntington Beach, CA; 714/536-6104).