Sail with whales and hear native tales on tall ship adventures in British Columbia.
The five-night voyages, planned for Oct. 6, 15 and 23, are aboard the 92-foot schooner the Maple Leaf and sail to islands, native villages and archeological sites. Groups will hike in the coastal rain forest.
“The trips are really addictive because of the intimate relationship we have with the places we visit,” said Maureen Gordon of Maple Leaf Adventures. “When you hear a whale breathing or when you are alone in a village that’s been there for thousands of years, it’s almost an overwhelming experience.”
The Oct. 6 sailing departs from Port McNeill on Vancouver Island and visits Hanson Island, Echo Bay and Alert Bay, where participants will tour the cultural center and the Kwakwaka’wakw village. The vessel will cruise Blackney Pass, the autumnal feeding grounds of pods of orcas.
The later cruises depart from Sidney, B.C., and visit the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, including Saturna, Prevost and D’Arcy islands. Participants will meet with members of the Coast Salish nation and kayak into remote inlets. The group will observe sea lion colonies, porpoises, shore birds and tide pools.
Cost: $1,400 per person, including berth accommodations, meals, wine with dinner and shore excursions. Airfare is not included.
Contact: Maple Leaf Adventures, Victoria, B.C.; 888-599-5323, www.mapleleafadventures.com.
Rhythms of the desert
Discover the wonders of the desert by day and night at Joshua Tree National Park in California during the Desert Music Foundation’s Celestial Rhythms program on Sept. 16 and 17.
The main event, co-sponsored by the Desert Institute and the Joshua Tree National Park Association, is an evening of musical performances and a drum circle that involves the audience.
Astronomy buffs will be able to view the full moon and the Andromeda galaxy through high-powered telescopes on site. “You can read a newspaper by the light of the full moon in the desert,” said Kathleen Radnich of the Basin Wide Foundation.
Daytime activities available on Sept. 17 include a percussion seminar led by Paulo Mattioli, hikes and classes on ancient and modern uses of desert plants and the history of desert dwellers.
Camping is available in Joshua Tree National Park; lodging also can be found in nearby Twentynine Palms and the city of Joshua Tree.
Cost: $38 to $48 per person for the evening music program; hikes, classes and seminars are $5 to $20 per activity per person. Camping fees in Joshua Tree are $10 per night for individual sites. Sites for large groups are $20 to $35 per night.
Contact: The Desert Music Foundation, a committee of the Basin Wide Foundation, Twentynine Palms; 760-366-0270, www.celestialrhythms.org. For campground reservations, call 800-365-2267. For park information, call 760-367-5500 or see www.nps.gov/jotr.
Travel deals
The week’s best bargains around the globe:
Visit Alaska’s Denali National Park in early fall and get discounts of at least $70 a night at any Denali Park Resort property. Daily rates now start at $139 at McKinley Chalet Resort, McKinley Village Lodge, Grande Denali Lodge and Denali Bluffs Hotel for stays from Aug. 24 to Sept. 17. Taxes are about $17 extra a night. Availability is limited. Call 800-276-7234 to book; go to www.denaliparkresorts.com for info.
Buy any BritRail pass and receive a free day of train travel. For example, a four-day BritRail England Consecutive Pass, which sells for $169, is now good for five days. Buy by Sept. 30 and use the pass any time during six months of issuance. Info: 866-BRITRAIL, www.britrail.com.
Take a cruise with Mary Tyler Moore and save 43 percent. Crystal Cruises has 43 percent discounts on the Crystal Harmony’s Oct. 22 10-day Mexico cruise out of Los Angeles. Fare for an inside cabin now starts at $1,750 per person double, plus about $40 in fees. Moore, the ship’s official “godmother,” will join the cruise, one of the ship’s last with Crystal. In November, the luxury ship will be transferred to the cruise line parent company’s Japanese cruise division. Info: 866-446-6625, www.crystalcruises.com.
Southwest Airlines has fall sale fares to five cities in Florida. Other airlines are matching, except to West Palm Beach. Fourteen-day advance purchase is required. Deadline to buy is Sept. 8; purchase online at www.southwest.com.
Ski Europe is offering SuperSki Week discounts to destinations throughout Europe, including Innsbruck, Austria; Garmisch, Germany; and Chamonix, France. A package to Innsbruck departing from San Francisco March 9, for example, starts at $859 per person double, plus about $205 in taxes, and includes air on Lufthansa, six nights at the three-star Hotel Tautermann, breakfasts and hotel taxes. Priced separately, the package would cost about $1,100 per person. Info: 800-333-5533, www.ski-europe.com/sswpreview.
Book a package to Waikiki, Hawaii, with Pleasant Holidays and receive a free iPod Shuffle worth $99. Packages start at $998 per couple, plus $90 in taxes, for nonstop air on Delta from Los Angeles, six nights at the Ohana Maile Sky Court and transfers. The deal is good for travel from Sept. 5 to Dec. 5 and must be booked by Sept. 30. Priced separately, air is about $327 per person and the hotel about $528, for a savings of about $182, plus the iPod. Info: 800-742-9244, www.pleasantholidays.com.
Travel classes, seminars
Rick Steves’ Europe Through the Back Door hosts free travel classes most Saturdays at 10 a.m. at the Edmonds Theater, 415 Main St., Edmonds.
Sept. 10 – Village Italy
Sept. 17 – France
Sept. 24 – Travel Agent 101
Classes are free, reservations recommended. Call 425-771-8303 ext. 298 or visit www.ricksteves.com/seattle.
The Savvy Traveler offers travel seminars at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. most Saturdays at 112 Fifth Ave. S., Edmonds.
Classes are free, reservations recommended. Call 425-744-6076 or 877-225-1994.
* French for travelers, Thursdays, Sept. 1 through 22, $50.
* Wildlife abounds in Costa Rica, 10 a.m. Sept. 10.
* Learning to pack like a savvy traveler, 10 a.m. Sept. 17, $5.
* Exotic Iberia: Spain and Portugal, 10 a.m. Sept. 24.
* Belize: Ruins, reef and rain forests, 10 a.m. Oct. 1.
* Scandinavia, 1 p.m. Oct. 1.
* Argentina and Buenos Aires, 10 a.m. Oct. 8.
* Baltics and western Russia, 1 p.m. Oct. 8.
* On safari in East Africa, 10 a.m. Oct. 15.
Prices, dates or itineraries may change. These should be confirmed with cruise lines, travel agents or tour operators.
From Herald news services
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