YOU MUST BE DREAMING
It will feel just like the North Pole by the time you get to Kuhmo, Finland, to visit Santa’s workshop, bake cookies and pastries with his elves, decorate a forest tree and hear Christmas tales when Picasso Travel and Nordique Tours takes you on a holiday journey Dec. 22-28. The vacation includes sleigh rides, snowmobile safaris and cross-country skiing, as well as hikes along forest trails lit by ice candles and concerts of Christmas music. Stay at the Hotel Kalevala, which sits at the edge of Lake Lammasjarvi. Each room has its own sauna, and there is a swimming pool on the property; braver guests can jump in the lake post-sauna for a true Finnish experience. The hotel also offers ice fishing and other winter activities. The cost of the Traditional Christmas package is $1,239 per person ($1,475 single supplement; kids age 2-12 $619) and includes six nights’ accommodations, daily breakfast and dinner, one brunch, two lunches, one late-night buffet, transfers to and fro the hotel to Kajaani Airport and all Christmas-related activities. Airfare extra. 800-995-7997 or picassotours.com.
REAL DEALS
The week’s best travel bargains around the globe, by land, sea and air.
Pay for one night’s lodging and get the second free during October at Fisher’s Loft, a rural inn on Trinity Bay in Newfoundland. The two-night package, which includes breakfasts and dinners, is about $297 for two; usual price is about $399. Taxes are 15 percent extra. Info: 877-464-3240, fishersloft.com.
Make your travel reservations by Saturday to stay at Radisson Aruba Resort & Casino this winter and save 30 percent. The “Early Winter Sale” rates start at $289 per night Jan. 7-Feb. 8 and April 1-14, and $299 a night Feb. 9-March 31. Also, stay at least five nights and receive a food and beverage credit of $150 per room. Book at 800-333-3333, radisson.com/aruba; some dates are sold out.
Been married 50 years or longer? Pay $11 – the rate that was charged 50 years ago – for a night’s lodging at New York’s Hotel Pennsylvania when you stay a second night at the regular rate, which starts at about $218 a night. Sales tax is 13.625 percent plus $3.50 per night per room. Book at 800-223-8585. Info: hotelpenn.com.
Book a 17-night trans-Atlantic cruise on Princess Cruises’ Grand Princess through Icruise
.com starting at $899 per person double for an inside cabin. The deal, a savings of about $600 per person, is good on the Nov. 1 sailing from Barcelona to Gal-
veston, Texas. Taxes are about $44 extra. Info: 866-9-ICRUISE, icruise.com.
– The Washington Post
BOOK YOUR VACATION
There’s just something about tiny guide books – they’re easy to carry around, they aren’t overwhelming, and they’re just so darned cute. And if they actually come crammed with useful information, well, so much the better. Put the “10 Best” series ($9.95, Synergy Books) from the folks who run the website 10best.com in that category. These slender volumes, which so far cover Atlanta, Dallas, Miami, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., are based on the advice found at the website, which has an in-house staff of editors and travel writers devoted to finding the best of 400 cities. The guides distill that information down to the 10 best overall restaurants, 10 best restaurants for specific things (such as steakhouses in Dallas or views in San Francisco), 10 best-value restaurants, 10 spots for nightlife, 10 best sights and activities and 10 places to explore. For each choice, the basic information is provided, along with a color photo and a brief description. In the back, there’s a fold-out map numbered with all the suggested spots, “Keys to the City,” which includes tips on getting around and weather info, and links to online resources. Short but sweet.
GEARING UP
Anyone who has ever taken a laptop on an airplane – especially transatlantic! – can appreciate the reasoning behind the Rugged Laptop Carrying Case from the Fort Collins company OtterBox. This high-impact plastic case fits laptops with screens as big as 15 inches and protects the computer from water, dust and impact damage. You can even plug it in without taking it out of the case; set it upright to support on your lap or shield from view on a table. Comes in black, with an adjustable shoulder strap. | $170, otterbox.com
arctictropic.com The site says it’s for “serious adventure travelers – not for the casual tourist,” and it doesn’t take much navigating to discover that the Miami-based company isn’t kidding. From the home page, you can either start with a destination by clicking on the map, first a continent, then a region and a country. From there, it’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty. For instance, say you’d like to visit Argentina. Like to go rock and ice climbing in the high Andes? How about trout fishing in Bahia Arenal? Once you select a trip, the site links you to the tour operator running that trip. Not sure where you would like to go, but are confident in your abilities and the activities in which you like to engage? Then, instead, from the home page you can click on the icons for specifics, from such hardcore pursuits as wind-surfing, mountain biking, ice-cruising, hang-gliding and kayaking, to more refined pastimes: bird-watching, wine-drinking and star-gazing. From there you choose a type of terrain, such as desert, mountain, jungle or volcano, and the site lets you know what countries offer the activity in that type of setting before hooking you up with an outfitter. After there has been more traffic, the site hopes to have the tours and activities rated.
TRAVEL BY NUMBERS | Top Small-Ship Cruise Lines
The top small-ship cruise lines (and scores), from Travel + Leisure’s World’s Best Awards 2006.
1. Yachts of Seabourn (89.13)
2. Silversea Cruises (86.85)
3. Abercrombie & Kent (86.69)
4. SeaDream Yacht Club (86.07) 5. Grand Circle Cruise Line (80.63)
6. Windstar Cruises (80.36)
7. Lindblad Expeditions (79.17)
8. Star Clippers (78.10)
9. Viking River Cruises (77.08)
10. Peter Deilmann Cruises (76.51)
GEO QUIZ
1. Warmer temperatures, believed to be caused by higher carbon dioxide levels, have led to an increase in drought and subsequent wildfires. Severe wildfires have increased around Canberra and other areas in which country?
2. As global temperatures rise and mountain glaciers melt, low-lying coastal cities, such as Recife on the Atlantic Ocean, are at risk from rising sea levels. Recife is in which country?
3. Rising ocean temperatures have contributed to the damage of coral reefs, including this one in the Indian Ocean. This reef is located near which island country that lies about 400 miles southwest of Sri Lanka?
4. Over the past 100 years, more than 80 percent of the ice has melted from the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in which country?
5. Increased rainfall may cause flooding along coastal areas, such as this rice field on the Bay of Bengal, near the mouth of the Meghna River in which country?
6. Lingering drought in the Sahel region has caused the shoreline of this lake to shrink. This lake shares its name with which country just east of Niger?
7. A rise in temperatures has caused the Unteraar Glacier to recede more than a mile since the mid-1800s. This glacier is located near the Jungfrau in which country?
8. Scientists believe climate change has played a role in the decline of amphibians in a Central American forest near the city of Puntarenas. Puntarenas is located in which country?
9. Increased precipitation could make millions of monarch butterflies vulnerable to freezing after migrating to forests near Lake Chapala. Lake Chapala is located in which North American country?
10. Many lakes are freezing later in the fall and thawing earlier in the spring than they did in the 19th century, including this large lake that lies mostly in the Buryat Republic in which country?
ANSWERS: 1. Australia 2. Brazil 3. Maldives 4. Tanzania 5. Bangladesh 6. Chad 7. Switzerland 8. Costa Rica 9. Mexico 10. Russia
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY
