From Great Salt Lake to RushmoreVisit the...

From Great Salt Lake to Rushmore

Visit the home where the buffalo roam on a nine-day Western tour that includes Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks and Mt. Rushmore National Memorial.

“There’s a lot of history to be seen in this area,” said tour organizer Randy Case. “There’s variety too -- the Wild West, some of the nation’s most beautiful parks and gambling in Deadwood City [S.D.].”

Departures are planned June 19, July 10 and July 24.

Tour participants fly into Salt Lake City, then travel by bus through Wyoming, South Dakota and Colorado. Along the route, they tour the Great Salt Lake in Utah, then move into Wyoming, where they visit Jackson Hole, Cody, Cheyenne, Devil’s Tower National Monument and Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks. In South Dakota, they visit the Black Hills, Deadwood City, Crazy Horse Memorial and Mt. Rushmore. In Colorado, they tour Denver before flying back to Los Angeles.

Cost: $1,909 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip airfare from Los Angeles or San Diego, round-trip shuttle service between the airport and your home, accommodations, 16 meals, sightseeing, tour manager and baggage handling. From other Southern California airports (Orange County, Ontario, Burbank, Palm Springs), the cost is $1,939 per person.

Contact: San Diego-based AFC Tours & Cruises; (800) 369-3693, www.afctours.com.

CANADA

Winging it and wheeling it across the Rockies

MAKE tracks across Canada on a nine-day Rockies rail, air and bus journey that begins in Toronto and ends in Calgary.

The May 25 trip includes tours of Toronto and Niagara Falls before the group boards VIA Rail’s transcontinental train for a three-day trip west through the prairie provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

In Jasper, Alberta, the group moves to a bus for a drive along Icefields Parkway to Banff, where it spends two nights. It visits Chateau Lake Louise before moving on to Calgary.

Cost: $2,195 per person, double occupancy, including air transportation from LAX to Toronto and from Calgary to LAX, rail and bus transportation, hotels, train, 17 meals, sightseeing and baggage handling.

Contact: Pasadena-based Great Western Tours, (800) 344-7090.

CHINA, THAILAND, SINGAPORE

Soaking up three landmark cities

at a leisurely pace

Get a taste of Asia on a May 20-to-June 1 trip to Bangkok, Thailand, and Shanghai and Singapore.

The tour begins in Shanghai, China’s largest city, with visits to the Jade Buddha Temple and the Bund and a night cruise through the harbor. In Bangkok, the group visits the Royal Grand Palace, including the Royal Temple, which houses the Emerald Buddha, the country’s most revered Buddha image. Singapore highlights will include the Parliament House, Victoria Theatre and the Botanic Gardens.

“The trip was designed so that people could take a good look at each city,” said Stan Mazin, tour organizer. “We spend four nights each in Shanghai and Bangkok and three nights in Singapore.”

Cost: $3,175 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip airfare from LAX, accommodations, breakfasts, city tours and airport taxes.

Contact: Encino-based Travel Galore; (818) 990-4499 or (818) 786-6845, www.stanmazin.com.

MEXICO

Merriment along with murder on the high seas

INvestigate the scene of the crime and unravel a mystery during three-night “Murder on the High Seas” cruises from Los Angeles to Ensenada, Mexico, aboard Royal Caribbean’s Monarch of the Seas.

The “Weekend to Die For” cruises, departing June 27, Oct. 31 and Dec. 5, let participants become part of the drama or sit on the sidelines and watch the mystery unfold. Los Angeles-based Whodunit Productions plots the crimes and stages them.

“From the moment you board the ship, murder, mayhem and hysterical laughter lurk,” said Shauna Hoffman, president of the company.

Cost: From $396 per person, double occupancy, including the three-night round-trip Los Angeles-to-Baja cruise.

Contact: Whodunit Productions; (661) 297-3208, www.murdermysterycruise.com, or call a travel agent.

HAWAII

Geological science up close on two islands

Explore the living geology of Hawaii during a 10-day study program with the earth sciences department of Palomar College in San Marcos, Calif.

The June 14 trip offers two units of geography credit and firsthand experience with Hawaii’s climate and landforms.

The class spends three days in Maui, where they will visit Haleakala National Park, West Maui Volcano, Waikamoi Ridge and Molokini Island. The remaining week will be spent on the Big Island, visiting Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, Punaluu Black Sand Beach and other sites.

Cost: $1,525, including round-trip airfare from LAX to Hawaii, transportation in Hawaii and hotel accommodations. Registration, food and insurance are not included. A deposit is required by April 1.

Contact: Palomar College faculty members Cathy Jain, (760) 744-1150, Ext. 2952, or Doug Key, (760) 744-1150, Ext. 2515, www.palomar.edu/earthscience.

The Times is not responsible for changes in prices, dates or itineraries. These should be confirmed with travel agents, cruise lines or tour operators.