Gardens, wineries and more

RAMBLE through the gardens, vineyards and parks of New Zealand on a three-week tour that begins Jan. 7.

The tour, which focuses mainly on gardens, will include stops from Auckland to Christchurch. Participants will meet the people who planted the gardens.

“It’s not just looking at plants,” said landscape architect and tour leader Richard Lyon. “The garden without the gardener doesn’t make sense.”

The group will tour a sculpture garden and a winery on Waiheke Island and stay in a historic hotel in Tongariro National Park. Participants will visit a seabird sanctuary, gardens and wineries in Napier; explore Okarito Lagoon by boat; and stay in a wilderness lodge on the shores of Lake Moeraki.

Also included are stops at Queenstown, Doubtful Sound, Mt. Cook and a stay at a sheep farm.

Cost: $7,925 per person, double occupancy ($1,695 single surcharge), including round-trip airfare from Los Angeles, internal flights, 21 nights of accommodations, most meals, cruises and admissions, transfers and taxes.

Contact: Garden Adventures, Kennett Square, Pa.; (877) 323-3300; (610) 444-6161, www.gardenadventures.net.

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JAPAN

The real Tokyo and Hiroshima

OBSERVE autumn colors on a tour of Japan that includes Tokyo and Hiroshima.

The 10-night tour, which begins Nov. 1, will include six days touring Tokyo and the surrounding area, two in Hiroshima and two in Kyoto.

“It’s a small tour,” said leader Steve Adelsman. “I do not use a motor coach. We ride the subways [and the trains]. We get right in there where the people are.”

The group sometimes walks miles. (Participants are warned on the company website that they should be fit enough to walk several miles a day.)

Highlights of the trip include visits to shrines in Tokyo, such as the Meiji Shrine and Senso-Ji Temple. The group will visit Tsukiji, the Tokyo Fish Market, the Hama Rikyu Garden and take a boat ride on the Sumida River.

In Hiroshima, the group will tour Peace Park and take a ferry to nearby Miyajima Island to see the floating Torii Gate.

In Kyoto, the group will stroll the grounds of the Golden Pavilion, the Imperial Palace and the Kiyomizu temple.

Cost: $4,995 per person, double occupancy ($600 single surcharge), including hotels, meals, transportation in Japan, excursions, entrance fees and transfers.

Contact: Adelsman Tours, Cottonwood, Ariz.; (928) 649-1001, www.adelsmantours.com.

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INDIA

Art curator spices up tour

SEE the treasures of India through the eyes of a Los Angeles museum curator.

The three-week tour, which will begin Feb. 1, is being organized by the Southern Asian Art Council of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Assistant curator Rochelle Kessler will lead the tour.

The tour begins with a look at the colonial architecture in Kolkata, once home to the East India Co. The group travels to Orissa to see the temples of Bhubaneswar, Puri and Konarak. They visit the tribal villages of Orissa where crafts such as ikat weaving and lost wax sculptures are still made by hand. Participants study the Mughal aesthetic in architecture in the cities of Agra and Delhi. They fly to Varanasi and travel to Sarnath, Khajuraho and Bhopal. They visit the early Buddhist stupas at Sanchi and see prehistoric cave paintings at Bhimbetka. .

Cost: $7,680 per person, double occupancy ($1,745 single surcharge), including international airfare from Los Angeles, internal airfare, hotels, meals and excursions. Membership fees and a $750 tax-deductible donation to the Southern Asian Arts Council are not included.

Contact: Distant Horizons, Long Beach; (800) 333-1240, www.distant-horizons.com.

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HONG KONG

New Year’s, Chinese style

CELEBRATE Chinese New Year in Hong Kong.

The six-night trips depart daily Jan. 24 to 27. Participants tour the island, take a tram ride up to Victoria Peak, cruise the harbor on a traditional sampan boat, attend the parade and shop.

Cost: $1,263 ($300 single surcharge), including round-trip airfare from Los Angeles, hotels, daily breakfast, transfers and baggage handling.

Contact: A & E Easy Travel, Whittier; (562) 908-1194.

The Times is not responsible for changes in prices, dates or itineraries. Send information to Tours & Cruises, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 or via e-mail to travel@latimes.com.