Inn Offers Mammoth ‘Memories’

The grandparent and grandchild vacation concept has become very popular in the last few years, with a variety of often exotic and expensive tours regularly available. Now the Sierra Nevada Inn at Mammoth Lakes has a close-to-home, four-day/three-night package at reasonable rates.

Starting in early April and running through November, the year-round resort’s “Mammoth Memories” program is designed to appeal to both generations, while creating a closer bond between grandparents and grandchildren.

“We’ve created a program so the adults and their grandchildren can share such activities as exploring old mine sites, swimming in natural hot pools or creeks, and taking hayrides that end with a campfire dinner,” says Emily Maner, tour manager for the 156-room resort.

“There will also be gondola rides up the ski lifts, boating, fishing, horseback rides and pontoon boat rides. Some of the activities will be planned separately to give the generations a break from each other, if they desire.”

If visitors prefer some free time for a swim in the heated pool or Jacuzzi, a bike ride, or to take their own tour to Devil’s Postpile or the old ghost town of Bodie, the inn’s staff will be glad to help.

Prices for the Mammoth Memories package are $195 per person for grandparents sharing a room with two queen-size beds, and $125 each for any grandchild age 4 to 14 in the same room. If there’s a single grandparent the rate is $250, with no change in the children’s rate.

Rates include three nights of lodging plus most meals and activities, including a welcome party and orientation at Rafter’s restaurant, plus the gondola trip, hayride, horseback ride and other sightseeing in and around the Sierra Nevada resort.

Transportation to Mammoth, which is about a 312-mile drive from Los Angeles, is not included. For more information, call toll-free (800) 824-5132 or your tour arranger/travel agent.

Grandtravel, one of the companies that has introduced an innovative tour program for grandparents and grandchildren, has a new brochure with a dozen specially planned tours, including offerings to New Zealand and Scandinavia.

For more information, contact Grandtravel, 6900 Wisconsin Ave., Suite 706, Chevy Chase, Md. 20815, or call (800) 247-7651.

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For fans of music from the 1940s, the Delta Queen Steamboat Co. will kick off the 1989 cruise season on the Mississippi with a series of Big Band Cruises on the Mississippi Queen sailing out of New Orleans.

The three-day sailings include the Guy Lombardo Orchestra, Feb. 17-20; Jack Morgan and the Russ Morgan Orchestra, Feb. 20-24, and Bob Crosby and His Orchestra, March 3-6.

For weeklong cruises there’s the Vaughn Monroe Orchestra, Feb. 24 to March 3; Lee Castle directing the Jimmy Dorsey Orchestra, March 17-24 (including St. Patrick’s Day), and the Russ Morgan Orchestra again March 24-31 (including Easter).

Cruise rates begin at $435 per person, double occupancy, for the three-day cruises and up to $3,430 for a suite on the weeklong cruises on the Mississippi.

For more information, see your travel or cruise agent or call the cruise line at (800) 458-6789.

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For mature travel group tour leaders or travel agent/tour planners, Toronto has put together a package aimed at mature tour groups called Toronto Springs Alive. The program runs from March 24 to May 14.

It is a series of tours incorporating hotels, sightseeing, dining and entertainment that can be customized to suit your group’s time and budget requirements. It also includes details such as baggage handling, taxes and gratuities.

For more information, contact Toronto Springs Alive, 134 Jarvis St., Toronto, Ont., Canada M5B 2B5, or phone (416) 868-6331.

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Add to your senior discount list: Carrows, a restaurant chain in seven Western states (with at least 55 in California) provides a 10% discount for patrons age 60 and over.

In central and Northern California, Perko’s, another popular chain with 45 restaurants and more to come, is offering a 10% discount to the 60-and-over crowd.