“Visiting Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia” and...

“Visiting Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia” and Traveling Through Great Britain” are the titles of two three-hour travel classes being offered by El Camino College, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance.

The on-campus classes will be taught by travel writer Mary Ann Keating and cost $21 apiece. The Canadian class will be held this Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon and will focus on hotels, restaurants, museums. camping and other attractions in the province. The second class, on Saturday Nov. 2, will emphasize London and its surrounding area.

For more information, call (213) 715-3406.

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Tim and Deborah Sakach, founders of the Association of American Historic Inns, will present a seminar on “How to Start a Bed & Breakfast Inn” on Saturday, Nov. 11 at 9 a.m. at Saddleback College, 28000 Marguerite Parkway, Mission Viejo. Fee for the daylong class is $75 per person, $120 per couple. For registration information, call (714) 582-4650.

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The latest archeological discoveries in Jerusalem will be discussed at a seminar jointly sponsored by the Israel Government Tourist Office and the Jerusalem Hotel Assn.

The featured speaker at the seminar, which also will include a slide show, will be Dr. Dan Bahat, senior archeologist for Israel’s Department of Antiquities and a professor at Jerusalem’s Hebrew University. The emphasis of his talk will be the Temple Mount.

The seminar, which also will feature a presentation by Jonathon Harpaz, director-general of the Jerusalem Hotel Assn., will be held at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 24 at the Clarion Hotel, 2200 East Holt Blvd., Ontario. For more information, call (213) 658-7462.

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The Argentine Consulate passes along the word that visas are no longer required of American citizens planning to visit Argentina.

The new law went into effect on September 28.

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Eighty-eight years after its inaugural run, the Grand Canyon Railway once again is offering steam train service from Williams, Ariz., to the south rim of the Grand Canyon.

The line, which began operation on Sept. 17, 1901, had closed in 1968, partly because of increased road travel to the south rim. Congestion and environmental concerns have prompted the reopening of the service, using four 1910-vintage steam locomotives and 19 restored coach cars from the 1920s.

The line will offer weekend trains through Nov. 5, with special holiday trips planned for Thanksgiving and New Year’s. In 1990, daily passenger service starts April 1. The round-trip fare is $37 for adults, $21 for children under 12. For more information, call toll-free (800) THE TRAIN.

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America West Airlines will begin nonstop service between Palmdale/Lancaster and Las Vegas on Jan. 2, 1990.

The carrier will utilize a 37-passenger Boeing de Havilland Dash 8 turboprop on its four daily round trips between the Palmdale Air Terminal and Las Vegas.

Introductory round-trip fares will begin at $108. Introductory one-way fares are $79. Travel must be completed prior to Jan. 31, 1990. Other restrictions apply.

Flights will depart Palmdale/Lancaster at 7:30 a.m., 10:55 a.m., 3:50 p.m. and 8:45 p.m., arriving in Las Vegas at 8:35 a.m., noon, 4:55 p.m. and 9:50 p.m.

The return flights will leave Las Vegas at 9:25 a.m., 1:40 p.m., 5:50 p.m. and 10:40 p.m., arriving in Palmdale/Lancaster at 10:35 a.m., 2:50 p.m., 7 p.m. and 11:50 p.m.

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The world’s fastest commercial train, the TGV (Train Grande Vitesse), now runs from Paris to Le Mans.

A new 196-mile western line, which took four years and $1.5 billion to build, makes the run from Paris to Le Mans in 55 minutes, shortening by one hour the time from the capital to the entire Brittany region.

The TGV, or high-speed train, already has hauled 100 million passengers on its southeast rails from Paris to Lyon since the line opened eight years ago.

French railway officials estimate that 21 million passengers will use the new 180-m.p.h. TGV Atlantique each year.

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The American Automobile Assn. 1990 tour books will include ratings for more than 6,700 restaurants in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

The step marks a departure from the association’s usual format of providing evaluations only of accommodations. Restaurants will be given ratings from one to five diamonds.

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Cathay Pacific Airways will begin nonstop service between Los Angeles and Hong Kong on July 1, 1990. Initially, the airline will offer four flights per week. Daily service will start by summer of 1991.

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The number of international tourists grew 8.7% last year, with 390 million people traveling abroad, the World Tourism Organization announced.

Travelers spent $195 billion, which amounted to 7% of the world’s traded goods and services, and made tourism one of the three biggest world businesses, along with oil and automobiles.

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United Express has announced that it will begin nonstop jet service between Los Angeles and Reno starting Oct. 31.

The airline, headquartered in Fresno, will offer one flight each way per day aboard a 90-passenger aircraft. The one-way flight takes one hour and 25 minutes.

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Vacations ruined by traffic fines that have to be paid in cash on the spot could soon become a thing of the past for tourists from European Community countries.

Under consideration by the Community’s executive commission is a plan that would allow offenders to pay up when they get home.

“The commission . . . recognizes the considerable inconvenience caused to Community citizens when traveling,” Transport Commissioner Karel Van Miert said.

The 12-nation Community plans to scrap border controls for its 320 million citizens in 1992.

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Foreigners visiting the United States spent $20 billion in the first six months of 1989, a 19% rise over the same period in 1988, the U.S. Commerce Department announced.

A survey of air travelers from the U.S. Travel and Tourism Administration showed that foreign visitors in the United States spent almost $118 million more than the $19.9 billion Americans spent abroad in the first six months of 1989.

Japan tourists topped the list by spending nearly $2.7 billion, an increase of 19% from the same period in 1988, followed by Canada ($2.5 billion) and Mexico ($1.5 billion).

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The Los Angeles Council of American Youth Hostels will hold two budget travel workshops Saturday at the AYH Travel Centre, 335 West 7th St., San Pedro.

The first, at 10:30 a.m., will cover Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific, while the second, at 1:30 p.m., will deal with Europe. A $3 donation is requested for each workshop. For further information, call (213) 831-8846.