If you’re going to Hawaii and want...

If you’re going to Hawaii and want to duck out on the crowds, here’s an opportunity to join veteran backpacker Robert Smith on trips to Maui, Kauai and the Big Island. Backpackers camp out six nights, spend two nights in hotels. Day-hikers are put up in cabins, condos. On Maui, hikers explore Haleakala Crater, the Hana Coast, Waianapanapa Black Sand Beach. On the Big Island, Smith’s groups visit volcanoes and the remote Waipio Valley. Destinations on Kauai include Kokee State Park, Waimea Canyon, the Alakai Swamp (wettest spot on earth).

Rates for eight days, including a luau dinner-show the last night: $450/$595. Smith, an ex-Long Beach high school English teacher and the author of three books on hiking in Hawaii, has been leading hikers to the islands since 1978. Small groups. Plenty of leisure time.

For details on Smith’s hikes and books, write to Hawaiian Outdoor Adventures, P.O. Box 869, Huntington Beach, Calif. 92648, or call (714) 960-0389.

Castle Hotel: A castle-hotel near Lake Eden in West Germany (about 75 miles north of Frankfurt) has opened its gates to vacationers. Dates from 1120. Features three restaurants, a bar, a sauna. Thirty-nine guest rooms (rates about $40/$140 a night). Castle owners cater to tourists/honeymooners. Medieval-style weddings held in the Great Hall.

Details from Burghotel Schloss Waldeck, 3544 Waldeck am Edersee, West Germany, or contact the German National Tourist Office, 444 S. Flower St., Suite 2230, Los Angeles 90071, (213) 688-7332.

Paris Apartments: We keep getting requests for information on apartment rentals in Paris. Again: B&D; de Vogue Travel lists more than 300 properties near the Champs Elysees, Latin Quarter, Marais, Opera, Ile St. Louis, Avenue Foch. Kitchens, baths, color TVs, telephones, maids, laundry/dry cleaning. Secretarial/interpreter services for businessmen. One-week minimum rentals. Rates start at about $90 a night for a studio, $650 for a four-bedroom suite. B&D; is offering a one-bedroom apartment in an 18th-Century building, in a neighborhood that once was home to Ernest Hemingway. The same company will book you into chateaux in Burgundy, the Loire Valley, Normandy/Brittany, Provence/Riviera. Prices from about $80/$400.

B&D; de Vogue, P.O. Box 1998, Visalia, Calif. 93279. Telephone toll-free (800) 727-4748.

Giveaway: SRS Hotels is mailing copies of a 144-page book describing 213 deluxe/first-class hotels in 44 countries. Belgium to Thailand. Photos, maps. Details on locations/rates. Other sections list spas, health clubs. Hotels are independently operated in cities, mountain resorts, beach areas. Some top names: the excellent Beau Rivage in Geneva, the Peninsula in Hong Kong, the Dorchester and the Park Lane in London, the Imperial in Tokyo.

A beautiful book. Worth a stamp. Contact SRS Hotels, 1155 S. Semora Blvd., No. 1129, Winter Park, Fla. 32792.

Free Newsletter: Lonely Planet Publications, the prolific producer of travel books (90 titles in print), is mailing free copies of a new newsletter. The first issue provides items on coins in Thailand, trade restrictions in Nepal, a warning on travel in Israel’s West Bank area, Russian currency, foreign exchange in Poland. Other reports from Lonely Planet founders Tony and Maureen Wheeler and author Robert Willcox. Lonely Planet publishes a series of “Traveling on a Shoestring” guides, plus 55 “Survival Kits” (Alaska to Yemen). Other publications deal with trekking, useful language phrases. Lonely Planet’s latest: “Eastern Europe on a Shoestring” and “The Hawaii Survival Kit.”

For a free newsletter subscription, write to Lonely Planet, 112 Linden St., Oakland, Calif. 94607, or call (415) 893-8555.

RV Rentals: A company in Atlanta is specializing in motor-home rentals in Britain. Three options: a touring van, a mini-motor home or a full-size motor home. The latter sleeps six persons. Free pickups at Heathrow and Gatwick airports. Rates: $470/$1,325 per week depending on season. This includes taxes, insurance, membership in the British Caravan Club. Club members receive discounts at 182 campsites throughout the United Kingdom. Customized itineraries are part of the deal. Giveaways include a club directory/maps to study before leaving the United States. Motor homes can be shipped to Ireland or the Continent, although travel insurance and ferry charges are extra.

Contact Brittannia RV Rentals, P.O. Box 1333, Jonesboro, Ga. 30236, or call toll-free (800) 872-1140.

Trip Map/Europe: A revised edition of a pamphlet containing a trip-planning map of Europe is being distributed by Auto Europe. A helpful giveaway. Contains details on driving time between cities. Other items on ferry routes, costs. For copies, call toll-free (800) 223-5555. Auto Europe (one of the Continent’s oldest dealers) rents/leases all sizes of cars. Hundreds of agencies on the Continent. Short/long-term rentals/leases. Guaranteed exchange rates at time of booking, even if you take possession of the car at a later date.

Idaho Inn: Good reports on the new Idaho Country Inn near Sun Valley. Operated by Terry Henderson, a longtime fly-fishing guide, and his wife Julie. Ten individually decorated rooms with private baths. Themes reflect Idaho history. Remote control TVs, refrigerators, stunning views. A fireplace and well-stocked library in the living room. The inn is only minutes from Sun Valley and Ketchum. The Hendersons offer tips on restaurants, sightseeing, fishing, golf. Rates start at $115. The Wagon Room ($145) features a king-size log bed with a wagon-wheel headboard, private balcony.

Idaho Country Inn, Box 2355, Sun Valley, Ida. 83353. Telephone (208) 726-1019.

Oregon: A new 80-page Oregon directory is packed with helpful information. Contains a region-by-region survey of the state. Notes on accommodations, activities, transportation, fishing, parks, wildlife, beaches, attractions (Mt. Hood and the Columbia Gorge), visitor centers. Offers contacts for B&B; reservation services, RV parks, hostels, wine tours, guide service, boat charters. Copies available by calling toll-free (800) 547-7842.

(Note: Travelers planning trips to Alaska can obtain an 88-page “Anchorage Visitors’ Guide” from the Anchorage Convention & Visitors Bureau, 1600 A St., Suite 200, Anchorage, Alaska 99501-5147.)

France for Students: Young travelers are being invited to spend two weeks with a family in France during the International Film Festival at Cannes in May. Students 12 to 25 years will be matched with families with similar interests. Dates: May 10-24. This is a giveaway at $99 per week, including lodging, meals, sightseeing. Other students (16 and older) are being invited to learn French in a separate four-week family program for $280. (The study option is available year-round.)

Contact Europe/U.S.A. Cultural Program, 1081 Westwood Blvd., Suite 211, Los Angeles 90024, (213) 824-0014.

Reader Recommendations:

Oregon--Pat Hardy, Santa Barbara: “Paul Bunyan is alive and well near Ashland, Ore., in the form of Elaine and Jerry Shanafelt, owners of the Mt. Ashland Inn. A cozy, all-the-comforts-of-home log cabin. Every room has an incredible view but most importantly, Elaine and Jerry are wonderful innkeepers. I’m planning a trip back there soon. Mt. Ashland Inn, 550 Mt. Ashland Road, Ashland, Ore. 97520. Rates: $65/$90 double occupancy.”

England--Robert L. Tiede, Torrance: High praise for Garreth Edwards, a tour guide, 101 Claremont Road, Salford, Greater Manchester M6 7QF. “I used Garreth as my guide for two days. For 75 (about $120) a day, it was the greatest bargain of all.”

We regret that only a select few recommendations can be used. They must be brief (typewritten or printed). Only one recommendation per reader, please. Note: Recommendations will not be used unless prices and addresses are included.