Watch the Birdie in Costa Rica

Conejo Valley Audubon of Camarillo invites bird-watchers to join members on a 13-day birding and nature tour of Costa Rica on Jan. 18. Costa Rica is known to have more than 800 species of birds. Designed for early morning and late afternoon birding, the tour explores a wide variety of ecosystems. Members begin with a look at the forest canopy on an aerial tramway at Braulio Carrillo National Park. The group continues to the Caribbean slope to La Selva rain forest for birding hikes, a trip on the Sarapiqui River and a day at La Selva Organization for Tropical Studies, an international educational group founded in 1963 to foster understanding and rational utilization of rain forests and material resources in the tropics.

Crossing the country, the group stops at Poas Volcano National Park to view the active volcano and the ecosystem of the dwarf rain forest on its slopes. Two nights will be spent at the Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve, home of more than 400 species of birds, including 100 pairs of breeding quetzals and 30 local species of hummingbirds. A two-day visit to the Palo Verde area includes boat trips on the Corobici and Bebedero rivers to view waterfowl and bird-watching in the dry tropical forest, home of toucans, great cursors and scarlet macaws.

Guests visit the northern region to visit the Can~o Negro wetlands area, which protects a wide range of migratory and endangered species. The final stop is San Gerardo de Cota, where participants will have an opportunity to view quetzals.

Cost: $2,330 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, airport transfers and baggage handling, hotels, all meals except on the first day, ground transportation, park entrances and permits, the services of a bilingual naturalist and specialized local guides at some sites. Deposits due by July 15. Contact: Sharon Lovell, Conejo Valley Audubon, P.O. Box 4782, Thousand Oaks, CA 91359; telephone (805) 484-2739.

England’s Antiques

Walk the English cobblestone streets that lead to paths of history and antique treasures on a nine-day tour of England led by antiques expert Phyllis Ross. The tour leaves Oct. 11, and the group will explore England’s most famous flea and antique markets, including Portobello Road, Covent Gardens and Bermondsey flea markets, plus some antique shops.

Cost: $1,199 per person, double occupancy, including airport transfers, baggage handling, accommodations, continental breakfast daily, one-week Underground rail pass, admissions to fairs and guide. Not included: air fare to London. Contact: Phyllis Ross at Golden Galaxy Travel, 353 California Drive, Burlingame, CA 94010; tel. (800) 359-2922.

Elephant Walk

A 17-day study program and safari to Kenya, Africa, leaves Oct. 9. The trip, which starts in Nairobi, features a stay in Amboseli on the Tanzanian border; one night at The Ark, a lodge in the Aberdares Mountains situated at a lighted water hole so you can see the animals at night; a visit to the Samburu Game Reserve, and a trek to see the flamingos and birds of lakes Nakuru and Naivasha. Participants spend several days in the Masai Mara Game Reserve in the northern Serengeti Plain. The tour will be led by a college faculty member and offers lectures by local wildlife experts and field learning experiences, such as a visit to Cynthia Moss’ Elephant Research Camp in Amboseli.

Cost: $4,295 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from New York, lodging, most meals, all safari transportation, lectures and seminars. Contact: Travelearn, P.O. Box 315, Lakeville, PA 18438; tel. (800) 235-9114.

Scenic New England

A nine-day autumn tour visits historic sites and scenic countryside through Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. The tour leaves Sept. 27 from Boston and includes sightseeing in Boston, Lexington, Concord, Saratoga Springs and Lake Placid; cruises of Lake Placid, N.Y., and Lake Champlain, Vt.; fall foliage drives along the Mohawk Trail through the Berkshire Mountains of Massachusetts, the Green Mountains of Vermont and the White Mountains of New Hampshire; Revolutionary War sites of forts Ticonderoga and Saratoga, N.Y., and a tour of Maine’s rocky coast, a stay at Kennebunkport and a lobster dinner.

Cost: $1,750 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, San Diego or Orange County to Boston, round-trip transfers from your home to airport, motor coach, hotels, tour guide and most meals. Contact: AFC Tours, 11772 Sorrento Valley Road, Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92121; tel. (619) 481-8188.

Fruits of the Vine

Italy’s Villa San Michele, a hotel overlooking Florence, will offer a “Wine for Dining in Tuscany” program Oct. 22-28. Burton Anderson, author of “Vine: The Wine Atlas of Italy” and “Treasures of the Italian Table,” will shares insights from more than 20 years of residence in Tuscany. There will be wine tastings in the vineyards and cellars of Montalcino, Montepulciano and San Gimignano, where guests will learn to pair wines with several cuisines.

Cost: $3,000 per person, double occupancy, including hotel, all meals and wines, tours, classes, gala functions and taxes. Not included: air fare to Italy. Contact: Orient-Express Hotels at (800) 237-1236.

Family Camping

The Los Angeles Zoo will conduct a camping trip for families to McGrath State Beach in Ventura County Aug. 11 for three days. Participants will relax in the park’s wilderness beach and explore the adjacent nature preserve along the Santa Clarita River estuary.

Cost: $100 for adults, $65 for children (under 2 free) including campground site, guided hikes and activities, and all meals. Contact: Los Angeles Zoo, 5333 Zoo Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90027; tel. (213) 666-4650. Ext. 403.

Beer Fest

Participate in the real Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany, on a two-week trip that leaves Sept. 16. Guests stay in a country inn in the Bavarian Alps, take a two-day excursion to Munich for the Octoberfest, and daily excursions to Innsbruck and Salzburg in Austria, and, in Germany, Oberammergau, Berchtesgaden to see Hitler’s Eagle’s Nest, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, the Chiemsee, the Konigssee, Mittenwald and the royal castles of King Ludwig II.

Cost: $2,295 includes air fare on Lufthansa from LAX, (land tour $1,450), accommodations, ground transportation, daily breakfast and three dinners. Contact: Cassie Bacher at All Roads of Travel, 3201 Eastwood Road, Sacramento, CA 95821; tel. (916) 486-8786.

Hail the Bard

A Shakespeare Festival in Klamath Falls, Ore., will be the destination of a five-day tour offered through Pierce College Extension Aug. 4. Shakespeare buffs depart from any Southern California Amtrak station and connect in Los Angeles to Amtrak’s Coast Starlight for an excursion up the California coastline, spending a night on board.

A motor coach will take travelers to see Crater Lake National Park before arriving at Bard’s Inn in Klamath Falls. Participants will see “The Merry Wives of Windsor” on the first evening in Klamath Falls and another comedy, “Twelfth Night,” the following evening. Other activities include: a backstage look at the costumes, technology and history of the festival; a stop at Harry and David’s Fruit of the Month Club store and factory; historic Jacksonville, and a farewell dinner.

Cost: $549 per person, double occupancy, including rail and motor-coach fare, two nights’ hotel accommodations, two plays and backstage tour, sightseeing and one dinner. Private sleepers on the train are an extra $161 per person. Contact: Los Angeles Pierce College Extension, 6201 Winnetka Ave., Woodland Hills, CA 93071; tel. (818) 719-6425.

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