Follow That Whale Into Baja California

Baja California Tours is offering a weeklong tour to see migrating gray whales in Baja, Mexico, Feb. 10. The tour leaves from San Diego. Participants will go whale-watching for three days at Scammons Lagoon, Lopez Mateos and San Carlos near La Paz.

Cost: $999 per person, double occupancy, including air-conditioned motor-coach transportation with bilingual guide, accommodations for six nights in Catavina, Guerrero Negro, Loreto, Puerto San Carlos and La Paz, some meals and sightseeing.

Contact: Baja California Tours, 6986 La Jolla Blvd., No. 204, La Jolla, CA 92037; telephone (619) 454-7166.

Indian Ocean Cruise

An Africa, India and Seychelles cruise on Royal Cruise Line’s Star Odyssey departs Los Angeles Feb. 11. A two-day pre-cruise extension can be added for $899 to see the Taj Mahal and Goa on the west coast of India. The ship then travels through the Indian Ocean, bound for the Maldives, Mahe, Madagascar, Zanzibar and Mombasa in Kenya. A post-cruise safari, for an additional $925, will include three game drives, a stay at the Mt. Kenya Safari Club, Samburu Serena Lodge and a tour of Nairobi.

Cost: $1,414 per person, double occupancy for the cruise, including meals, accommodations and sightseeing. Not included: international air fare. Contact: Lee Hansen Travel, 712 Foothill Blvd., La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011; tel. (818) 790-5589.

Italy 101

An 11-day escorted tour to Italy departs March 21 from Los Angeles with Rome, Florence, Venice, Sorrento and Assisi on the itinerary. The Forum, Colosseum and St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City will be part of a sightseeing tour of the Eternal City. Participants may take an excursion to Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel or explore the ancient catacombs on the old Appian Way or shop in the designer boutiques along the Via Condotti.

En route to Florence is a visit to the Renaissance town of Siena, famous for the Palio horse race. In Florence participants see works of art, take a tour to see the Piazza della Signoria, the Cathedral and Holy Cross Church, and the Santa Croce district to view a demonstration of Florentine craftsmanship with time to shop for handmade leather goods and gold jewelry. The tour continues to Verona for a visit to the second largest Roman arena in the world and the so-called Juliet’s balcony.

A canal cruise to St. Mark’s Square, the Byzantine Basilica and Doges Palace, plus a visit to the Murano glass factory are on the agenda in Venice.

A drive along the Adriatic coast follows, with stops at the medieval city of Ravenna to view the mosaics of the Church of San Vitale. Next in order is a visit to Assisi, the pink-stoned city of St. Francis, with a guided visit to the Basilica of St. Francis and its famous frescoes depicting his life. An excursion to the Isle of Capri before an overnight in Sorrento follows.

The tour includes a visit to the ruins of Pompeii, where 2,000 years ago Mt. Vesuvius erupted and lava buried its 20,000 inhabitants.

Cost: $1,495 per person including round-trip air fare from LAX, hotels, sightseeing, local guides in Rome, Florence, Pompeii and Capri, all breakfasts and some dinners, motor coach, baggage handling, hotel tips and service charges. Other departure dates are available. Contact: Bonar Travel, 24 Whitewater Drive, Corona del Mar, CA 92625; tel. (714) 640-7402.

At Home in Africa

An 11-day cultural tour to South Africa departs on various dates throughout the year. Participants will have the opportunity to spend a night with a host family and enjoy a welcome celebration with the village chief at Lesedi, a multicultural village less than an hour’s drive from Johannesburg. The town is made up of the Xhosa, Pedi, Zulu and Basotho peoples.

As the sun sets, guests gather with their host families to witness and participate in cultural dances and festivities. A traditional feast cooked on open coals features grilled meat and a variety of indigenous African dishes. The tour also includes a welcome dinner at Mama’s Jazz Joint in Dunkeld West, a suburb of Johannesburg, and a Cape Town dinner at a new restaurant called Mama Africa. The tour also follows the path of President Nelson Mandela’s struggle against apartheid, including a cruise to Robben Island, where Mandela was incarcerated.

Cost: from $1,232 per person, double occupancy, including air fare from New York, hotel accommodations, tours and most meals. Contact: 2AFRIKA; tel. (800) 2AFRIKA.

Shiny Copper Canyon

A seven-day tour exploring Mexico’s scenic Copper Canyon, escorted by writer-photographer Payne Johnson, will depart San Diego Feb. 20. After a flight to Los Mochis, passengers will be bused to a colonial-era hotel in the historic mining town of El Fuerte, then depart by rail the following morning. Besides visiting the homeland of the Tarahumara people, participants will take a train ride that winds from sea level to 8,000 feet. The tour includes two nights at a posh new rim-top hotel, plus a bus trip down the 6,000-foot-deep canyon bottom.

Cost: $800 per person, double occupancy, including rail and ground transportation, hotels and most meals. Air fare to Mexico is extra. Contact: Jose Salas Tours, 786 3rd Ave., Chula Vista, CA 91910; tel. (619) 585-3409.

Ancient Chinese Sites

Photographer-videographer Frank Logan will lead a 19-day tour to China, departing Los Angeles Sept. 23. Participants will visit Beijing to see Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, the Ming Tombs and the Great Wall. In Guilin the group will visit the Reed Flute Cave and take a daylong cruise down the Li River; in Dunhuang sightseeing includes the Mogao grottoes.

This program is designed for lovers of art, architecture, history, photography, videography and adventure, and to accommodate people seeking to experience China’s scenery and fascinating cities. Included are many events such as a visit to a traditional Chinese medicine hospital in Guilin, a visit to the Museums of History and Revolution in Beijing, a special Jiaozi banquet in Xian with more than 100 kinds of Chinese dumplings served, a camel ride into the Gobi desert, a visit to a children’s palace and time with a family to experience the life of the people in Shanghai. Logan’s on-site discussions and lectures on photographic art and his own China experience are included.

After visits to Hangzhou and Suzhou, the tour concludes in Shanghai with a Peking duck dinner, performances by the Beijing Opera, Tang Dynasty music and dance troupe and Shanghai Acrobats, plus boat rides on Hangzhou’s West Lake and the Grand Canal.

Cost: $3,394 per person, double occupancy, includes round-trip air from Los Angeles, hotels, all meals, sightseeing and guides. Contact: Frank Logan Tours, 1272 Stanhill Drive, La Mirada, CA 90638; tel. (310) 941-6340.

Picture New Mexico

The Los Angeles Natural History Museum will sponsor a photography and natural history tour of northern New Mexico Jan. 22-26. Tours of Santa Fe and the Taos pueblo are included, and participants will be able to photograph the feast day ceremonies at San Ildephonso, a native American pueblo that allows photography during religious dances and ceremonies.

Cost: $850 per person, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles to Albuquerque, accommodations in Taos and van transportation in New Mexico. Contact: Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd., Travel Department, Los Angeles, CA 90007; tel. (213) 744-3350.

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