To Russia, With Gloves

When well-traveled seniors want to look beyond the more traditional destinations, Russia and Central Europe make a unique adventure. There are a range of choices for such trips.

One respected name in Russian cruises is Uniworld, which provides seniors with a discount of $300 per person ($600 per couple) on their Grand Cruise, which traverses Russia from Moscow to the Caspian Sea for an odyssey of 22 nights. Departures are Oct. 4 and Oct 11. The tour includes:

* Outside cabin with a large picture window.

* Full breakfast, lunch and dinner daily.

* On-board entertainment activities, including aerobics, bingo, Russian lessons, lectures, music and dancing each night.

* Guided shore excursions at each stop.

* Moscow city tour and a circus performance.

Uniworld has an additional selection of river tours ranging from 10 to 14 nights. A color catalog with itineraries is available from Uniworld; tel. (818) 382-7820.

Another company for cruises in Russia is Value World Tours, which operates in Russia and the Ukraine with a series of tours of 11 to 16 nights. Value World’s cruises also include a choice of city extensions at the beginning and end of each cruise.

All cruise prices include round-trip air fare from U.S. cities, shore excursions, guides, three meals daily on board and assorted entertainment. Prices from West Coast cities begin at $2,198 per person. If one of two passengers traveling together are over age 55, they will receive a 10% discount off quoted fares.

Value World offers additional cruises in other parts of Europe including a Grand Canal Cruise for 12 nights, which traverses the Moselle, Rhine and Main rivers. Value World has also added the Australian Adventure that features three popular cities, Melbourne, Sydney and Cairns. There is a wide choice of departure dates including many this fall. Prices from Los Angeles range from $2,698 to $2,998 per person, double occupancy.

For color catalogs with itineraries, call Value World Tours at (800) 795-1633.