Paring Down to One Goal--Bonsai in Japan

The Friendship Force of Los Angeles and Saitama, Japan, are offering a Bonsai Tour to Japan June 18 to July 1. Participants begin in Tokyo, staying for two days and taking a half-day city tour before moving on to Saitama for the focus of the tour--bonsai. Guests will stay in the homes of Japanese families for seven nights in the Saitama prefecture just north of Tokyo. The town of Omiya, in Saitama, is the worldwide center of bonsai. Saburo Kato, president of the Nippon Bonsai Assn., will set up classes, demonstrations, and tours of bonsai displays and nurseries in Omiya. Three days will be spent in Kyoto for sightseeing before flying home from Osaka International Airport.

Cost: $1,995 per person, double occupancy, including air fare, ground transportation, one-week home stay with meals, hotels and local guides. Meals are not included in Tokyo and Kyoto. Contact: Ed Lawrence of the Friendship Force of Los Angeles, 23055 Collins St., Woodland Hills, CA 91367; telephone (818) 348-8211.

New England Islands

An eight-day tour called Islands of New England departs Aug. 8. In Rhode Island, participants will tour Providence, the Newport mansions, Aquidneck Island and Block Island. Next they will travel to Cape Cod, Plymouth and Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts for a New England lobster feast. The tour moves on to Nantucket, Mass., and returns to Cape Cod to see Cape Cod National Seashore.

Cost: $1,634 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, hotels, all breakfasts and dinners, and ferry fares. Contact: Richard Robinson at Santa Monica College; tel. (310) 450-5150, Ext. 9731.

French Courts

Spectacular Sport Specials offers center court seats for either of its one-week packages to the French Open tennis tournament held in Paris. Week 1 runs May 25 to 31 and costs $2,350 per person, double occupancy. Participants receive tickets to three sessions, including opening day and two preliminary matches. Week 2 runs June 3 to 9 and costs $3,185. It includes tickets to four men’s and women’s semifinals and finals matches. Both trips include six nights’ accommodations, daily continental breakfast, a Seine River dinner cruise and an unlimited Metro pass. Air fare is not included. Contact: Spectacular Sport Specials; tel. (800) 451-5772.

Alaskan Wilds

Instead of ice and snow, summer in Alaska offers wildflowers and wildlife. Seven-day trips depart June 8 through Aug. 31. Travelers explore the Kenai Peninsula and Denali National Park. Highlights of the tour include the Chugach Mountains, a raft ride on the Kenai River, Kenai National Wildlife Refuge, the town of Talkeetna and Iditarod-champion Jeff King’s kennel.

Cost: $2,395 per person, double occupancy, including cabin or lodge accommodations, meals, guides and mini-coach transportation. Air fare to Anchorage and Kenai is not included. Contact: Alaska Wildland Adventures; tel. (800) 334-8730.

Swiss Wildflowers

A two-week walking tour, offered to three villages in French, Italian and German Switzerland, runs June 9 to 23. The emphasis will be on wildflowers and castles with four nights each in Rougemont on the edge of the Bernese Oberland, Morcote on Lake Lugano on the Swiss/Italian border and Gais in the Appenzell region. Food, culture and architecture vary greatly in these areas.

Cost: $2,120 per person, double occupancy, including accommodations, daily breakfast and dinner, transportation and guides. Air fare is not included. Contact: All About Switzerland, 272 Waugh Ave., Santa Cruz, CA 95065; tel. (408) 476-4482.

Back to Antiquity

The Fielding Institute is offering a 15-day study tour titled Egypt: River of the Gods. The tour is Nov. 8 to 22 and is led by Egyptologist Fadel Gad, who has worked for many years with the Egyptian Department of Antiquities. One of the itinerary’s highlights is a visit to the recently opened tomb of Queen Nefertari. The group will visit the Great Pyramid of Khufu, the Sphinx, and Abu Simbel, where the group stays overnight to see the rock-cut temples of Ramses II. In Aswan, the tour begins a five-day cruise up the Nile to visit many sacred cities. Several archeologists will present their theories on ancient Egyptian art, history and culture.

Cost: $3,990 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from LAX, accommodations in first-class hotels, Nile cruise, breakfast and lunch or dinner every day, domestic flights in Egypt and all entrance fees at sites. Contact: The Fielding Institute, Tour Administrator Katherine Pfeifer; tel. (805) 687-1099, Ext. 3160.

Bali’s Treasures

A three-week exploration of Bali, Indonesia, May 30 to June 20, highlights the arts and crafts in and around Ubud, a center for artists and craftspeople. Participants will tour the shop of painters, woodcarvers, silversmiths, weavers and gamelan musicians. Local guides will accompany the group on excursions to the Batur volcano, Batubulan for Barong and Kris dances, Sebatu and the Elephant Cave in Bedulu. The itinerary will include a Wayang puppet show and, if possible, one of Bali’s funeral rituals.

Cost: $2,369 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from L.A. to Bali, transportation on the island, accommodations in Ubud, 19 breakfasts, two lunches and 18 dinners, entrance fees, restaurant tips and local taxes. Not included: L.A. Harbor College enrollment fee of $39. Contact: Institute for International Programs; tel. (213) 891-2282; or Nancy Webber, L.A. Harbor College; tel. (310) 522-8253.

More Bali

A 14-day tour to Java, Bali and Lombok departs June 28 and includes visits to the Javanese city of Yogyakarta to see the Sultan’s Palace, the bird market, Wayang Puppet Theater and the 1,000-year-old Buddhist temple of Borobudur. The group also will enjoy a dinner and classical dance performance in a private home, a performance of the Ramayana Ballet with hundreds of dancers and gamelan musicians held outdoors under a full moon with the Prambanan Temple floodlit in the background, a visit to the temple of Kalasan and to the countryside, where each village establishes its own expertise in a certain art form--bamboo handicrafts, wood carvings, pottery, paintings and puppets.

In Bali, visits include the walled village of Tenganan, known for its double ikat weavings; a performance of the Legong dance by girls under 12; and the sacred temple of Mengwi. The group will see the Bali Museum, a marketplace, the old house of justice in Klungkung, a performance of the Barong dance, the water temple of Tanah Lot and the sacred Monkey Forest. Participants will then travel to Lombok to see the unspoiled culture of the Sasak people, who will put on a contest that tests their strength.

Cost $2,870 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, first-class hotels, all fights within Indonesia, air-conditioned motor-coach transportation and some meals. Contact: Elise Stettner, New Act Travel; tel. (800) 564-1389.

Provence Farmhouse

Spend a week in a restored 18th century farmhouse in southern France. This secluded dwelling is near L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue and each of its bedrooms has a bathroom. Available tour dates begin Oct. 30, Sept. 6, 20 and 27.

Daily tours will include antique shopping at L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, exploring the Roman ruins in St-Remy-de-Provence and Arles, picnicking at the Pont du Gard, touring the Palace of the Popes in Avignon and wine tasting in Cha^teauneuf-du-Pape.

Also included will be shopping in some of the ancient market towns, such as the hill town of Gordes and visiting the designer shops and tree-lined streets of Aix-en-Provence. Art and architecture will also be enjoyed in Roussillon-de-Vaucluse and les Baux-de-Provence.

Local restaurants will be visited and there will be nightly receptions to enjoy local wines and appetizers.

Cost: $1,875 per person, double occupancy, including seven nights accommodations, all breakfasts, eight meals, ground transportation, tips and entrance fees. Air fare to France is not included. Contact: Dwight and Barbara Bennett; tel. (562) 426-4732.

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