Foot-Stomping Local Music in Morocco

Join anthropologist Harnid Mernissi for a 12-day journey into the heart of Morocco’s ethnic music Sept. 13 to 25. The group will meet, and hear the music of the Jajouka people of the Rif Mountains, as well as other venerated local musicians.

The tour begins by exploring the medieval city of Moulay Idris and the Roman ruins of Volubilis. The group will travel to Fez to see its mosques and shrines and spend the night in a Moorish home for an evening of chanting and drumming with musicians. On another night, guests can take part in a dance and henna ceremony with the Gnawa tribe. Shopping can be done in Marrakech, and camels will provide rides to the tents of nomads for a meal. Optional daily workshops in indigenous rhythms and drumming are available.

Cost: $2,225 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare, transfers, ground transportation, guides, hotels and daily breakfast and dinner.

Contact: Sarah Tours; telephone (626) 799-4795.

Irish Castles

Stay in a castle in Ireland on tours that depart almost weekly on Wednesdays through Oct. 14.

CIE Tours International is introducing the “Irish Castles” vacation. This five-day program visits five different Irish castles and includes overnight stays at two of Ireland’s top castle hotels--Ashford in County Mayo and Dromoland in County Clare. There is also a medieval banquet at 15th century Bunratty Castle and guided tours of Dublin and Athlone castles.

The itinerary, which starts in Dublin and ends at Shannon, takes in the counties of Kildare, Offaly, Westmeath, Galway, Mayo and Clare. In addition to the castles, sightseeing highlights include St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Kylemore Abbey, a narrated bog train ride at Shannonbridge, a visit to the Cliffs of Moher, and tours of the Burren and Connemara regions.

Cost: $1,395 per person, double occupancy, including accommodations, full Irish breakfast daily, four dinners (including a medieval castle banquet), drinks and entertainment at Jurys Irish Cabaret, tips and all local taxes. Air fare is extra.

Contact: CIE Tours International; tel. (800) CIE-TOUR.

Now That’s Sicilian

Explore the history and culture of Sicily, Italy, from Sept. 17 to Oct. 1. The tour will take guests to Rome for two days, then to Catania in Sicily to learn about the Neolithic, Etruscan, Mycenaean, Greek, Roman and Norman civilizations there. Guests will visit the Taomorina, with its beautiful little towns clustered in the foothills of Mt. Etna, to the Roman villas at Piazza Armerina filled with mosaics, to Palermo and its Norman treasures, and to the Eolian Islands, which are reached by a mini-cruise from historic Milazzo.

Cost: $2,327 per person, double occupancy, including transatlantic air fare from LAX, air transportation to Sicily, a mini-cruise to the Eolian Islands, coach transportation within Sicily, all accommodations and most meals.

Contact: Liliana Perniciaro at Circolo A.L.I. Tours; tel. (949) 589-7534.

European Spirit

Travelers can get into the Christmas spirit in three countries--England, France and Germany--on a holiday tour Nov. 30 to Dec. 14. Group members will be met in London by private coach and escorted by a tour guide for 14 days.

First the tour heads to Germany and the picturesque region of Bavaria. For five days guests will stay in a country-style hotel and visit the outdoor Christkindlmarkt in Munich. They also will see the Christmas markets in Oberammergau, the medieval town of Rothenburg and Nuremberg.

The second week of the tour is spent in Paris touring the sites from a small hotel on the Left Bank. The final three days are back in England for a Victorian-style Christmas season.

Cost: $2,600 per person, double occupancy, including lodgings with private baths, daily breakfasts, two dinners and all ground transportation. Air fare is extra.

Contact: The Victorian Closet, P.O. Box 141, Amador City, CA 95601; tel. (209) 267-5250.

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