Cultural Immersion on the Tropical Isle of Bali

“The Magic of Bali,” from Oct. 14 to 26, focuses on the cultural aspects of the Indonesian island. The itinerary includes a variety of Balinese dance and gamelan orchestra performances, a visit to a dukun (medicine man) to discuss healing with folk medicine and magical drawings, a gamelan lesson, a dance lesson and a lesson on how to make a temple offering. Guests will also attend a wooden-mask-making workshop. Two nights are spent in a luxury garden lanai room at the Oberoi, and eight nights will be in a garden villa at Pita Maha.

Cost: $3,075 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, daily American breakfast, some other meals, sightseeing, performances, transfers and service charges.

Contact: All About Travel/Bali Barong Tours; telephone (818) 368-5648.

Nepal: Cultural Pathways

Explore Adventure Sports is offering a journey through Nepal to experience its land, culture and people. On various dates this fall, the “Mountains and Monasteries” trek takes visitors into the remote region of Solu Khumbu. Travelers will visit many Buddhist monasteries while enjoying views of some of the world’s highest mountains. A Buddhist guide will lead the group through the monasteries to introduce the Buddhist way of life in Nepal. Time spent in Nepal is 20 days, which includes a guided tour of the Katmandu Valley.

Cost: $1,695 per person, including accommodations, meals and guides. Air fare is extra.

Contact: Explore Adventure Sports; tel. (303) 929-8681, Internet https://www.exploreadventures.com.

Canada: Kayaking

Kayak alongside orca whales on a trip to British Columbia. Sea Kayak Adventures invites outdoor-minded travelers to join a six-day guided paddling trip through Johnstone Strait. Participants will paddle two-person sea kayaks through the glacier-carved waterways between Vancouver Island and the rugged mountains of mainland British Columbia. Along the way, they’ll see orca pods--the strait is a traditional gathering place for the whales--as well as dolphins and bald eagles. The group will also explore the area’s islands on foot, visit an ancient Indian village to view totem poles and remains of a traditional long house, and camp on secluded beaches. Trips are available weekly through Sept. 9. No previous kayaking experience is necessary. Tours depart from and return to Port McNeill on northern Vancouver Island.

Cost: $995 per person, double occupancy, including kayaks, paddling gear and camping supplies. Air fare is extra.

Contact: Sea Kayak Adventures; tel. (800) 616-1943, Internet https://www.seakayakadventures.com.

D.C.: Capital Sites

Corliss Tours of Huntington Beach is offering an eight-day Washington, D.C., tour departing Oct. 9. Travelers will stay at the historic Hotel Washington and visit the Capitol, the Supreme Court Building, the Library of Congress, Ford’s Theatre, the Kennedy Center, Embassy Row, Georgetown, Arlington National Cemetery and George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon.

Day trips include Fredericksburg, Va., site of many Civil War battles; Gettysburg, Pa., where members will tour the National Military Park and the Eisenhower farm; and Baltimore and Annapolis, with visits to Harborplace for dining and shopping, the U.S. Naval Academy and Ft. McHenry, where Francis Scott Key wrote “The Star-Spangled Banner.”

Cost: $1,599 per person, double occupancy, including hotel accommodations, motor coach transportation, baggage handling, some meals and entrance fees. Air fare is extra.

Contact: Corliss Tours, P.O. Box 4042, Huntington Beach, CA 92605; tel. (800) 482-4597, Internet https://www.corlisstours.com.

Hawaii: Cruise

Cruise the Hawaiian Islands on Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas for 11 days starting Dec. 16.

Guests will sail from Ensenada, Mexico, with four days at sea before arriving at Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii. In Kona passengers will enjoy the black sand beaches, which are within walking distance of the ship. En route to Hilo, passengers may see lava flowing into the sea from Kilauea volcano. Guests will visit Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island and Kauai, with its profusion of tropical flowers. The Vision then sails to Maui for two full days, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, and visitors can toast the holidays with local pineapple wine. The final highlight of the trip is a day in Honolulu, visiting Pearl Harbor and the Polynesian Cultural Center.

Cost: from $1,149 per person, double occupancy, including transportation to Ensenada and air fare from Hawaii back to Los Angeles.

Contact: Whole World of Travel; tel. (800) 458-3636.

Wyoming: Nature Study

Combine nature and education on a Palomar (Calif.) College 10-day field course in Wyoming.

The life sciences department is offering a course titled “The Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem,” beginning Aug. 2 in Grand Teton National Park and ending Aug. 11 in Yellowstone National Park.

Each student will research an ecosystem-related topic of interest. During the course, students will give a “campfire chat” on their topic to the rest of the class. They also will keep naturalist’s journals of observations, activities, presentations and wildlife sightings.

Activities for the course include hiking, canoeing and rafting.

Cost: $550 per person, including accommodations in cabins with bathrooms and showers, activities and some meals. Travel costs to and from Wyoming are additional.

Contact: Daniel Sourbeer at Palomar College; tel. (760) 744-1150, Ext. 2775.

South Pacific: Festivals

Several two-week trips to Papua New Guinea are offered that will include the annual Highlands Cultural Festival on Aug. 19 and 20. This giant gathering of tribes involves traditional dances, songs and costumes. Visitors mingle with the tribal people and watch while masks, makeup and feathers are applied. The excursion includes a three-night cruise on the Sepik River, along with visits to lodges in remote Tari, Madang and the Karawari River.

Cost: $5,200 per person, double occupancy, including accommodations, excursions, touring and most meals. Domestic and international air are additional.

Contact: Travel World, 1324 State St., Santa Barbara, CA 93101; tel. (800) 487-7572 or (805) 963-6521.

Europe: History

Unless you want to wait until 2010, a tour that includes the Passion Play in Germany, which is performed only once every 10 years, is available from Sept. 16 to 30. Participants will attend the performance in the Alpine town of Oberammergau and visit Munich before traveling to the Czech Republic, Austria and Italy. Prague is the next stop for two days, followed by Salzburg, Austria, to see Mozart’s birthplace and sites related to the film “The Sound of Music.” After touring the Dolomites in northern Italy, guests will tour Verona and Venice before going to Florence and Rome.

Cost: $3,505 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from New York, hotel accommodations, entrance fees, Passion Play tickets, daily breakfast, some meals and baggage handling.

Contact: Betty Leonard at Shamrock Travel, 24001 Muirlands Blvd., No. 436, Lake Forest, CA 92630; tel. (949) 470-0301.

Malta: Cuisine

An eight-day, seven-night culinary tour to the Mediterranean island nation of Malta departs Oct. 28. The group will be accompanied by Claudia M. Caruana, author of the 1998 cookbook “Taste of Malta.” There will be general sightseeing, but considerable time will be devoted to lessons, dining and visits to a herb farm, a winery, salt pans and a honey farm. A feature of the tour will be a stop at the village of Quormi, where locals still bring the family meal to a communal oven for cooking.

Cost: $2,300 per person, double occupancy, including seven nights’ lodging, all breakfasts, four lunches and four dinners. Air fare is extra.

Contact: Amelia International; tel. (800) 742-4591 or (516) 433-0696.

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