Exploring Peak Sights on Autumn Treks to Nepal

You don’t have to climb Mt. Everest to enjoy Nepal. Adventureland Travel is offering two 15-day trips to the Himalayan kingdom Oct. 7 and Oct. 21.

Tour highlights include visits to the sacred stupas and temples at Swayambhunath, Pasiupatinath and Bodhnath, a seven-day trek to teahouses in the Annapurna region, white-water rafting on the Trisuli River and two days on safari in Royal Chitwan National Park.

Cost: $1,699 per person, double occupancy, including 14 nights’ accommodation, ground transportation, river rafting, trekking, safari, a city tour of Katmandu, porters, guides and most meals. Air fare to Nepal is additional. Tours are limited to 18. Additional departure dates are available in March.

Contact: Adventureland Travel; telephone (818) 980-3730.

Norway: Cruise

Norwegian Coastal Voyage’s 15-day “Discover Norway” air-sea program combines a sailing along the fiord-indented west coast with hotel stays in Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim, the country’s three largest cities. The ship plies the 1,250-mile coast between Bergen, a historic Hanseatic port, and Kirkenes, above the Arctic Circle. Daily departures to Oslo are scheduled through Oct. 31.

Highlights of the 24 ports of call include the Art Nouveau architecture in Alesund; Tromso and its Arctic Cathedral; Hammerfest, the world’s northernmost town; the rugged Lofoten Islands; and Trondheim, Norway’s first capital.

Cost: from $2,755 per person, double occupancy. Rates are lowest in October. Price includes round-trip air fare from New York, hotels with breakfast daily, all meals aboard ship and a rail trip from Oslo to Bergen.

Contact: Norwegian Coastal Voyage, 405 Park Ave., New York, NY 10022; tel. (800) 323-7436 or (212) 319-1300, https://www.coastalvoyage.com.

Africa: Beaches

The African countries of Malawi and Mozambique are on the road less traveled by tourists. A 13-day trip through them is offered by Adventures Abroad of Blaine, Wash.

Beginning in Malawi’s capital, Lilongwe, the group travels to Liwonde National Park, reported to be one of southern Africa’s best for wildlife viewing. Two nights and a day are spent there before moving on for two nights and a day at Cape Maclear on Lake Malawi. The sixth day will be spent traveling to Maputo, capital of Mozambique. Touring is primarily along the Indian Ocean coast, with visits to Maputo Reserve.

Departure dates in Lilongwe are Oct. 31 and Nov. 21 this year, and Jan. 30, Feb. 27, May 15, Aug. 7, Oct. 30 and Nov. 20, 2002.

Cost: $3,721 per person, double occupancy, including air fare from New York, 11 nights’ lodging and daily breakfast and dinner. Groups are limited to 21 people.

Contact: Adventures Abroad; tel. (800) 665-3998.

France: Provence

The interior of Provence, which inspired Impressionist artists such as Vincent van Gogh and Paul Cezanne, is a scenic area chosen by Active Journeys for hiking and cycling tours.

Both tours begin in Cavaillon and move on to Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, where tour participants can visit the home of the 14th century poet Petrarch. They continue on to Gordes, to explore nearby 12th century buildings, and the ochre-colored town of Roussillon. Then it’s on to the Vaucluse plateau and the Grand Luberon, and Buoux, an isolated village that was once a fortress. Loumarin, the last stop on the tour, has a chateau to explore.

The bicycle tour is graded as moderately difficult; covering 12 to 15 miles of cycling per day, it offers moderate to intermediate altitude changes over varied terrain. The separate hiking tour is graded as a moderate to intermediate level of difficulty, with six to 12 miles of hiking per day. Tours are available from Sept. 1 to Oct. 31 and April 1 to June 30.

Cost: $850 per person, including accommodations, luggage transfers, all breakfasts and one dinner. Air fare is not included. Bike rentals are extra.

Contact: Active Journeys; tel. (800) 597-5594, https://www.activejourneys.com.

South Africa: Safari

Nature Expeditions International promises to go easy on you on a “soft” adventure to South Africa that is offered year-round.

Highlights include wildlife viewing in the Sabi Sand Game Reserve, elephant-back trekking near Victoria Falls, bicycling and wine tasting near Stellenbosch and Fransschoek, hiking in the Cape of Good Hope, a cruise on the Zambezi River, and canoeing or kayaking along the Garden Route.

All of the excursions are elective and low-intensity, geared for active people 40 and older. Travelers will stay in safari lodges and hotels and can choose from a menu of lectures by regional experts.

Cost: $4,655 per person, double occupancy, including hotels, all meals and in-country transportation. Air fare to Africa is extra.

Contact: Nature Expeditions International, 7860 Peters Road, Suite F-103, Plantation, FL 33324; tel. (800) 869-0639, Internet https://www.naturexp.com.

Rockies: Fall Foliage

Enjoy spectacular foliage on a wildlife viewing trip in the Rockies. The seven-day trip from Wildlife Expeditions, formerly Great Plains Wildlife Institute, based in Jackson, Wyo., explores Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, the Bridger-Teton National Forest and surrounding areas.

Groups of no more than eight will travel with a biologist in custom-built safari vehicles. Besides wildlife watching, the program will include discussions about the land and the science of wildlife biology. The group will take a float trip down the Snake River, travel to historic Cody, home of the Buffalo Bill Cody Museum, and visit the Lamar Valley, called America’s Serengeti because of its concentration of wildlife, including bison, moose, pronghorn antelope, bighorn sheep, elk, eagles and other species.

Trips are offered Sept. 8 to 14 and Sept. 22 to 28, and in winter.

Cost: $1,885 per person, double occupancy. Air fare to Jackson, Wyo., is not included.

Contact: Wildlife Expeditions; tel. (888) 945-3567 or (307) 733-2623, https://www.tetonscience.org/wildlife.

Lake Powell: Rock Art

The Four Corners School of Utah is offering a nine-day cruise on Lake Powell to look for and record ancient rock art sites. The tour starts Sept. 29.

Participants will sleep under the stars aboard a comfortable houseboat at night. During the day, they will join experts and guides on off-trail hikes to spectacular, seldom-seen rock art and ruins of the Ancestral Pueblo and Navajo peoples dating from about 200 BC to 1300.

Participants will map, sketch and photograph sites and record environmental data. Training will be given to those unfamiliar with archeological techniques.

Cost: $1,525 per person, including lodging, meals and instruction. Transportation to the site is extra.

Contact: Four Corners School; tel. (800) 525-4456, https://www.sw-adventures.org.

Utah: Grand Gulch

On the Loose Expeditions of Huntington, Vt., will stage two 30-mile hikes through Grand Gulch, a deep canyon that extends for 60 miles and splits southeastern Utah’s Cedar Mesa. Within the gulch are ruins and petroglyphs from the Anasazi civilization, which disappeared in the 14th century.

The hikes are scheduled April 20 to 27 and April 28 to May 5. Rated “moderate,” the journey involves five to six miles’ walking daily. Llamas will carry gear.

Cost: $1,295 per person, including gear, grub and good-bye dinner at a Salt Lake City restaurant. Air fare is not included.

Contact: On the Loose Expeditions; tel. (800) 688-1481, https://www.otloose.com.

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