Art appreciation excursions have been crafted by...

Art appreciation excursions have been crafted by Smithsonian Study Tours for fall.

From Nov. 14 to 18, Georgia O’Keeffe will be the subject of a tour to New Mexico led by Ellen Bradbury Reid, former director of the Museum of Fine Arts in Santa Fe.

The outing costs $1,550 per person, with four nights in hotels, two dinners, two lunches and four continental breakfasts. Ground transportation is included.

Another program, from Dec. 6 to 9, focuses on Thomas Eakins, with visits planned to Philadelphia’s three main art museums. The leader will be art historian William Kloss. The cost is $1,355 for three nights’ accommodation, two dinners and a continental breakfast.

Transportation to New Mexico and air fare to Philadelphia are extra.

Contact: Smithsonian Study Tours, (877) 338-8687, https://www.smithsonianstudytours.org.

Mexico: Ancient Cultures

The ancient people who flourished in west Mexico between 200 BC and AD 800 may have had connections to other cultures in South America. The Crow Canyon Archaeological Center’s new tour, “Shaft Tombs and Forgotten Cities: Discoveries in West Mexico,” running from April 26 to May 5, will explore the remnants of their civilization--stepped pyramids and ball courts--in the west Mexico states of Colima, Jalisco and Zacatecas.

Recent research suggests the culture developed independently of its Teotihuacan and Maya contemporaries. The tour will be led by archeologists Phil C. Weigand and Acelia Garcia of Crow Canyon.

Cost: $4,295 covers lectures, lodging and most meals. Air fare to and from Mexico is not included.

Contact: Crow Canyon Archaeological Center, (800) 422-8975, Ext. 146, https://www.crowcanyon.org.

Wyoming: Sheep

November is mating season for the bighorn sheep of Wyoming, so you may be able to see rams butt heads and challenge one another on small group outings led by Wildlife Expeditions of Jackson, Wyo., Nov. 17 and 18 and 24 and 25. Participants will travel from Jackson to Whiskey Mountain, south of Dubois, which is home to about 800 sheep.

A visit to petroglyphs left by the Sheepeaters, an extinct band of Shoshone Indians, is included in the tour.

Cost: $350 per person, double occupancy, including services of a guide, a biologist who directed a three-year study of the sheep; lodging in Dubois; two lunches; and a dinner and a breakfast. Air fare is extra.

Contact: Wildlife Expeditions, (888) 945-3567, https://www.tetonscience.org.

China: Buddhist Sites

A pilgrimage to some of China’s sacred Buddhist sites will be led by Richard Kimball, director of the Buddhist Psychology and Counseling Research Center in Rosemead. Landmarks such as the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and Xian’s terra-cotta archeological site are on the itinerary, but travelers will also visit places rarely seen by foreigners, such as monasteries and temples.

The tour, from May 13 to June 8, includes stops in Beijing, Datong, Loyang, Chengdu, Nanjing, Shanghai and Suzhou. Kimball will lecture on Chinese history and Buddhist practices along the way.

Cost: $3,700 per person, double occupancy, including air fare from Los Angeles, hotels, most meals, guides and travel insurance in China.

Contact: Richard Kimball, (626) 571-8811, Ext. 142.

Sports: Hockey

Hockey fans can follow the L.A. Kings or the Anaheim Mighty Ducks with Roadtrips, a Canadian tour company that offers short getaways to all the Kings’ and Ducks’ away games. Some packages include the same hotel the team will stay in. Packages begin at $195 and include accommodations for two nights, tickets to the game and Roadtrips hosts. Extra nights and cities can be added. Transportation is not included. Upcoming trips for both teams include Canada and Colorado in December. Tours run through June.

Contact: Roadtrips, (800) 465-1765, https://www.roadtrips.com.

Ireland: Walks

Even now, you can start to think green--Emerald Isle green. Summer walking trips to County Kerry, Ireland, are available from Active Journeys. The eight-day tours begin in Killarney and continue through Muckross National Park, the village of Sneem on the Inveraugh Peninsula, Glenbeigh, Dingle and the Black Valley. Visits to Celtic fortresses, monastic settlements and deserted abbeys are planned.

Cost: $665 per person, double occupancy, including hotels, daily breakfast, guides, and van support. Air fare is extra.

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

Mediterranean: Golf

“Hidden Holes of the Mediterranean,” a golf tournament and cruise from Monte Carlo to Lisbon, is being offered to women golfers from May 28 to June 9. The trip, hosted by Ridgewater Partners, will be aboard the yacht Song of Flower.

Competition takes place at five private clubs in Cannes and Avignon, France; Barcelona and Malaga, Spain; and Lisbon. Shore excursions to the medieval town of Carcassonne, France, and a tour in Lisbon are included.

Cost: $4,495 per person, double occupancy, including accommodations, daily breakfast and on-board meals, greens fees and ground transportation. International air fare is extra.

Contact: Ridgewater Partners of Santa Barbara, (805) 969-5962.

London: Theater

Another in a string of theater tours to London is being hosted by El Camino College’s theater department. Professor Ron Scarlata will lead the group from Dec. 26 to Jan. 2. Three theatrical shows are scheduled, along with an excursion to Stratford-upon-Avon or Stonehenge, a tour of London, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and the Theatre Royal at Drury Lane.

Cost: $1,549 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip LAX-to-London air fare, a room at the Forum Hotel, daily breakfast and bus transportation.

Contact: Ron Scarlata, (310) 660-3704.

Africa: Safari

Viewing the wildlife of Africa could be all the more special from the back of an elephant. Esplanade Tours of Boston is offering three-night elephant safaris in November and December on various dates. The safaris are in the Okavango Delta in Botswana. Guests will stay at Abu Camp, which has five tents with bathrooms and decks overlooking a lagoon.

Travelers will view game from large, padded saddles on the elephants. At night, game viewing will be from open vehicles. Meals with wine end each day.

Cost: $4,200 per person, double occupancy, including accommodations, meals and guides. Air fare is extra.

Contact: Esplanade Tours, (800) 426-5492.

Myanmar: Culture

Explore culture and religious traditions in Myanmar, formerly called Burma. Several departure dates from November to April are available for the “Mystical Myanmar” itinerary, with stops in Yangon, Inle Lake, Mandalay, Bagan and the extinct volcano Mt. Popa.

A ferry ride to Bagan and tours of its distinctive pagodas, a day cruise down the Irrawaddy River with stops at villages and markets, and an evening at a traditional puppet show are included.

Cost: Twelve-day trips start at $2,115 per person, and 15-day trips start at $2,775. Hotels, meals and guides are included. Air fare to Mandalay is extra.

Contact: Global Spectrum, (800) 419-4446, https://www.asianpassages.com.

Peru: Outdoors

On a soft adventure, after a day spent in the great outdoors, a real bed and hot shower await. Nature Expeditions of Florida, which gears its nature trips for “active people over 40,” has planned a trip to Peru with such creature comforts.

Highlights include hiking near the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu, white-water rafting on the Urubamba River, horseback riding from village to village, exploring the Indian market at Pisac and visiting Cuzco. The trip lasts 12 days and is offered year-round.

Cost: $2,780 per person, double occupancy, including hotels, most meals, gear, guides and ground transportation. Air fare to Peru is extra.

Contact: Nature Expeditions, (800) 869-0639, https://www.naturexp.com.

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