In Japan, Riding on Rural Roads, Exploring the Past

The Japan of yesterday can be found in the quiet countryside where residents still follow traditions dating back hundreds of years. Cyclevents’ “Japan Explorer” focuses on the country’s history and culture on an 11-day tour that will take cyclists from the ancient capital city of Takayama through the Japanese Alps, with stops at traditional hot-spring spas, to the city of Nikko.

Cyclists will sleep on futons in small bed-and-breakfast inns, then rise the next morning to pedal back roads through the rice fields and mountain valleys of central Honshu.

On the schedule is a stop at the World Heritage Village of Shirakawa-go, where people still live in grass-thatched houses. Departures are April 15 and Oct. 7.

Cost: $2,750 per person, double occupancy, including lodging, most dinners, all breakfasts, van support and baggage transport. Air fare to Tokyo is extra.

Contact: Cyclevents; (888) 733-9615, www.cyclevents.com/japan.

Austria: Ballooning

Look down at green Alpine foothills on a hot-air balloon trip from Sept. 1 to 5. Guests will stay in Salzburg and take day trips in a balloon to the Salzkammergut region, Lake Mondsee and other out-of-the-way lakes. Several lunch cruises are planned on the lakes.

Other ballooning destinations offered by the Bombard Society include the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Switzerland and Turkey. Vacations are five to 11 days and run from mid-January through mid-October.

Cost: The Austria trip for four nights begins at $5,988 per person, double occupancy, including luxury accommodations, all meals, ballooning, sightseeing and land travel. Air transportation to Salzburg is extra.

Contact: the Bombard Society; (800) 862-8537, www.bombardsociety.com.

Washington: Climbing

Guided climbs of mountains and volcanoes around the world are the specialty of Alpine Ascents International of Seattle.

But before you pack your boots, try the company’s climbing classes in Alaska and in the Cascades of Washington state. Among skills taught are glacier and snow climbing, rope techniques, route finding, rappelling and crevasse rescue.

A six-day course is $990 and starts on Sundays from May 5 through Sept. 22. A more complex 13-day course is $2,100 and operates monthly May 27 to Sept. 2.

An eight-day preparation course for an ascent of Mt. McKinley, the highest mountain in the United States, is $1,500 and runs March 22 and April 5 and 20.

A four-day wilderness trekking, climbing, navigation and survival session is $550 and starts on July 10 and Aug. 14. Transportation to Washington state is extra.

Contact: Alpine Ascents; (206) 378-1927, www.alpineascents.com.

Rivers of Europe

Departing May 10 or Aug. 30 and traveling between Amsterdam and Vienna, two 14-night river cruises aboard the Prussian Princess will glide quietly by castles and windmills.

In between, the boat will call in the port city of Rotterdam in the Netherlands and in Cologne, Germany, with its Gothic cathedral.

Other stops in Germany include the wine villages of Bernkastel and Cochem on the Moselle River; Koblenz at the confluence of the Rhine and Moselle rivers; Wurzburg on the Romantic Road; picturesque Miltenberg; Bamberg with its narrow cobblestone streets and half-timbered houses; historic Nuremberg; the medieval walled city of Regensburg; and the Bavarian city of Passau. The boat also stops in Budapest, Hungary, for a city tour.

The Prussian Princess accommodates 142 passengers in 69 cabins.

Cost: from $3,398 per person for an outside twin cabin, including shore excursions, sightseeing tours and transfers between airport and piers. Air fare to Amsterdam and out of Vienna is not included.

Contact: Peter Deilmann Cruises; (800) 348-8287, www.deilmann-cruises.com.

West: National Parks

Nature fans with kids can explore Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks on a 10-day family tour that includes Utah, Wyoming, Idaho and South Dakota.

Tourgoers will see wildlife, go rafting on the Snake River, hike, see Mt. Rushmore and attend a rodeo. Departure dates are May through September; trips for families with children leave July 7, 13 and 31.

Cost: $2,170 per person, double occupancy, including most meals, all ground transportation, accommodations in best available lodgings, sightseeing, entertainment, taxes and gratuities. Air fare to or from Salt Lake City or Rapid City, S.D., is extra.

Contact: Tauck World Discovery; (800) 214-5158, www.tauck.com.

Alaska: To the Dogs

With dog biscuits in hand, Sky Trekking Alaska is offering its annual tour to watch the 2002 Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race Adventure in Alaska. Eight adventure travelers can be a part of the 30th annual event from March 3 to 14.

The trip begins in Anchorage and follows the 1,049-mile race from checkpoint to checkpoint, finishing in the historic city of Nome.

Sky Trekking Alaska’s pilots and guides use ski-equipped bush planes to fly along the race route and make stops in Talkeetna, McGrath, the Yukon River, Unalakleet, Nome, Shishmaref and Mt. McKinley.

Activities include observing the race, mushing a dog team, ice fishing, mountain snowmobiling, cross-county skiing and snowshoeing.

Cost: $8,400 per person, including all meals, lodging, air transport within Alaska, an Iditarod 2002 embroidered jacket, gear bag and hat, and all activities. Price excludes air fare to Anchorage. A four-day trip is available for $2,800.

Contact: Sky Trekking Alaska; (800) 525-3153, www.alaskaonthefly.com.

Mexico: Oaxaca

The culturally rich city of Oaxaca in the southern Mexican state of the same name has ruins to explore, colorful markets with folk art to visit and cuisine unique to the area. Tourists who join a trip March 14 to 20 with cookbook author Nancy Zaslavsky will also see Spanish colonial buildings that house museums, churches, galleries and shops.

The group will stay at Casa de Sierra Azul, a recently restored colonial home in the historic center of town, and see Santo Domingo church, Juarez market and Acala, Oaxaca’s picturesque street of restaurants and shops.

Visitors will go to nearby pueblos known for folk art to watch artisans work in their studios and buy rugs, pottery and clay figurines.

Chocolate, cheese and beverage tastings will introduce tourgoers to regional flavors. A day will be spent at Susana Trilling’s culinary school for a hands-on cooking class.

Cost: $1,800 per person, double occupancy, including hotel, most meals and guided tours. Air fare is not included.

Contact: Nancy Zaslavsky, (310) 440-8877.

China: Art History

An in-depth tour from June 20 to July 10 will focus on the art history of China with visits to Shanghai, Yichang, Xian, Lhasa, Gyantse, Beijing and Datong. The group will visit the highlights of each city, focusing on the artistic aspects of the sites. Guides will give lectures at each location.

The itinerary includes the Shanghai Art Museum, Tang Dynasty Art Museum, Lhasa Art School and Datong, which has a large cave complex that includes Yungang Grotto and Xuankong Temple.

A night at the Beijing Opera and visits to Chinese homes to speak with villagers and children are part of the program.

A Yangtze River cruise includes shore excursions to Shennong Stream and Shibaozhai to climb the sheer cliff by spiral staircase.

Cost: $3,995 per person, double occupancy, including round-trip air fare from Los Angeles, hotels, most meals, all transfers, tours, domestic flights, entrance fees and guides.

Contact: Ceylon Express International; (800) 423-9566, www.ceylonexpress.com.

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