TOURS & CRUISES

ITALY

A celestial Roman holiday

Reach for the stars on a fall celestial heritage tour of Italy with the director of Griffith Observatory.

E.C. Krupp, author and educator, will lead the two-week UCLA Extension field study tour, planned for Nov. 6. The trip will focus on Italy’s role in the development of astronomy over 2,000 years. Participants will visit monuments and museums in Rome, Nemi, Naples, Pompeii, Herculaneum, Florence, Milan and Bologna.

“Italy is always appealing; this is a side of Italy that doesn’t often occur to people,” Krupp said. “In fact, astronomy is at the backbone of Western civilization.”

The group will explore the sky’s effect on culture as well as the history of astronomy in Italy.

Among other highlights: a stop in Florence to see Galileo’s telescope; a visit to Bologna to see a church built in the Middle Ages that has inscribed floor meridians that create a solar observatory; and a visit to Naples to see the Farnese Atlas, a sculpture of Atlas bearing the load of the celestial sphere. It is the oldest surviving depiction of the constellations of Western tradition.

Cost: $6,495 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $675), including round-trip airfare from LAX, accommodations, most meals and related expenses.

Contact: UCLA Extension, (310) 825-7093, www.uclaextension.edu/romanstars.

ENGLAND, GERMANY

Follow in the footsteps of the Beatles

INVADE Britain on a 12-day magical mystery tour that celebrates the Beatles’ invasion of the United States 40 years ago.

The Aug. 21-Sept. 1 tour, which coincides with annual Beatles Week festivities in Liverpool, includes music festivals, an annual convention and visits to Beatles’ sites in Liverpool such as Penny Lane and Strawberry Field.

The itinerary includes a party at the London Hard Rock Cafe and a concert at the Kaiserkeller Club in Hamburg, Germany.

Cost: $2,899 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $890), including round-trip airfare from LAX, accommodations, daily breakfast, transfers and admissions.

Contact: Liverpool Productions, Orange, Conn.; (866) 548-3776, www.liverpooltour.com.

FRANCE

Five autumn nights on

the Riviera

Play it cool on the playground of the rich and famous on fall getaway tours to the French Riviera.

The five-night packages, available Sept. 8-Oct. 31, are based in Nice. Nearby are Mediterranean beaches, medieval villages and such well-known cities as Cannes and St. Tropez.

Cost: $979 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $250), including round-trip airfare from LAX, accommodations, breakfast, hotel and city taxes. Midweek departure is required.

Contact: Adventure Vacations Inc., La Jolla; (800) 600-5587, www.adventurevacationsinc.com.

ALASKA

River rafting for 12 days in backcountry

Ride wild rapids through the backcountry of Alaska on a 12-day rafting trip.

The July 22 trip, traveling the Tatshenshini-Alsek River, will begin near Haines and end near Juneau, Alaska.

Cost: $2,895 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $80), including hotel accommodations, tents and gear, river meals and air transportation between Juneau and Haines.

Contact: James Henry River Journeys/ Bolinas, (800) 786-1830, www.riverjourneys.com.

CHINA

Historian-led

jaunts through

Asian culture

Discover the art, scenery and native cultures of China on an 18-day tour led by a Chinese historian.

The Aug. 22 tour, organized by UCLA Extension, will be led by educator Benjamin A. Elman. Participants will begin in Beijing, travel from the borderlands of Yunnan to the Lower Yangtze and conclude their tour in Shanghai. Highlights include Kunming, Dali, Lijiang, Guilin and Hangzhou.

Cost: $5,790 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $1,490), including round-trip international airfare, accommodations, most meals and related expenses.

Contact: UCLA Extension, (310) 825-2272, www.uclaextension.edu/exoticchina.

The Times is not responsible for tour changes. Send information to Tours & Cruises, L.A. Times, 202 W. 1st St., L.A., CA 90012 or e-mail travel@latimes.com.