TOURS & CRUISES

HONDURAS

Reefs, rainforest and ruins

HIKE and snorkel on a nine-day eco-tour of Honduras beginning Dec. 23 or Jan. 8. Adults and children 12 and older can explore Pico Bonito National Park in the Sierra Pico Bonito and the reefs of the Bay Islands.

Tours of the ancient Maya city of Copan, a butterfly farm and the surrounding rainforest ecosystem round out the adventure.

“It’s a very pristine environment,” said Alicia Zablocki, South America operations manager for Mountain Travel Sobek. “The wildlife is very rich. I can’t guarantee that we will see it, but the jaguar lives there.”

Cost: $2,790 per person, double occupancy ($600 single surcharge), includes eight nights’ accommodations, most meals, all excursions, land transportation, internal airfare and airport transfers. Airfare from Los Angeles to San Pedro Sula is not included.

Contact: Mountain Travel Sobek, Emeryville, Calif.; (888) 687-6235, www.mtsobek.com.

CALIFORNIA

Calling all green thumbs

Stop to smell the roses on monthly weekend tours of Carpinteria’s garden industries Jan. 7, Feb. 4, March 11, April 1 and May 6.

A guided bus tour will give visitors an exclusive peek into a hydroponic vegetable farm, a large orchid farm, an exotic nursery with plants from around the world, a cut-flower farm and a landscaping garden.

Cost: $189.50 per person, double occupancy ($90.50 single surcharge), includes two nights’ lodging, picnic lunch and bus tours.

Contact: Carpinteria Chamber of Commerce (800) 563-6900; www .carpchamber.org/naturally.

ENGLAND

Theater tour of London

RING in the new year in London on a seven-day theater tour that begins Dec. 26. Thespian fans will see three productions including the new Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, “The Woman in White,” and “Mary Poppins,” accompanied by theater professor Ron Scarlata of El Camino College.

They’ll spend a day in Stratford-upon-Avon, visiting William Shakespeare’s birthplace and other historic land- marks.

Two days of guided walking tours in London will include the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace and stops at the Tower of London and St. Paul’s Cathedral, among other landmarks.

Cost: $1,675 per person, double occupancy ($495 single surcharge), includes airfare from Los Angeles, transfers, six nights’ accommodations, guided tours and breakfasts.

Contact: Break-Away Tours, San Diego; (800) 962-7325, www.breakawaytours.com.

FRANCE

Holidays

in Provence

Celebrate Christmas in Provence on a nine-day tour starting Dec. 19. Travelers will stay in the medieval walled city of Avignon, where they will tour the 14th century Palais des Papes (Palace of the Popes) and Le Palais du Roure museum.

They will also visit the village of Sequret and travel to the village of Vacqueyras for a wine tasting.

A day trip to Arles and St.-Remy includes the cloisters at Eglise St. Trophime and a visit to the Christmas markets.

Cost: $2,980 per person, double occupancy ($428 single surcharge), includes meals, seven nights’ accommodation, guides and admissions. Airfare from L.A., gratuity to guide not included.

Contact: Cross-Culture, Amherst, Mass.; (800) 491-1148, www.crosscultureinc.com.

HAWAII

Gone island hopping

Spend the holidays at sea on a 17-day cruise to the Hawaiian Islands, departing Dec. 20 from San Diego.

After a four-day Pacific crossing, passengers aboard the Statendam will visit Hawaii Volcanoes National Park on the Big Island, the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor and Waimea Canyon on Kauai.

They’ll search for humpback whales and dolphins aboard a catamaran off Lahaina, Maui, and visit the Place of Refuge on the Kona Coast.

Cost: $5,400 per person, double occupancy ($1,380 single surcharge), includes all accommodations, meals, local guides, Horizon guide, tours, events, transfers, tips. Transportation to San Diego is not included.

Contact: Horizon & Co., Toronto, Ontario; (800) 387-2977, www.horizon-co.com.

The Times is not responsible for changes in prices, dates or itineraries. Send information to Tours & Cruises, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 or write via e-mail to travel@latimes.com.