Tuscan cuisine with a Medici, cooking at La Varenne in Burgundy and champagne and cuisine with a Heidsieck are among the trips available from Travel Concepts, a company that specializes in wine and food tours.
The week-long champagne and cuisine trip will be led by Mrs. Charles Heidsieck who will spend four nights in France`s Champagne region. There will be private cooking demonstrations with two- and three-star Michelin chefs and champagne tastings. The trip also includes three nights in Brussels. Land-only price–per person, double occupancy–is $1,576. The first trip is scheduled for April 26.
The one-week Tuscan cuisine course will be taught by Lorenza de` Medici at Badia a Coltibuono, one of Italy`s foremost wine estates near Florence. First trip is May 10. Land-only price is $2,200, per person, double occupancy.
The La Varenne land-only price (per person, double occupancy) is $2,290. First trip is April 19.
Besides the wine and food programs, Travel Concepts offers a tour that features palaces, gardens and castles in Vienna, Salzburg and Munich and another that takes participants ballooning across Switzerland.
For more information, contact a travel agent or Travel Concepts, Suite 601, 373 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, Mass. 02115, 617-266-8450.
SONOMA B&BS
Vacationers planning a trip to California`s Sonoma Valley and searching for bed and breakfast homes and inns should get a copy of ”Wine Country Inns of Sonoma County.”
Thirteen inns are listed in the brochure in towns such as Healdsburg, Geyserville, Santa Rosa and Cloverdale. Accommodations vary from a 1901 Queen Anne Victorian mansion to a 1906 redwood ranch house.
To order a copy of the brochure, send a check or money order for $1 to Wine Country Inns of Sonoma County, P.O. Box 51, Geyserville, Calif. 95441, or call 707-433-INNS.
For information about Sonoma County attractions, including the area`s numerous wineries, contact Sonoma Valley Vistors Bureau, 453 1st St. East, Sonoma, Calif. 95476, or call 707-935-0803.
The same office can give you information about the Sonoma Valley Wine Auction, Aug. 13-15.
MACON IN BLOOM
It`s debatable which cherry blossom festival is bigger and better. The folks in Washington, D.C., say their gala is. The Macon, Ga., residents boast their fest is better.
We don`t know which is better, but we do know which one comes first. It`s the Macon Cherry Blossom Festival March 20-29. Washington`s event is scheduled for April 5-11.
Besides seeing 70,000 blooming Yoshino cherry trees, visitors can tour antebellum homes, take in an arts and craft fair and feast on ethnic foods. More than 150 events are planned during the festival.
For more information, contact the Macon, Ga., Cherry Blossom Festival, Southern Trust Building, Suite 111, 682 Cherry St., Macon, Ga. 31201, or call 912-744-7429.
SOUTHERN HOMES
Plantations along the Mississippi River and creole homes in New Orleans`
French Quarter are highlights of the 51st Annual Spring Fiesta, April 24-28 in New Orleans.
Other tours include homes in the garden district and Bayou country.
Tickets ($37 each) for the plantations tours must be paid for in advance. Tour prices for all Spring Fiesta tours range from $10-$39 a person.
For more information, contact the Spring Fiesta Headquarters Office, 826 St. Ann St., New Orleans, La. 70116, or call 504-581-1367.
FOLK FESTIVAL
The dogwoods will be in bloom and folk music will fill the air April 17-19 in Mountain View, Ark., as the residents present their 25th Annual Arkansas Folk Festival.
Besides folk music from the Stone County Folklore Society, White River Hoe Down and other groups, there will be a crafts show two miles north of town featuring the work of more than 100 artisans, including quilters, basketmakers, broom makers and jewelers.
For more information about the folk fest and North Central Arkansas, contact the Ozark Tourist Council, P.O. Box 4049, Batesville, Ark. 72503.
Contact the Ozark Foothills Craft Guild for information about the crafts show, including an exhibit application. The address is P.O. Box 800, Mountain View, Ark. 72560, or call 501
Information about lodging in the Mountain View area can be obtained from the Mountain View Chamber of Commerce, P.O Box 133, Mountain View, Ark. 72560. CRUISE AND GOLF
Here`s an interesting combo for a trip: Cruising the Intracoastal Waterway between Palm Beach and Savannah and golfing at one of the country`s best golf courses. Travelers get the two by booking a trip in the Clipper Cruise Line`s 1987 series of Florida & Colonial South Golf Highlights Cruises. The tours are available on the Nantucket Clipper or Newport Clipper, 100-passenger yachts.
Along the eight-day/seven-night cruise route, golfers can take in rounds of golf at the Grand Cypress in Orlando, Ravines near St. Augustine and St. Simons Island Club at St. Simons.
A three-day/two night sojourn at the beginning or end of the trip is available at the PGA Sheraton Resort in Palm Beach or the Hotel Inter-Continental at Hilton Head.
Passengers interested in antebellum homes will get a chance to see them during the Savannah stopover.
The first of nine departure dates is March 7. Rates per person, double occupancy, including air fare from 40 cities, start at $1,870.
For more information and a brochure, contact a travel agent or Clipper Cruise Line, 7711 Bonhomme Ave., St. Louis, Mo. 63105, or call 800-325-0010 or 314-727-2929.
SPECIAL VACATIONS
Stumped for your next vacation? Thousands of vacation opportunities are listed in the Specialty Travel Index. They include ballooning and canal cruising in France, mystery adventures by train, hiking and river rafting and villa and country house rentals.
Published twice a year, the index is broken down by activity and by geographical location. The spring/summer issue is just out. The fall/winter edition is published in August.
A year`s subscription is $5. For more information, write to Specialty Travel Index, Dept. 14-C, 305 San Anselmo Ave., San Anselmo, Calif. 94930.
FREE FOR THE WRITING
For a copy of San Diego`s bed and breakfast facilities, write to San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau, Suite 824, Dept. 700, 1200 3d Ave., San Diego, Calif., or call 619-236-1212. A list also is available from Carolyn`s Bed & Breakfast Homes in San Diego, P.O. Box 84776, San Diego, Calif. 92138, or call 619-422-7009, and from San Diego Bed & Breakfast Register, P.O. Box 22948, San Diego, Calif. 92122, or call 619-560-7322.
