One way to explore the Pacific Northwest-specifically British Columbia-is via BC Ferries and its fleet of 40 ships that ply the waters around Vancouver Island, the Northern and Southern Gulf islands and the Queen Charlotte islands.
In a year, the company`s fleet carries 20 million passengers and almost 8 million vehicles. The ships vary in size and onboard services. The large ships (some carry more than 1,000 passengers) have cafeterias serving foods ranging from snacks to full meals.
Some ships travel the Inside Passage from Port Hardy on Vancouver Island to Prince Rupert on the British Columbia mainland.
For more information about BC Ferries-routes, prices, ship facilities-request a copy of the Welcome Aboard brochure. Contact BC Ferries, 1112 Fort St., Dept. L & L, Victoria, B.C., Canada V8V 4V2; 604-386-3431.
WEDDING BELLS If Hawaii is your destination for a wedding, honeymoon or to renew your wedding vows, how about a customized wedding and honeymoon package, including airfare and lodging, on Oahu and Kauai?
Contact Creative Leisure and ask about its Privacy in Paradise wedding and honeymoon program. From Chicago, rates start at $1,915 per person.
Among other details, the company also can arrange for the ceremony to be performed in an exotic location such as a secluded beach or mountaintop.
For more details, contact Creative Leisure International, 951 Transport Way, Petaluma, Calif. 94954; 800-426-6367.
A WHALE TREK The northern California coastal town of Mendocino is gearing up for a whale of a festival, March 7-8. It`s the 10th anniversary year for the Mendocino Whale Festival, which celebrates the annual migration north of the California gray whales from the their winter home in Baja California.
When visitors aren`t looking out for the whales, they can check out food, music and art events that will be part of the celebration.
For a whale festival and information on lodgings and dining in and around Mendocino, contact the Ft. Bragg-Mendocino Coast Chamber of Commerce, 800-726-2780.
DEALS TO POLAND Through March, LOT Polish Airlines has reduced round-trip fares from Chicago to Warsaw. Midweek departures (Monday through Thursday) are $599, and weekend departures (Friday through Sunday) are $649.
Last ticketing day for the Warsaw on Sale reduced fares is March 18, with March 21 as the final departure date. Travelers can stay in Poland 7 to 30 days.
For details, call LOT at 800-223-0593 or a travel agent.
IBERIAN INNS With Expo `92 being held in Seville from April to October, travel interest is growing for the Iberian peninsula. But, as future visitors may discover, hotels in major cities are at a premium and rooms may be hard to find.
One solution to lower-priced accommodations is the group of government-run inns found in the countryside and known in Spain as paradors and in Portugal as pousadas.
For information about such lodgings, contact Marketing Ahead Hotel Representatives, 433 5th Ave., New York, N.Y. 10016; 212-686-9213.
FREE FOR THE WRITING For a copy of the 1992 Washington, D.C., Weekends brochure, contact the D.C. Committee to Promote Washington, Box 27489, Washington, D.C. 20038-7489; 800-422-8644. . . . For a copy of the 1992 directory for Preferred Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, call 800-323-7500. . . . For a copy of Pathways to African-American Heritage and Contemporary Interests in Virginia, contact the Virginia Tourism Development Group, 800-221-6909. . . . For a copy of Buckeye North, a guide to the Lake Erie area, contact the Erie County Visitors & Convention Bureau, 800-255-ERIE. . . . For a copy of the CampAlaska Tours brochure, contact CampAlaska Tours, Box 872247, Wasilla, Alaska 99687;
907-376-9438.
