In a February funk? Maybe you need a mini-getaway. For assistance, call 800-ABE-0121 and order a free copy of ”Illinois Winter Escapes.”
This booklet has information on packages at more than 130 hotels, motels, resorts and bed-and-breakfast spots across the state and at six state park lodges.
There are spa weekend packages, riverboat-gambling packages and for those who want to escape to the city, there are hotel deals that combine shopping, dining and night life. (A number of Chicago-area hotels and motels are listed.)
Most packages are available through March.
SPRING TRAINING Baseball`s spring training starts next month, and that means fan tours are about to start too. Tours in Florida to watch the games featuring the Chicago White Sox, Philadelphia Phillies and New York Yankees, among others, are available from Sports Tours, Inc.
Six-day tours cost $545; nine-day tours are $825. (Prices are per person, double occupancy.)
The land-only price includes accommodations at Courtyard by Marriott hotels, ground transfers and game tickets.
For more information, contact Sports Tours, Inc., Box 84, Hatfield, Mass. 01038; 800-722-7701.
TOURING THE ROCKIES This summer, European-style hut-to-hut touring in the mountains will come to Colorado. The 10th Mountain Trail Association, a network of 14 mountain retreats in that stretch from Aspen to Vail to Leadville, will open its huts
(cabins) for year-round use. Previously, the huts were only open for cross-country skiers.
Several tours are available from Roads Less Traveled, a hiking and biking travel company based in Boulder, Colo. A 5-day/5-night tour combines hiking, mountain biking and rafting. Some nights are spent in the mountain huts. Cost is $765.
Shorter trips are available, including a 1-night/2-day trip for $235.
Prices cover accommodations, meals, ground transportation and guides.
For more information, contact Roads Less Traveled, Box 18742, Boulder, Colo. 80308; 303-530-7350.
BIKING VERMONT First comes breakfast at a country inn, and then it`s off to discover the Vermont countryside-traveling at your own pace-from the seat of a bike. At night you arrive at the next inn, which, presumably, you`ve reached on your own power.
That`s what it`s like to take an inn-to-inn bicycle tour from Bike Vermont, a company that has run such tours for 16 years.
Each day the company`s tour leaders send cyclists off with itineraries, maps and directions to get from inn to inn. (If they need help, a support van that carries luggage to the inns is around.)
Bike Vermont`s tours run from May through October, and last a weekend or run Monday through Friday. Particularly popular are the fall foliage tours. Bike rentals are available.
For a copy of the touring brochure and more information, contact Bike Vermont, Inc., Box 207, Woodstock, Vt. 05091; 800-257-2226.
DISCOUNTED SANDALS To celebrate its 10th anniversary, Sandals Resorts is offering a savings of $305 off published rates for stays of six nights or longer at any of its all-inclusive resorts for couples on the Caribbean islands of Jamaica and Antigua.
The package has to be booked by Sept. 1, but the vacation can be taken any time.
For more information, contact a travel agent.
FREE FOR THE WRITING For a copy of the 1992 Iowa Visitors Guide, call the Iowa Department of Economic Development, 800-345-IOWA. . . . For a copy of the 1992 Festivals and Special Events Guide to Northern Illinois, contact the Northern Illinois Tourism Council, 815-964-6482. . . . For a copy of the 1992 Calendar of Events to Anaheim and Orange County, contact the Anaheim Area Visitors & Convention Bureau, 800 W. Katella Ave., Anaheim, Calif. 92802; 714-999-8999. . . . For a copy of the 1992 New York City Tour Package Directory, contact the New York Convention & Visitors Bureau, 2 Columbus Circle, New York, N.Y. 10019;
212-397-8222. . . . For a brochure about El Al Israel Airlines` Milk & Honey Tours, contact El Al, 800-EL-AL-SUN. . . . For a copy of an African-American Guide to Pennsylvania, write to African-American Guide, Box 2149, Warrendale, Pa. 15086.
