The turbulence of the past two years has changed the face of the Old World forever, but 1492 was almost equally tumultuous. Venice was still an independent republic (although scarely a serene one); Bruges, Belgium, was the most important mercantile city north of the Alps; a mightly Lithuania stretched from the Black Sea to the Baltic; and it was an article of faith that women of standing should ”know some literature, music and painting, and know how to dance and make merry.”
If Europe, on the threshold of a unity desired but despaired of since the days of Charlemagne, is especially fascinating in 1992, it is also uncommonly expensive for the American traveler.
Not to worry. Europe this year is being packaged and presented as never before. There are special-interest tours for everyone from art enthusiasts to would-be zoologists. Some of these begin in individual cities, allowing you to arrange your own air transportation to London, Paris, Frankfurt, Zurich, wherever. However, some door-to-tour plans are priced better, offering roundtrip airfare, lodging, touring or rental car and some dining. There are even tours for people who dislike tours-trips you can tailor.
Dozens, even hundreds, of possibilities exist, based on rates ranging from hotels to chateaux and luxury inns. They are arranged by governments, independent tour operators, airlines and bus companies etc. Here is a country- by-country sampling; check the accompanying story for addresses and phone numbers. Your travel agent will have more suggestions. Prices are subject to change.
AUSTRIA
Starting this year and continuing through 1996, Austria will celebrate its 1000th anniversary. A number of special events are planned.
Of the many packages available to Austria, those of DER Tours are of outstanding value. A seven-day, six-night plan offers first-class hotels, six breakfasts, four dinners, a Danube River cruise, city tours in Salzburg and Innsbruck, use of an air-conditioned motorcoach, English-speaking tour guide, service charges, taxes and museum entrance fees. Stay in Vienna, Klagenfurt, Innsbruck and Salzburg for $678, per person, double occupancy.
DER`s Ski Austria plans are valid until April 11 in resorts such as Igls and Kitzbuhel. Rates vary according to class of hotel selected and include round-trip transfers between the Munich airport and resorts.
BELGIUM
Belgium calls itself the Gateway to Europe, but many American travelers have yet to visit this country of art, architecture and a cuisine that rivals that of France. From May 10-24, Brussels will stage Eurantica, one of the most important events in Europe`s antiques market and sale; in June there`s a loud and lively Folklore and Shrimp Festival in Oostduinkerke; July brings the Belgian Rhythm`n Blues Festival to Peers.
Between April 1 and Oct. 31, Travel Bound Inc. and Sabena Belgian World Airlines offer Belgium Bound packages of three or six nights with hotels in either ”value” or ”superior” category and transportation between cities by rail and car. Included are round-trip flights on Sabena, hotels, airport-city transfers, breakfasts, half-day sightseeing tour in Brussels, service charges and taxes. As an example, the six-night plan (two nights each in Brussels, Bruges and Antwerp) is $968, double occupancy, in the value category; $1,028 for a superior category room (add $210 between June 1 and Sept. 30). For flights from Chicago, add $55 (April 1-May 31) or $90 (June 1-Sept. 30).
BRITAIN
Britain`s largest tour wholesaler, British Airways Holidays, offers remarkable hotel and car rates to its passengers-from $28 to $151 per person per night at 60 central London hotels, for example. Rental car rates feature unlimited mileage starting at $17 a day in Britain (Avis), $30 a day in Ireland (Hertz).
The airline`s Value Plus plans are designed with individual travelers in mind, supplying round-trip transportation from U.S. cities, accommodations, transfers between airports and downtown destinations and in some cases sightseeing tours. As an example, the Historic London package includes six nights in a hotel in London with continental breakfasts, service charges and taxes, a tour of London and round-trip flights from the U.S. on British Airways. Other than that, you`re on your own. Between now and March 31, this plan is $589 to $783 (depending upon choice of hotel); for shoulder seasons
(April 1-June 15, Sept. 16-Oct. 31) it will cost $639-$768 and in peak season (June 16-Sept. 15) it will be $789-$878. (Prices are per person, double occupancy; travelers from Chicago should add $150-$160 for airfare.) Some Value Plus vacations include Scotland and France.
Believe it or not, it would be easy to spend these amounts for hotels alone in London this year.
Other packages include rental cars, theater tickets and events in London and throughout Britain and Europe, a seven-day Visitor Travelcard for unlimited travel on the Underground or the famous red buses, a shopping and dining discount Countdown card and other extras. Between now and March 31, all prices will be cut 10 to 35 percent.
New this year from British Airways in cooperation with Travellers International is a motorcoach program called Europe Escorted, featuring 29 first-class and superior first-class packages. One package, Britain & Ireland, allows 14 days in England, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland priced from $1,760-$1,900 (depending on departure date), including round-trip airfare, motorcoach touring, hotel rooms, some dinners, guides and ferry tickets. (If flying to and from Chicago from June through September, add an air supplement of $123).
Bedford Pace of the British Tourist Authority in New York suggests that families or couples planning to spend a week or so in London should investigate apartment rentals. The ”Apartments in London” brochure lists flats in the city in several price ranges. For example, in the A (top)
category, one-bedroom apartments at Draycott House near Sloane Square in Chelsea rents for $1,386-$1,800 weekly; in the C category in the same area at 53 Draycott Place, one-bedroom apartments rent for about $531-$585 weekly in high season. A studio in B class at Huntingdon House near Knightsbridge is $396 per week in low season, $495 in high season.
Other good buys are available from Wolsey Lodges Ltd., which rents rooms in 192 member country houses around Britain. For example, there`s Bridge Farm in Devon for $45 (breakfast included) per person, double occupancy.
Britain is renowned for its clean and comfortable bed-and-breakfast accommodations. BTA offices can supply Bed & Breakfast Touring Maps for various regions. One example is Burleigh Farm in Oxfordshire, where a double costs $57.60-$63 nightly. Another brochure, London Accommodation for Budget Travellers, lists Avonmore Hotel in the Kensington district for $88.20-$104.40, per person, double occupancy. At Home in London offers doubles in West London homes for $32.40 per person per night.
Travelers interested in stately homes, castles, private gardens and the like should buy the Great British Heritage Pass, valid at several hundred places throughout Britain. It costs $46 for 15 days ($69 for a month), and may be mail-ordered from British Travel Bookshop, Box 1224, Clifton, N.J. 07012.
Note that many of the best restaurants in London offer fixed-price menus of good value, especially at lunch. Thus you may sample some top spots for significantly less than their evening a la carte prices.
FINLAND
In Helsinki, the capital, which always surprises visitors with its stylish beauty, the Helsinki Card is valid for one, two or three consecutive days for unlimited travel on city buses and trams, one city tour, admission to 50 museums, discounts at restaurants, hotels, etc.; $19, $26 or $31. The card is available from Rahim Tours in the United States (800-554-5305) or at the Helsinki Tourist Office, the Hotel Reservations Center in the Helsinki Railway Station or most hotels.
Tax-free shopping allows foreigners to save 12 to 16 percent on all purchases over $50 at stores that display the tax-free sign. You will be asked to show your passport and you will receive a check in the amount of the tax. When leaving the country, all checks may be turned in at the tax refund office at the airport for an immediate cash refund.
”Finncheques,” valid at 252 hotels in the country, cost about $41 a person, a night, and are valid from June 1 to Aug. 31. They may be used for charges (goods and services) in three categories of hotels. For more information, call Scantours at 800-223-7226. Some hotel groups offer their own cards, such as the Best Western Hotel Cheque Scandinavia, a voucher plan valid May 15 to Sept. 15. Call Best Western, 800-528-1234.
Bed and breakfast lodging is a new concept in Finland, but more than 100 houses now offer it in the country for $20 to $49 a person a night, including breakfast and usually the use of a sauna.
Finnair offers several all-inclusive tours from New York. For instance, the Lapland and North Cape Tour of six days/five nights, is priced from $1,499, including domestic airfare, all accommodations, most meals, ferry rides and sightseeing, etc. (New York-Helsinki Apex airfare is $638 now through March 31, $764 in April and May, September-October, and $944 June through August.)
In addition, many value- and regular-season domestic tours are offered by Finnway (800-526-4927), Holiday Tours of America (800-677-6454), Rahim tours
(800-556-5305) and Scantours (800-223-SCAN). For complete Finnish-Finland-Scandinavia packages, call American Express (404-368-5100), Olson`s Europe
(800-421-2255), Maupintour (800-255-4266), Travcoa (800-992-2003) or Globus-Gateway (800-221-0090).
FRANCE
Having enjoyed a high percentage of repeat independent visitors in recent years, the French Government Tourist Office has created programs for the individual traveler in 1992. The ”France Discovery Kit” involves a call to Insiders` Information France Hot-Line, 900-990-0040 (50 cents a minute, average call two minutes). Upon request, a personal itinerary indicating distances, stopovers, driving times, points of particular interest, will be printed by computer and then mailed to the caller. The kit also contains a selected list of 1,000 historic inns, castles and landmark hotels and the 100- page ”France Discovery Guide,” plus the ”AT&T France Fun Book” with 100 coupons for gifts, free entries and other dividends.
In France itself, toll-free telephone 05.201.202 gives information in English, and 1,000 information centers are available around the country.
In 1991, Club France was launched to promote friendship between the U.S. and France. Dues are $65 ($15 of that is a contribution to the new American Center in Paris` Bercy Park). Benefits include a three-day Paris Museum Pass, museum passes for 20 other cities, a complimentary Michelin Rouge guide to restaurants and hotels, a subscription to France magazine, VIP upgrades in many hotels and inns, upgrade coupons from Avis and Hertz and drawings for Air France tickets and rail passes. To join, write a check for $65 to French Government and mail to Club France, French Government Tourist Office, 610 5th Ave., New York, N.Y. 10020.
Package trips, of course, are not being overlooked. Air France and Jet Vacations present a new lineup of spring/summer Flexi-Plan France tours. With one phone call, the traveler can arrange meal vouchers for Riviera dining, a Rhone River cruise through Provence, a one-week stay in Paris, a self-drive car or a chauffeured limousine and more.
Complete Paris Flexi-Plan packages with six hotel nights, four three-course lunches or dinners, airport bus transfers and Metro passes, shopping discount coupons, etc., are supplied at $558 a person, double occupany, plus Air France fare from nine U.S. cities, including Chicago. Similar packages are available on the Riviera. New is the expanded choice of such hotel packages in the provinces, starting at $36 a person a night in such cities as Aix-en-Provence, Bordeaux, Deauville, Lyon, Nimes and Strasbourg.
Add Flexi-Meal dining plans, trips to such places as the new Euro Disneyland for $63 (including roundtrip transportation, admission and a tour), wine-tastings, a stint at the Ritz-Escoffier cooking school, and you have gained full value for your dollar; for details, ask an agent or call 800-538-0999.
To simplify travel, you can buy some tickets and passes before leaving home. Marketing Challenges International sells Le Bus Air France, Le Paris-Visite, La Carte and Le Telecarte. Le Bus transfers travelers from Charles de Gaulle and Orly airports to terminals in Paris. Tickets are $10 one-way and $20 round trip. Le Paris-Visite is a ticket for unlimited rides on the Metro and buses and sold for one, three or five consecutive days for $7.50, $20 and $30.
La Carte is valid at more than 60 museums and sights in Paris, including the Louvre and Versailles, and permits holders to go to the head of the entry lines. For one, three or five consecutive days, prices are $15.50, $27.50, and $37.50. La Telecarte is now the only means of access to France`s newest public phone system. It can be used locally or connect you with the AT&T USA direct operator when calling home. For 50 units (50 local calls, say), it costs $12. All these tickets can be bought by sending a money order or by American Express Card. Write to Market Challenges International, 10 E. 21st St., New York, N.Y. 10010; 212-529-8484.
Inquire of the French Government Tourist Office (645 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611; 312-337-6301) about passes for senior citizens, the Carte Vermeil, and for youth, the Carte Jeunes.
More than 300 private apartments in fashionable quarters of Paris may be rented year-around through B&D de Vogue International, Inc. (see address box). If you are familiar with hotel prices in Paris, your eyes will pop at this: Based on a five-night minimum, rates per apartment start at $150 nightly for a studio; $190, one bedroom; $220, two bedrooms; $350, three or four bedrooms. All include fully equipped kitchens (prepare a couple of meals a day and you`ll be able to afford some of the great restaurants), baths, color TVs, telephones, linens and weekly maid service. Other hotel-style services may be arranged. A $50 search fee is charged. For more information, call 800-438-4748.
B&D de Vogue also offers a selection of chateaux, manors, etc., in the provinces, all private residences that accept paying guests. (In addition to the 95 throughout France, there are others in Belgium, Germany, England, Scotland, Greece, Italy, Ireland and Portugal.) An example: Le Chateau de Goville, an 18th Century manor near Bayeux and the beaches of Normandy, offers eight bedrooms, two suites and one apartment at prices ranging from $75 to $132.
One value in the luxurious river barge market is the seven-day/six-night cruise of European Waterways` 10-passenger craft La Joie de Vivre, priced at $3,350 a person double (swimming pool on deck, gourmet meals with wine, open bar, daily sightseeing, entry fees, use of bicycles, transfers to and from meeting points).
GERMANY
Back in 1917, a firm called European Travel Conglomerate was formed in Frankfurt with the aim of providing value for money with a product line ranging from the moderate to the deluxe category. DER, its representative in the U.S., works through travel agents; ask about their packages for hotels, tours and transportation.
For example, motorhomes in four categories are available for pickup in Frankfurt by those eager to cut the expenses of traditional car-hotel wandering. In category I, the least expensive, you can rent a Knaus Traveller 560 or Hymer Camp 55, each sleeping four adults. Prices per day are $99 (to March 14), $119 (March 15-June 14 and Sept. 1-Nov. 15) and $159 (June 15-Aug. 31).
