If you want to spend the night in the Seth Peterson Cottage, start thinking in terms of fitting it into your five-year plan. Seth Peterson Cottage is one of Frank Lloyd Wright’s last designs and the only one on Earth, they say, that’s open for public rental. The Central Wisconsin landmark of sandstone walls and flagstone floors is booked through mid-January 2001, with a few open dates in late February and early March; no other open dates the rest of 2001 until December. The 2001 rate is $225 per night with a two-night minimum. That goes up to $250 a night in 2002, when the first free dates are in March. The cottage sits on a wooded bluff in Mirror Lake State Park southwest of Wisconsin Dells. If you begin to grow impatient during the long wait for your turn to sleep there, just remember that it took The Seth Peterson Cottage Conservancy three years and $300,000 to restore the home and furnish it with pieces that Wright designed for the house but were never built. If you just want a guided tour of the cottage, that costs $2 on the upcoming dates: July 9, Aug. 13, Sept. 10, Oct. 8, Nov. 12 and Dec. 10. (608-254-6551, or at www.sethpeterson.org)
Med and breakfast
At the toe of Italy’s boot lies Sicily, wonderful in and of itself and also the best reference point for finding the Mediterranean isle of Malta — south of Sicily. On Sept. 24, Rosemont-based AHI International will take its Alumni Campus Abroad to visit the dramatic sea arches, 2,500-year-old temple sites, medieval cities, diverse cultural influences and contemporary citizens that make a trip to Malta such an unusual experience. The $2,195 price covers round-trip air from Chicago; seven nights in the Lapsi Townhouse Hotel at the beach resort of St. Julian; all meals, excursions and admissions; educational programs and tour director services. Single supplement is $250. (800-323-7373, or at www.ahitravel.com)
Three for fall
We interrupt summer to bring you fall foliage in Michigan and Ontario. Downer’s Grove-based Mayflower Tours heads out Sept. 15, Sept. 22, Sept. 30 and Oct. 7 for its classic itinerary, “Magic Mackinac and the Great Lakes.” The seven-night, fully escorted tour hits Michigan’s Bavarian-styled village of Frankenmuth and the Victorian enclave on Mackinac Island, where the Grand Hotel is a treasured stop. In Ontario, the tour continues aboard the Algoma Central Railway in Sault Ste. Marie for a ride among the foliage in Agawa Canyon. The $1,340 fare covers all transportation, lodging, tours and 10 meals. And Chicagoland travelers will be picked up at their own front doors. (630-435-8500, or at www.mayflowertours.com)
Free stuff
Wildlife spottings are good on Wisconsin’s Bear River Trail: 25 miles of canoe-friendly water even a novice can tackle. At the other end of the spectrum: the West Branch of the Montreal River, for kayak masters who don’t mind a route of Class V rapids. Both are found in “Rivers Through Time, Canoe-Kayak Routes in Iron County, Wis.” (715-561-2922; www.ironcountywi.com)
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Prices generally are per person, double.
