Les Fisher always did like things a little on the wild side, which figures for a former Lincoln Park Zoo director everyone calls “Doc.” And he likes to take people with him. For instance, Nov. 29-Dec. 18 he’s leading a tour through Patagonia, that bottom-most part of South America that straddles Argentina and Chile, a region rich in wildlife sightings from whales to llamas. Galena-based Explorers World Travel, which is booking the trip, describes the itinerary as one that probes one of the wildest areas on Earth, but in comfort. The $6,200 route begins in Buenos Aires, making for Iguassu Falls, the Valdes Peninsula and Ushuaia, all in Argentina, before boarding ship for a four-day cruise to Chile’s Punta Arenas. From there, the tour heads to Explora, the renowned luxury lodge in Torres del Paine National Park, for five days before saying two nights’ worth of goodbyes in Santiago. (800-672-3274)
Get carded
Travelers age 18-22 can fly stand-by on AirTran, on selected days now through Dec. 14, for $47 per flight segment. You don’t need reservations. Just go to the airport’s AirTran ticket counter at least one hour before your desired flight. Ask the ticket agent to add your name to the X-Fares stand-by list. Then go to the departure gate and wait. If a seat is available after the flight’s final boarding call for confirmed passengers, then you pay $47 plus taxes and airport fees (credit card or exact change), you show a valid I.D., and you and your bags board the flight. Stand-by passengers are allowed only carry-on baggage. If you are making connections, you’ll go through this process for each flight. Blackout days are Fridays, Sundays and Nov. 21-27. (888-4-X-FARES; or at www.airtran.com) . . . Those age 18-35 who are suffering post-Olympic stress syndrome, Boomer envy or poverty jetset-ism can hook up with one of two Australia itineraries from Contiki Holidays. The 14-day “Beaches & Reefs” trip (as low as $1,910) and the 17-day “Reefs & Rainforest” trip (as low as $2,150), hit a lot of the same places between Sydney and Cairns: Surfers Paradise, Fraser Island, Whitsunday Island, Forest Glen Wildlife Sanctuary and Noosa National Park. The longer trip adds time at Cape Tribulation National Park, Daintree Rainforest, Mooseman Gorge and the village of Kuranda. Prices include round-trip air from Los Angeles on Air New Zealand, inter-Australian flights to/from Cairns, all ground transportation, lodging and some meals. Depart on selected dates Oct. 22-Dec. 2. Add-on air from Chicago is $400. (800-CONTIKI; or at www.contiki.com)
Color schemes
It’s an eight-mile hike along Lake Geneva’s shoreline from the Geneva Lake Cruise Line ticket office to the pickup point at Williams Bay. But if you can make this Wisconsin trek in three hours, the line will pick you up for the lunch cruise that takes you back to where you started. The hike-lunch-cruise combo runs through Oct. 29: Wednesdays and Saturdays cost $29 adults, $27 seniors, $25 students, $18 children; Sundays cost $34 adults, $32 seniors, $29 students, $20 children. Pay slightly more, and you can skip the hike by taking the boat round-trip. (800-558-5911; or at www.genevalakecruiseline.com)
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Prices generally are per person double.
