CLTV’s Good Eating host Steve Dolinsky and Ritz-Carlton chef Sarah Stegner are hosting a culinary journey to western and southern India with Abercrombie & Kent. The Feb. 11-23 trip begins in Bombay and heads to Cochin, Kerala and Goa, regions known for their cultivation of spices. Along the way are cooking demonstrations, a visit to a spice plantation, lunch at a cardamom/tea plantation, tours of food markets and dinners in private homes. There’s also time for a visit to a 400-year-old synagogue in Cochin, wildlife viewing and a canoe expedition through the canals of Kumarakom. Accommodations are of the luxury sort that Abercrombie & Kent is known for. The price of $2,566 covers 10 nights’ lodging, transportation within India and most meals. (800-323-7308)
Winter wonders
The weak Canadian dollar continues to give winter revelers reasons to head north. And resorts are capitalizing on that inclination by devising appealing packages. At the venerable Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City, travelers can hone their mushing skills with the Dogsledding Experience, available until March 30. The rate of $374 includes two nights at the hotel, a three-hour dogsledding expedition (transportation to the sledding area costs about $14 extra per person) and breakfast. Other Fairmont hotels across Canada are offering packages with snowmobiling, snowshoeing and downhill skiing. (800-441-1414)…If your idea of adventure runs more toward tracking down two-tone Prada bowling bags or sexy Jimmy Choo stilettos, stake out a hotel in Montreal. The bargains are that much better when the winter sales are on. The Renaissance Hotel du Parc in Montreal offers an ongoing Super Value Package that starts at $91 per room per night. It comes with a choice of a $16 food and beverage credit, a 50 percent discount off a second room for children, free parking or an upgrade to a concierge-level room. (514-288-6666; www.renaissancehotels.com)
Frozen treats
All of this early snowfall hasn’t gotten a warm welcome in Chicago, but the snow cover has been cause for glee in Manitowoc, Wis., where the snowmobiling and cross-country trails opened in mid-December. If you’re looking for a chance to enjoy the white stuff instead of just shoveling it, Manitowoc lodgings are proposing a variety of winter getaway packages during what this maritime capital is billing as “cruise season.” A sample: The $119 Winterland Getaway at the Inn on Maritime Bay (800-654-5353) comes with one night’s lodging, dinner and breakfast, admission to the Wisconsin Maritime Museum, tour of the USS Cobia submarine and sundaes at an old-fashioned ice cream parlor. The packages, which are available through April, are detailed in a value-season brochure. (800-627-4896; www.manitowoc.org/tourism.htm)
Free stuff
One side of the updated Galena/Jo Daviess County Illustrated Map of Historical Sites and Attractions is devoted entirely to downtown Galena, the other to places of interest throughout the county. (800-747-9377; www.galena.org).
