GREECEVisit the land of the OlympiansFollow in...

GREECE

Visit the land of the Olympians

Follow in the footsteps of the gods -- and thousands of Olympic Games visitors -- on a two-week tour to Greece that will take place nearly a month after the crowds have departed.

The Sept. 21 tour, which will be led by an art historian and an archeologist, will include major sites such as Athens, Delphi, Mykinai and Olympia. There also will be stops at less commonly visited sites such as Vassai, home of the Temple of Apollo; Mystras, once a Byzantine center of culture; and Nemea, a newly excavated historical site.

“The weather will still be beautiful,” said Joyce Helfand, who has led the annual tour for 20 years. “And we’ll be there without the crowds, without the high prices and without the heat.”

The group will visit well-known cities such as Sparta, small villages such as Andritsena and Arahova and will learn Greece’s history from earliest times through the Byzantium to the contemporary era. An optional cruise will sail to Thira (Santorini), Kriti (Crete), Mikonos, Patmos, Rodos (Rhodes) in Greece and Ephesus, Turkey.

Cost: $4,250 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $695), including round-trip airfare from New York City, accommodations, most meals, baggage handling, entrance fees and all gratuities. Cruise cost is $980 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $390).

Contact: OPA Tours Greece, Arcadia; (800) 672-7155, www.greece travel.com/opa.

CALIFORNIA

Gourmets’ tour of San Francisco Bay

EAT, drink and cruise San Francisco Bay on a six-day food and wine tour sponsored by the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

The Oct. 15 trip, aboard the 257-foot Yorktown Clipper, will explore the Bay Area and Napa Valley wine country. The trip begins and ends in Redwood City, with stops in Sausalito, San Francisco and Napa Valley. Excursions include winery visits, a cooking demonstration at the Culinary Institute of America near St. Helena and a visit to Muir Woods. Master chefs from the Bay Area will be aboard to prepare gourmet meals.

Cost: From $1,990 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $810), including outside staterooms, meals and excursions. Round-trip airfare is not included.

Contact: Santa Barbara Museum of Art, (805) 884-6436, www.sbmuseart.org.

SPAIN

Film festival in Basque region by the sea

Say hola to a holiday at a Spanish seaside resort on a seven-night tour to the Donostia-San Sebastian International Film Festival.

The Sept. 18 tour, led by Hollywood Life movie critic Stephen Farber, includes a pass to the festival, private meetings with filmmakers and festival parties.

San Sebastian, in the Basque region of northern Spain, has picturesque beaches and an old-town section. The festival, in its 52nd year, runs Sept. 17 to 25.

The tour group also will take day trips to the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain, and to Biarritz and other places in the French Basque countryside.

Cost: $2,675 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $325), including accommodations, many meals, festival events, transfers, sightseeing and post-screening discussions led by Farber. Round-trip airfare is not included.

Contact: Let’s Travel, Santa Monica, (800) 458-7477, www.letstravel-sm.com.

CENTRAL ASIA

Follow the Silk Road’s cultural trail

Explore the Silk Road traveled by Marco Polo, Alexander the Great and Genghis Khan on a culture and history tour of Central Asia.

The Sept. 13-to-Oct. 7 tour will traverse the valleys, deserts and mountains of former Soviet Union countries, including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan.

The itinerary includes visits to Silk Road cities in Uzbekistan, such as Samarqand, Khiwa, Shakhrisabz and Bukhoro. The group will visit with artisans; see music and dance performances and fashion shows of traditional and contemporary dress; and stop at open-air markets, and historical sites and museums.

Participants will sample local foods, often dining at private homes.

Cost: $5,830 per person, double occupancy (single surcharge $875), including accommodations, meals, tips, traveler’s insurance, local guides and a tour manager. Airfare in Central Asia is included, but airfare from LAX is not.

Contact: Baraka Journeys, South Pasadena; (626) 799-2700, www.baraka journeys.com.

The Times is not responsible for changes in prices, dates or itineraries. Send information to Tours & Cruises, Los Angeles Times, 202 W. 1st St., Los Angeles, CA 90012 or write via e-mail to [email protected].