Advice on small-town travel, Russian visa

Q. My family and I would like to visit a small American town to experience an old-fashioned Fourth of July celebration. We are looking for a town that passionately celebrates the independence of our nation — parades, fireworks, patriotic events, etc. We are considering Cape May, N.J., and Mackinac Island, Mich., but we would like other recommendations.

My husband and I have two young children (ages 5 and 2) and we will be traveling with another family with small children (ages 7 and 4). Ideally, we would prefer a town that has central rental properties (condo, house or cottage) or rental properties within close proximity (although we will consider traditional hotel rooms as well).



Kathy M.

You’ve picked two good ones. But since you asked for more: Travel writer Larry Bleiberg (and my co-author on a recent travel book), recommends Bristol, R. I., which claims to have the nation’s oldest Fourth of July celebration dating from 1785. Nowadays, that includes an orange crate derby, drum-and-bugle corps, concerts and of course, a parade! Info: www.july4thbristolri.com/.

I’ll pitch in with the small town of Thomaston, Maine, near the larger towns of Rockland and Camden. It, too, offers a homey parade, fair-like atmosphere and fireworks. Info: www.catinkacards.com/thomaston4thofjuly.Q. I want to take a package tour of Northern Europe, with a stop in St. Petersburg, Russia. However, the Russian visa application asks an amazing amount of personal information, such as your complete educational background, work history (complete with supervisors’ names and phone numbers), all the countries you’ve visited, and enough other material to thoroughly steal one’s identity. Am I right to be concerned about this? What is the risk?

William V., Miami

Kathryn L. Bucchere, director of customer relations at Go Ahead Tours, said her firm has never experienced a problem regarding stolen identities due to a visa application in the decade it has run trips in Russia. But she has seen visa applications turned down because they didn’t include enough detailed information. She advises using an independent visa processing firm to handle the details; an experienced company that regularly handles such visas will make sure you’ve filled in all forms properly before they submit your application. (I’ve previously used Zierer Visa Service (www.zvs.com), VisaHQ (www.visahq.com) and Travisa.(www.travisa.com).

If you’re traveling independently or on a group tour and arriving by air or land, you will need your own visa. However, if you arrive on a cruise ship and go on shore excursions arranged by the ship or by another tour operator licensed to service tours in St. Petersburg (and therefore allowed to pick up at the ship docks), you’ll be covered by the ship’s group visa and won’t need to get a separate one, says Karen Candy, spokeswoman for Princess Cruises. Q. I have been looking for some time for a trip/tour that would combine Rapa Nui and the Galapagos. My husband and I are seasoned travelers, and, living in Miami, have a large number of flights to choose from when traveling to South. America. However, every suggestion that I have found in my research has us traveling back to the South American continent between visiting the two island groups. Is there any trip that goes directly between them?

Kathy D.

The answer unfortunately is no. Rapa Nui — otherwise known as Easter Island, Chile — sits 2,200 miles off the Chilean coast and is considered the world’s most remote inhabited island. It has limited air service from Santiago, Chile, and Papeete, Tahiti.

The Galapagos, about 600 miles off Ecuador, have two airports, at Baltra and San Cristobal; both are served only from Guayaquil and Quito.

Because of immigration regulations, even booking an exclusive journey on a private plane wouldn’t eliminate going back to the South American continent between the two island groups, according to Hallie Neumann of Blue Parallel, an upscale custom travel firm specializing in Latin America. Q. A friend and I want to travel to India. We’re both recently single and in our 60s, and we think we’d like to travel with a group rather than doing so alone, preferably with thoughtful, intelligent companions. It’s our first trip to India — possibly our only one — so we’d like to hit the high spots. We’re looking for something fairly upscale. What do you suggest? And when should we go?

Judi M.

Let’s start with the where and when. The typical “triangle’’ includes the capital of Delhi, Agra (home to the Taj Mahal) and Jaipur, known as the pink city (though the highlight is a visit to the Amber Fort, go figure.) If this is likely to be your only visit to India, you shouldn’t miss Varanasi, the holiest of the Hindu cities set on the Ganges River. Udaipur may well be my favorite city in India, but it’s also likely the most romantic, and best seen with the love of your life (or at least the love of your weekend).

Given those locations, you want to travel in the cool months, from November to mid-March. Go in early November, and you can catch the famous Pushkar Camel Fair. If you time your final days in Delhi or Rajasthan during the Festival of Colors, or Holi, in March, you’ll be treated to a joyous festival and dodge the heat.

Top-end firms offering custom trips to India include Abercrombie & Kent (www.abercrombiekent.com), Cox & Kings (www.coxandkings.com) and Peirce & Leslie (www.peirceandleslie.com), says Nancy Strong of Strong Travel in Dallas, one of the nation’s leading luxury agents and a member of the Virtuoso network. Each specializes in custom trips, but they sometimes offer small group departures on set dates; it’s also worth asking whether they have any unpublicized trips they’re arranging for museums or university alumni groups that might have space.

If you want to stay at the very best hotels, A&K offers an early February 2012 departure of its Treasures of Northern India itinerary priced at around $9,500 per person. If you want good, but not necessarily the top, hotels, Cox & Kings offers a similar itinerary priced at about $5,700 per person. Both prices include internal air and are based on double occupancy. Tauck Tours (www.tauck.com) is also extremely well regarded and offers pricing that falls between the other two.

It’s certainly possible to travel in India for far less money without hitting the do-it-yourself backpacking scene. What you’ll sacrifice is some of the bells-and-whistles — fewer behind-the-scenes experiences, lesser hotels, larger travel groups and sometimes, more “mass market” guides versus specialist experts. One well-regarded operator is SmarTours (www.smartours.com), which has an eight-day trip with Delhi, Agra and Jaipur for $1,999 per person, double occupancy, including air from New York; its longer two-week tour includes those plus Varanasi and Nepal and costs $3,299 per person, double, including air from the United States.

If you do decide to do part or all of your trip on your own, I’d recommend Namaste India Tours (www.namasteindiatours.com), which will arrange car and driver. You can then either arrange your own top-end hotels or go with their own selection of affordable and mid-range hotels. My husband and I traveled with them last year on the recommendation of a friend. The cost for two weeks of travel, including private car and a wonderfully caring driver, daily breakfast and lodging in their choice of “heritage’’ hotels cost about $2,000.

Jane Wooldridge, business editor of The Miami Herald, is the former travel editor. Contact her via her blog at www.five stars to under the star s.com.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/12/04/v-fullstory/2524003/advice-on-small-town-travel-russian.html