(7 of 11)
As in other countries, more and more Americans are heading for the provinces, where the life can be rich and full and cut-rate. One of the best bargains this year is a stay at some of France's 5,000 châteaux, a few of which are members of chains like the Relais and Châteaux grouping. The 16th century Château L'Esclimont, less than an hour's drive west of Paris, is set among undulating hills inside a walled 150-acre wild park. A balconied apartment, with terry-cloth bathrobes, curtained beds and a bowl of cherries awaiting the guests' arrival, can be had for a bit more than $100. The 43-room castle has an excellent restaurant where a seven-course meal costs $33 a person, wine and tips not included.
In France this year, marking the 200th anniversary of the Montgolfiers' first balloon ascent, hot-air balloons are hot indeed; the original flight will be recreated Sept. 19 at Versailles. Meanwhile the Grand Palais is holding an aviation exhibition, with machines on loan from Washington and Moscow, through August. Hot-air flight is also the specialty of the 18th century Château Cezy, located 90 miles southwest of Paris. Its owner, Englishman Donald Porter, offers fearless vacationers ballooning in Burgundy, a four-day, three-night aerial adventure. Meals and wines are lavish, with matching prices: $1,700 a person for three nights. Guests who prefer water to air can join the château's six-person "gourmet barge," which costs $6,000 a week to charter, all meals and wines included. Professional travel notes: airline tickets, hotels, tours and so forth are cheaper if paid for in francs in France. The exchange rate for traveler's checks is always better at banks than hotels.
ITALY. Its fashions, food and wines already captivate the U.S. consumer, and Italy may draw more Americans this year than any other country save Britain. Despite increases of 10% or more for air and train fares, hotel, meals, gasoline and other tourist essentials, Americans, taking advantage of the favorable exchange rate, are spending more time and money in Italy than ever before. For returning visitors bent on escaping the usual roster of sun, sea, pasta and churches, cultural organizations like Alcatraz (no connection with the San Francisco penitentiary) offer courses in such offbeat subjects as ceramics and theater furniture making. Cooking courses abound, notably New York-based Marcella Kazan's in Bologna.
Cashing in on the new ascendancy of Italian wines in the U.S., a number of tour operators are offering a variety of wine tours, with immense success. One extravaganza, a twelve-day Bacchanalian Trip organized by Compagnia Italiana Turismo (CIT), meets guests at the Rome airport and deposits them, twelve vinous days later, at the Turin airport. The $698 immersion includes hotels, unlimited wine bibbing, visits to vineyards and cellars in the major winegrowing areas, and espresso and sympathy the mornings after.
At Rome's deluxe Excelsior Hotel, with a 50% American clientele, a single room costs from $92 to $118. However, a centrally located double room with bath in a comfortable but nonswank hotel can cost as little as $37. A medium-size rental sedan, say a Fiat 131, goes for $559 a week with unlimited mileage.