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Navigating Nairobi
For a Western woman, waiting on a rainy day at a matatu stand illuminates some inescapable truths.
By Alicia Rebensdorf
[09/29/99]

Museum of substance
From opium-addicted housewives to cocaine cough syrup, the Drug Enforcement Administration Museum traces the history of illegal drugs in America.
By Ron Dicker
[09/28/99]

E-mail from a burning mountain
A secluded hermitage and its resident monks are threatened by a devastating fire on California's Big Sur coast.
By Catherine Shepard
[09/28/99]

The lonely crusade of Croatia's riverman
Zeljko Kelemen is determined to create a river-rafting industry in Croatia -- for the good of his country and his countrymen.
By Jon Bowermaster
[09/25/99]

Wanderlust
Getting over it
I fled New York, then I fled Paris. In Italy I stuck around a while, for something called "like love."
By Deirdre Guthrie
[09/24/99]

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Watch for the publication in late October of a book called "Tropical Family Vacations in the Caribbean, Hawaii, South Florida and Mexico," by Laura Sutherland (St. Martin's Griffin, 1999). More than 20 Caribbean islands are covered, as are Mexico's Pacific Coast, Baja California and Mayan Riveria -- the Caribbean side of the Yucatan Peninsula.

Costa Rica, Belize and Mexico all offer something-for-everyone vacation areas. Costa Rica and Belize are especially attractive to those who like the outdoor eco-explorer scene. Here are some sources:

Belize was once known mainly as a scuba diving and snorkeling location because of its huge barrier reef, but in recent years has also cultivated eco-tourism and its Mayan past. Large parts of its rain forest have been designated as wildlife areas. The youngsters would probably be bored by the wilderness areas, but the zoo outside Belize City would be a treat, and they would enjoy the beach resort life of Ambergris Caye. San Ignacio on the western edge of the country has become a center for tourists exploring forests and ruins. You can fish, kayak, spelunk and look for jaguars -- but don't get your hopes up for golf. The country has no courses yet, although a membership-only course, Caye Chapel Golf Resort and Marina, is scheduled to open in the fall of 2000, according to the tourist board. Belize information is available by calling (800) 624-0686.

Costa Rica, on the other hand, does have several worthy golf courses and more are on the way. The country's oldest 18-hole course, dating to 1972, is the Cariari Country Club, part of the Melia Cariari Conference Center and Golf Resort, although only members or resort guests can play there. Two 18-hole championship-quality courses opened in 1997 -- the Melia Playa Conchal Beach & Golf Resort and the Rancho Las Colinas Golf & Country Club -- and three more were scheduled to open this year. A company called Costa Rica Golf Adventures specializes in golf packages, phone (888) 261-6645.

Costa Rica has its own range of beach and eco-adventure destinations, including an aerial tram through the rain forest canopy. Contact the Costa Rica Tourist Board, phone (800) 343-6332, or check out TicoNet.

The Mexican Ministry of Tourism site has a huge amount of information on lodging and destination cities. If you click on "search the Web site" and use "family" as your search term, you'll get a list of hits that includes "travel with family." It describes at least eight cities and sketches family-friendly attractions. In the same file is a section on senior travel, too.

Next page | Non-traditional but affordable honeymoons