‘95 Gift Guide Destinations, Adventures And Gadgets For Travelers

Here are some gift ideas for the traveler on your list:

Bed and breakfasts aren’t just for thrifty travelers anymore, and the best local example is the Clark House, a 1910 mansion on the east shore of Hayden Lake.

All five guest rooms have private baths and luxurious feather beds, and the public rooms are decorated with Oriental rugs and antique furniture. Winter rates for a couple, which include breakfast, range from $125 to $200 per night, depending on the room (those with fireplaces are especially cozy at this time of year). For information, call (800) 765-4593 or (208) 772-3470.

Entertainment Publications sells discount guides to more than 130 cities and regions in North America and Europe, featuring half-off and two-for-one offers from restaurants, hotels, stores and tourist activities. Many of the guides also have discount coupons from Continental and American airlines.

Prices range from $26 to $48. For information or to order, call (800) 445-4137.

Adventure travel is one of the fastest-growing segments of the travel industry, with companies offering everything from cross-country skiing in Vermont to hiking in Israel.

Prices from Backroads, the world’s largest adventure travel company, range from $680 for a four-day bicycle camping trip in Death Valley to $3,200 for a 15-day mountain biking trip through China.

The full-color catalogs by themselves are fun for armchair travelers; call (800) 462-2848.

Whitewater enthusiasts regard snow with the same affection as skiers, but for a different reason: so the rivers get recharged for next spring’s rafting.

A day trip down one of Idaho’s or Montana’s wild rivers probably provides more thrills per hour than any other excursion (though tame rides for families are available, too).

Coeur d’Alene-based River Odysseys West is one of the largest whitewater companies, offering dozens of trips beginning in May, from $75 for a one-day float to $1,400 for a seven-day adventure. Contact ROW at (800) 451-6034 or call (800) 635-7820 for a free Idaho Travel Guide with many more listings..

For serious travelers on your shopping list, several companies offer travel accessories, from dual-wattage hair dryers to inflatable snooze pillows. Two noteworthy sources:

Orvis Travel specializes in luggage and clothing, including handsome (and expensive) roll-on bags. For a catalog, call (800) 541-3541.

Magellan’s specializes in travel accessories: water filters, wallets, portable appliances and - of course - Swiss Army knives. For a catalog, call (800) 962-4943.

The best travel value in America today? That’s easy: a rail trip aboard Amtrak (since your tax dollars subsidize the service, you might as well use it).

Amtrak’s All-America fares basically divide the country into three regions: east, central and west. Any trip within one region (with up to three stopovers allowed) costs only $198; for two regions, it’s $258; and for three region’s it’s $318. (These fares rise slightly after Dec. 15, but it’s still a good deal.)

From Spokane or Sandpoint, you can head west to Seattle or east to Whitefish, Mont., Glacier National Park and - if you keep going - Chicago. (Unfortunately, you have to catch the train in the middle of the night in either direction.)

The system’s most popular train is the Coast Starlight, which links Seattle and Los Angeles. For more information, contact a travel agent or call (800) USA-RAIL.

Whistler and Sun Valley may be the best-known destination ski resorts in our region, but The Big Mountain, near Whitefish, Mont., has many of their amenities without the fancy prices.

A “Best Value” package offered this season for a family of four includes three nights of accommodation and two days of skiing for $435. It’s offered only during “value season” - which basically excludes holiday periods.

Besides a wide variety of ski terrain (they don’t call it Big Mountain for nothing), the resort also has a good selection of shops and restaurants, and the tourist town of Whitefish is only 20 minutes away. For information, call (800) 858-4157.

An Alaska cruise might fall into the “need a rich grandparent” category, but it’s not THAT expensive. If you reserve by mid-February for next summer’s sailings, a week-long Inside Passage trip for two people can cost as little as $2,000. For more information, contact any travel agent.

Oh, and if you know any really rich grandparents, a company called Grandtravel specializes in vacations for grandparents and grandchildren. One of their trips, a Kenya safari for four people, runs about $25,000, although more modest excursions are available. Contact a travel agent or call (800) 247-7651.

The only AAA four-diamond resort in Eastern Washington, Sun Mountain Lodge near Winthrop, is a great getaway in either summer or winter.

And its “Skidaddle Pak” for cross-country skiers is a bargain: beginning at $289 per person for three nights accommodation, three breakfasts, three dinners and a pass valid on 175 kilometers of groomed trail in the Methow Valley. The package is available from mid-December through mid-March, not including holidays; call (800) 572-0493.

The best way to ensure a good vacation? Buy a guidebook (or two), for wherever you’re headed. A couple of ideas:

“Northwest Best Places” (Sasquatch, $19.95) is now in its 11th edition (make sure you buy one with the 1995 copyright, since they’ve removed the date from the cover). It’s still the best overall compendium of places to eat and places to stay (including B&B’s) in the region.

The Mountaineers Press in Seattle has more than 300 titles for active travelers, from its famous “100 Hikes” series to special-interest books on topics like handicapped-accessible trails or hikes among volcanoes.

The books, which cover regions from around the West to around the world, are widely available. But you’re unlikely to find the complete selection in one place, so for a free color catalog, call 800-553-453.

Finally, two travel-related gifts that would make nice stocking stuffers:

A travel umbrella that’s small enough to fit in a briefcase, only 8 inches long, with a zippered leatherette pouch so it won’t get other contents wet. From Totes Inc., available at department stores, around $25.

A miniature book light, for anybody who gets annoyed by hotel lights that aren’t suitable for reading. The NiteOwl, not much bigger than a bookmark, is powered by two batteries or an optional AC adapter and has a krypton bulb with built-in reflector. Two models are $25 and $40, available in bookstores or from Lumatec Industries, (800) 776-7945.

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