‘Green Gables’ Lives On In Tour Of Pei
Q. My wife has been a reader of “Anne of Green Gables” most of her life and would like to take a tour of Avonlea on Prince Edward Island, Canada, this summer.
Bus trips from Pennsylvania, where we live, that visit PEI are usually of 10 days and are too long and too tiring for some folks, including my wife.
We have made inquiries of tourist information offices and found them to be unresponsive. It appears that nobody wants to offer a bus tour without the extra side trips that merely help fill the 10 days.
A land tour of five or six days would suit us better. To drive that distance ourselves would be difficult.
We would appreciate reading of your solution. - L.P., Enola, Pa.
A. Carol Horne of the Prince Edward Island tourism office, called Enterprise PEI, suggests that the answers to your questions lie in the free PEI Visitors Guide that you can obtain by phoning 800-463-4PEI.
The 1996 edition is now available. Ask also for a companion brochure called Island Value Vacations, which lists various package plans, several of which feature Green Gables-site visits.
A day tour that explores Anne country on a double-decker bus is among a selection of short island tours offered from Charlottetown, the capital. These are listed in the guidebook, as are accommodations, including some charming B&Bs, in all price ranges. Or you might consider a fly-drive with a rental car to roam around the little island province on your own, including “Avonlea” sites.
Fly-drive packages are offered by Brian Moore Tours, 800-565-0305, including airfare, car and accommodations if desired.
Anne’s Land, a section of the visitors’ guide, is the central north coast of the island including the birthplace of novelist Lucy Maud Montgomery.
Green Gables House, home of Montgomery relatives when she used it as the site of her original Anne novel, is now owned by Parks Canada, furnished in original style and open for tours.
Other popular stops include the “Anne” museum and “Anne’s House of Dreams” where the fictional Anne and Gilbert lived as newlyweds, with the “Avonlea” schoolhouse nearby.
Q. During late spring, three of us will be traveling through England and Wales. We anticipate an expensive vacation.
We would appreciate your advice on what you consider the most efficient way of exchanging our money - traveler’s checks in dollars, in pounds, etc. - bearing in mind the commission fees charged for these exchanges. - A.K., Deerfield Beach, Fla.
A. Here’s a way to avoid paying any fee at either end of the deal: Buy either U.S. dollar or pound sterling American Express traveler’s checks in the United States at a place where you are a member (such as an AAA office) or a depositor (your bank) and you will pay only face value, no commission. Then cash them at American Express offices in England and Wales, also getting face value with no commission charged.
If you’ll be in remote areas without an American Express office, just remember to get enough cash to tide you over.
Credit cards are another good way to avoid high fees. The charge is for the price of whatever goods or service you buy, and if you pay the whole balance soon after the bill arrives at your home, no interest is charged.
It’s unlikely the bill will beat you home unless you plan a very long trip.
In a pinch, credit cards can also be helpful in getting cash from ATM machines, which have blossomed all over Europe, but those cash withdrawals do involve a commission fee.
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