Amberley Castle

www.amberleycastle.co.uk; tel. 011-44-1-79-883-1992; fax 011-44-1-79-883-1998

--once owned by Queen Elizabeth I.

--$235-$320/night double; "winter warmer" rate, Mondays-Thursdays through March 31--$73.  Includes full English breakfast.

--from Victoria Station in London, a one hour train ride south to rural Sussex

--white peacocks; dry grass-covered moat is now croquet area

--fine restaurant

--pub in adjacent village filled with thatched-roof cottages

--5 minutes by cab to nearby village of Arundel:  castle to tour; tea shoppes; antique shoppes

--do weddings with Elizabethan minstrels and medieval jousters.  Bride and groom can leave or arrive by helicopter.

Banff (snow fun) "Moose, Mountains, and Mounties"

www.BanffLakeLouise.com; (403) 762-8421, fax (403) 762-8163

--Readers of the London Telegraph call Banff the best ski resort in the world. Canadians vote Banff National Park their favourite tourist attraction.

--Banff Springs Hotel: cphotels.com; built a little over 100 years ago; styled after the baronial castles of Scotland--a "castle in the wilderness"; 770 guest rooms makes it the largest hotel in North America; new state-of-the-art "Solace" spa; 5-minute cab ride to "people's" inexpensive old-fashioned Upper Hot Springs & spa; can walk to town.

--good exchange rate right now in Canada; you'll pay about 1/3 less for most items. 

--My bus driver said, "If you don't like the weather, wait 5 minutes.  You can experience all four seasons in one day."

--"The Canadian Rockies are 1001 Switzerlands rolled into one."  --Cornelius Van Horn, builder of the Banff Springs Hotel

--Banff Heritage Passport  $14/family, $6/person;  admits you to 3 interesting museums (Whyte Museum of art, Cave & Basin National Historic Site, Banff Park Museum); good indefinitely or give to someone when you leave town.

--Lush (www.lushcanada.com; 228 Bear St.) fantabulous shop for "bath bombs."

--Get to Banff from Vancouver via the scenic Rocky Mountaineer railtour.  www.rockymountaineer.com; (800) 665-7245. 

Los Cabos (sun fun)

www.visitcabo.com; (800) VISITCABO.

--good whale watching through March.  More species of whale are found here than anywhere else on earth. 

--Terrain resembles Arizona but is unique.  Fly over 1,000 miles of desolate wilderness to get here.  Dry and insect-free.

--Stay:  Hacienda del Mar (just became a Sheraton; www.haciendadelmar.com.mx; (888) 672-7137) resembles a colonial village from afar, with richly colored buildings and luxurious rooms with ocean views permitting you to see fabulous pastel pink and blue sunrises from bed.  Luscious tile work in bathrooms.  Grounds are punctuated with brilliant fuchsia-colored bougainvilla. 

--Do:  Shopping in authentic town of San Jose.  Visit colonial town of Todos Santos, where the Hotel California of the famous Eagles' song is located.  In rowdy San Lucas, down margaritas while you hang upside down or visit Cabo Wabo, the nightclub owned by Van Halen.  

--Tip:  Bring small U.S. bills, lots of ones and fives.

Osmosis Enzyme Bath & Massage 209 Bohemian Hwy., Freestone, 5 mi. east of town, (707) 823-8231, fax (707) 874-3702; www.osmosis.com.  Daily 9-9.  Enzyme bath with blanket wrap $65, with massage $140.  Unsuitable for children.  Reservations required.

Long popular in Japan, the enzyme bath here is something like a mud bath--only lighter, more fragrant, and dry.  It is said to improve circulation, break down body toxins, and relieve stress, and this is the only place in the U.S. where it is available.  The experience begins with a soothing cup of enzyme tea to aid digestion, enjoyed in a tranquil tea garden.  Then bathers, either nude or in a swimsuit, are submerged for 20 minutes in a hot mixture of Hinoki cedar fiber, rice bran, and over 600 active plant enzymes that naturally generate heat.  This is followed by a blanket wrap or massage.  Private massages are given in serene outdoor Japanese pagodas nestled in a wooded area near Salmon Creek.

The Inn at Occidental 3657 Church St., Occidental, (800) 522-6324, (707) 874-1047, fax (707) 874-1078; www.innatoccidental.com.  17 rooms; 100% non-smoking; $-$$$.  Unsuitable for children under 10.  Some fireplaces.  Afternoon & evening snack, full breakfast. 

Not your average B&B, this exquisite, yet cozy beauty of an inn presents guests with the very best in food and hospitality.  This restored Victorian, the town's oldest residential structure, sits tucked among tall redwoods on a hillside just above town.  Outside it has covered porches furnished with wicker, plus a walled courtyard and  a garden with a fountain.  Inside it has fir floors, wainscotted hallways, and themed guest rooms--one with a private hot tub.  It is delightfully furnished with the owner's vast and ever-growing antique and art collection.  (Is that why this inn recently doubled in size, adding a new wing in the back?  Or is it because they are always filled to the gills?)  Sonoma Tastemaker Dinners are scheduled irregularly and held in the formal dining room.  These multi-course dinners provide the chance to dine with some of the area's local food providers, whose products are featured in the meal.  Best of all, the owner's collection of beautiful china, which must rival that of Martha Stewart herself, is put into use.