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The following are candid appraisals of some of the tours ITN readers have taken in the last year or so. Where possible, for comparison's sake, different readers' appraisals of a particular tour company are presented in tandem.

When writing to ITN about a tour, please include the ADDRESS and/or phone number of the tour company plus the PRICE, length and MONTH/YEAR of your tour. (Write-ups may not be used. without the price included, and remember, ITN does not cover destinations in North America.)

Write to Tours in Review, c/o ITN, 2120 28th St., Sacramento, CA 95818.

CHILE AND ARGENTINA

One of my fondest wishes has always been to visit the waters and lands made famous. by explorers and adventurers such as Magellan, Darwin, Joshua Slocum and the men who rounded the Horn in sailing vessels.

With this idea in mind, my wife, Ann, and I signed up for a Chile-Patagonia tour, Jan. 4-23, '02, with Anitours (1151 Freeport Rd., PMB 114, Pittsburgh, PA 15238; phone 800/243-8264, fax 412/782-3821, e-mail anitours@concentric.net or visit anitours.com): This was our second tour with Anitours; we'd traveled earlier with them on an India tour, which was also enjoyable.

The cost of this 20-day trip was about $11,600. This breaks down for two as follows: basic tour, $7,560; round-trip air, Washington, D.C.-Miami, $335; air, Miami-Santiago, Chile (LanChile), $1,957; air in Chile, $535; trip insurance, $450; additional meals, $150; airport tax in Chile, $122; optional train tour, $130, and tips, $150.

All of our flights left and arrived on time. We experienced no problems with air travel. The flight to and from Santiago was enhanced with good views of Andean volcanoes and glaciers.

After arriving in Punta Arenas, we embarked on the MN Terra Australis (e-mail terra@australis.com or visit www.ausrralis.com). This ship, built in 1985, has a capacity of 110 passengers. I found that the sailing was smooth because, except for some short passages in open waters, the ship maneuvered in calm channels and fjords.

Our cruise was excellent. We had good food, good accommodations and an efficient staff who made the whole experience memorable and pleasant. Zodiac landing craft on board provided shore visits to glaciers, icebergs, beaches, forests and wildlife sanctuaries.

We had a chance to visit the towns of Puerto Williams and Ushuaia. At Ushuaia, Ann and I rode the narrow-gauge Southern Fuegan Railway, aka Tren del Fin del Mundo (www.trendelfinelmundo.com.ar).

When the ship returned to Punta Arenas, we spent a day visiting the town and had some free time for ourselves. The next day, our group of nine tourists and two guides rode a small coach through Chile to Argentina over gravel roads to El Calafate.

The small hotel Kau Yatun (Ea. 25 de Mayo 5, El Calafate, Argentina; phone Surexpress at 54-11-4393-3655 or visit www.argentinas-hotels. corn), a former working ranch, was clean and comfortable.

Side trips in this area included Perito Moreno Glacier and a cruise on Lago Argentino to see more glaciers and scenery.

It is my personal feeling that these day cruises would be enhanced greatly if the boat guide commentators showed some restraint and talked less. I've learned to bring earplugs on trips, which helps somewhat.

Another long trip via coach through the pampas brought us to Torres del Paine National Park. We stayed at the amazingly luxurious Hosteria Las Torres (Ma gallanes 960 Piso 2 Interior, Punta Arenas, Chile; phone 56-61-226054, fax 56-61-22264], e-mail info@lastorres.com or visit www.lastorres.com). Food and accommodations here were excellent.

Ann and I, along with three others, opted to hike the four miles up (about a 2,500-foot climb) to the Torres del Paine viewpoint. It took us about nine hours to make the round trip. It was exhausting but a great way to see this unique place. This park is a favorite for backpackers and travelers from around the world who come specifically for this hike to the base of the towers.

Our coach then took us back to Punta Arenas, where we boarded our LanChile flight to Puerto Montt. A clear flying day allowed yet another view of the extensive Andean icefields.

After three days at Hotel Colonos del Sur (Del Salvador 241; Puerto Varas, Chile; e-mail gerencia@colonosdelsur.cl or visit www.colonosdelsur.cl), having a chance to see some of the lakes and volcanoes in this part of Chile, we started our long trek home.

Ann enjoys birding and, with the aid of a guide to southern South American birds, was able to add 67 new species to her life list during this trip. I figured this is about $73 per bird.

In summary, we had a great trip. The Chilean people we met were pleasant, and we felt comfortable walking the streets in all of the towns we visited. We saw a lot of great sights and gained a feeling that, in some small measure, we were seeing the world through the eyes of Magellan, Darwin and all those who preceded us there.

- FRED & ANN ABELES, Frederick, MD

CHINA In May '01 we traveled to China with CITS (41 Binjang Rd.; Guilin, People's Republic of China, 541002; phone [86] 773-2828304 or [86] 773-2828314, fax [86] 773-2805303, e-mail cits@chinahighlights.com or visit www.chinahighlights.com)

Our 24-day itinerary included Hong Kong;. Guilin (with a private Li River tour), Kunming, Lijiang, Kunming/ Chongqing, a cruise on the MS Queen through the Three Gorges to Yichang, then Xi'an, Beijing, Shanghai, Suzhou and Hangzhou before heading back to Hong Kong.

The basic cost was $2,005. The whole transaction was carried out Via e-mail. A deposit was paid by credit card and the balance was paid in travelers' checks in Guilin.

We stayed in 3-star hotels, with breakfast throughout. "All connections between cities were by air except for a train trip between. Suzhou arid Hangzhou arid a 400-kilometer minibus trip between Yichang and Wuhan due to a canceled flight.

All hotel and flight reservations, as well as the pickups, were faultless, and the guides and drivers were cheerful and friendly.

The person in charge of our program, Mr. Paul Yin, was most helpful and understanding and his English is impeccable. I highly recommend the services of the CITS Guilin branch to all readers planning a trip to China.

- IGOR REBRIN, Sao Paulo, Brazil

ENGLAND, SCOTLAND AND TALES

The cost of the tour, including airfare from the East Coast, the services of a professional tour guide, full English breakfast daily, four dinners and a British Heritage Pass (which gave us a 50% discount to many attractions), was $1,800. The tour was limited to 12 people,

In June '01 our group of 11 gathered at Manchester airport, having flown to meet Barrie Whitehead from Rivington Hall Tours (Box 702, Unionville, Pa 19375; phone 610/444-5966) for the start of our 12-day tour of the UK.

Our first stop was in Wales, the Swallow Falls Hotel in the middle of the Snowden range. Some of us decided to unpack, then take a walk to the scenic viewpoint directly across the road from the hotel. Dinner that night was served in the quiet lounge bar, an eclectic menu with a price range of [pounds sterling]5-[pounds sterling]10 ($7-$14) per person.

After a very sound sleep we gathered for, breakfast. Continental breakfast was available as well as the proverbial full English delight of eggs, bacon, sausage, tomatoes, mushrooms, fried bread, kippers, etc.

The morning's-first stop was a visit to the little town of Llanwrust. The town was closed so we went off to the town of Conway, a pretty place with a small harbor and a 13th-century castle. We saw the smallest house in Wales, no more than six feet wide, where a woman in the national costume posed with visitors for photos. Also in the town and well worth a visit was a 15th-century merchant's house.

Caernarvon was the site of the grandest castle of the Wales portion of our tour, Which most of us visited in a pelting rainstorm, the only rain we saw during our visit to the UK with the exception of a heavy rainfall a few days later.

We entered Scotland by way of the Lanberis Pass, an absolutely gorgeous. route and very steep; the bus went down to first gear on many occasions. This route gave us the chance to take an unscheduled side trip on a 19th century steam railway to the 4,000 foot. summit of Snowden. The trip; to the summit took one hour each way. It was 30 degrees colder at the summit than at the base.

We headed south to York, England, at Barrie's suggestion stopping in Haworth, home of the Bronte sisters.

In York we had a free day, and my husband and I toured the magnificent minster, surrounded by medieval streets, and took a nice ghost tour in the evening.

We went back to Scotland, Edinburgh, by way of the Yorkshire moors, about as bleak a countryside as you will find anywhere but romantically so.