By Fred Wright, Jr.

Austen Peeping
For fans of British novelist Jane Austen (1775-1815), fall is perhaps the best time of year to take a country drive through many of Britain’s towns and villages, countryside and dales where the author lived and wrote. Such a tour could start in the southwestern city of Bath, where the Jane Austen Centre is located, followed by a drive through the Salisbury Plains, past Stonehenge, to the village of Steventon (Jane Austen’s birthplace) and then on to Chawton (near Alton, Hampshire), where fans can visit Jane Austen’s House and Museum. This 17th century house where she wrote and revised many of her works, contains memorabilia and artifacts, including some of her jewelry and furniture like a bookcase containing first editions of her novels. For more information about visiting the world of Jane Austen, go to www.visitbritain.com or call 800-462-2748.

Leaf Peeping
Though it may still be summer in some places, it’s fall in the American Northeast, and that means throngs of sightseeers hoping to see the leaves turn. Scattered throughout Vermont and other New England states are inns and B&Bs seeking to host these leaf peepers, including the Wilburton Inn in Manchester, Vermont, a 39-room, gabled, turn-of-the-century respite with a wrap-around terrace offering an elevated perspective of the upcoming foliage season. Rates through October 24th range from US$ 180 to US$ 315. For more information, call 800-648-4944 or go to www.wilburtoninn.com.

Monkey Peeping
A new luxury hotel in Belize, the Placencia, opened last May and offers a series of island villa accommodations and a wide range of above ground and below water activities. Guests can visit nearby Mayan temples dating back to 1200 BC, snorkel among underwater gardens, or try wall diving 35 feet (10 m) into black-blue depths. All 32 rooms are bungalow-style and on the beach. The hotel has 24-hour room service and a 10,000-bottle wine cellar. The village of Placencia sits on the tip of its namesake peninsula, a 15-mile (24 km) strip of land between the Caribbean Sea and the Placencia Lagoon. There are even colonies of howler monkeys just a 30-minute boat ride away in the Monkey River Preserve. For more information, go to www.theplacencia.com.

Whale Peeping
If leaf sighting seems too tame for you, then consider another viewing experience in a different part of North America. Each year in early autumn, Pacific whales migrate southward along Mexico’s Baja Peninsula. Hundreds of them make the 12,000-mile (19,300 km) journey, a six-month round trip. There are 11 species in the migration, including minke, Bryde’s, fin, sei, humpback, beluga, gray and blue whales. The whales are often close enough to the shores of Los Cabos at the southern tip of the peninsula to be seen from land. Several hotels and cafés have patios overlooking prime whale viewing areas, and many local tour companies offer whale-watching trips. The whale-watching season in Los Cabos begins in late December and lasts through late March when the large marine mammals return to the Arctic. For more information about flights and hotels, call 866-LOS CABOS or go to www.visitloscabos.org.

St. Barts Peeping
Travelers visiting the French resort island of Saint Barthélemy in the Caribbean usually need to change planes in San Juan (Puerto Rico), or St. Croix, (U.S). Starting November 15, there’s a quicker, more direct way via private air charter. Wimco, who is representing Tradewind Aviation for these Caribbean routes, features service on two different airplanes. The Cessna Caravan (carrying eight passengers plus luggage) flies in one hour from San Juan to St. Barts, as this island is also known, for US$ 2,400 per plane, each way; while the Pilatus (six passengers plus luggage) cuts that to 45 minutes from San Juan for US$ 2,700 per plane, each way. For more information, call 800-932-3222.

Polar Bear Peeping
Some people have always wanted to see a polar bear up close — without bars in the way and without fear of losing a limb. Now a special one-day guided tour is being offered on October 30. Transportation is provided from Winnipeg, (Manitoba, Canada) to Churchill, a celebrated gathering place for polar bears on the Hudson Bay and a mecca for nature photographers. For CAD 1,089 (US$ 922), the one day tour includes round trip air charter service, a full day of bear viewing from a Tundra Buggy, breakfast on the flight, lunch on the Buggy and an Arctic char or caribou dinner in Churchill. For more information, call 866-890-3377 or go to www.heartlandtravel.ca/BearAdventure.htm.