Travel: Call of the World

(2 of 4)

SCANDINAVIA has opened its salmon-fishing preserves to the public, and sportsmen can buy rights to fish for rates ranging from $35 to $3,000 a week, depending on the richness of the rivers. A placid but entertaining attraction is the "dollar train" from Stockholm to Lapland, a seven-day, $425 railroad cruise through the magnificence of the fiords and mountain country.

FRANCE still offers Paris as its main (and very expensive) attraction. This year, to add some zing to the traditional cathedral and cháteau trips, there is an association called Relais de Campagne to plan gourmet tours of 76 superb country inns in the provinces. Up for rediscovery this season: Périgord, a dreamy river-filled region of south-central France long famed for its truffles, which offers splendid, inexpensive food, as well as a growing number of excellent hotels.

ITALY yearly improves the Autostrada linking up the main tourist cities north and south of Rome. The big question mark has been Florence, and the news is good: Florence is going to be more fascinating than ever. Of 31,555 art shops in the city, nearly 8,000 were ruined by last fall's floods; yet all but 150 will be back in business this summer. The city has not only recovered but has actually turned the flood damage into a high-powered attraction. Visitors can now take a guided tour of the Boboli Gardens, central "hospital" for damaged paintings and manuscripts, and watch craftsmen doing the delicate job of restoring the damaged masterpieces in a limonaia (a one-time hothouse for growing lemons).

PORTUGAL has the Algarve, along the southern coast, now easily reachable by car from Lisbon over the recently opened Salazar Bridge. The chic people have begun to flock into two new ocean-view luxury hotels in Praia da Rocha and Portimào. The beaches and water are superb, the prices are reasonable, and there is a new 18-hole golf course, which will host this year's European Ladies championship. Another "find" this year will be the island of Madeira, 535 miles southwest of Lisbon; it has always had splendid accommodations, but its new airport opened 18 months ago, and the new accessibility guarantees new popularity. Portugal's biggest draw of the season will be the tiny village of Fatima, which is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Virgin Mary's appearance to three shepherd's children. Tens of thousands of pilgrims are expected in Fatima, but getting satisfactory accommodations is going to be almost as miraculous as the event the pilgrims have come to celebrate: the town has a scant 5,000 beds for guests—mostly in places that have neither running water nor indoor toilets.

SPAIN is still a bargain, overcrowded along the Costa Brava and jam-packed in Madrid ("Its season used to be winter," reports Fielding. "Now it is difficult to get hotel accommodations any time. Madrid is going crazy"). Favored this year by the rich and beautiful people: Sotogrande del Guadiaro on the Costa del Sol, a region that boasts 3,200 acres overlooking the Rock of Gibraltar, several fine hotels, two golf courses and fine swimming. Equally In: nearby Marbella (the Duke and Duchess of Windsor will be there).