FOR AS LITTLE AS

pounds 1.50

travellers bound for New York can purchase a guidebook to the Big Apple that comes with a discount card. The NYPages is compiled by the New York Travel Advisory Bureau and contains 100 pages of information on accommodation, eating, shopping and sights, but no maps; plus the NYCard which offers discounted rates on goods and services such as reductions on entry fees into the city's attractions, no-fee currency exchange and cheap local, national and international telephone calls. Send a cheque, made payable to NYTAB, to NYTAB, 11 Berkeley Street, London, W1X 6BU.

pounds 43

you can hire a group-A car for the weekend. Until the 31 October Holiday Autos are offering car hire prices that represent savings of pounds 60 or more. Customers must collect the car after 2pm on Friday and return it before 9am the following Monday. Four-day weekend car rental is available for pounds 60. Holiday Autos (tel: 0990 300 411).

pounds 159

per person you can see the sights of Rome and Pompeii on a seven-day tour. Departing on the 10, 17 and 24 October, the tour takes in Rome, Pompeii and Monte Cassino with an optional tour to the island of Capri for an additional charge of around pounds 30. Included in the price is return coach travel from more than 300 pick-up points in the UK and four night's b&b hotel accommodation in the spar town of Fiuggi, 30 miles east of Rome. Leger Holidays (tel: 01709 833833).

pounds 217

you can take a half-term break in a Cornish barn. Bassett's Byre sleeps four and is one of a group of converted medieval barns set in 10 acres of woodland, at Woolstone Manor in North Cornwall. The land is bordered by the River Neet - popular with trout fishers - and within easy reach are a variety of excellent beaches including the surfer's paradise of Widemouth Bay. Other properties in the grounds of the manor house are available for rental. Farm and Cottage Holidays (tel: 01237 479698).

pounds 467

skiers booking selected British Airways routes with their Swiss Ski Holidays receive a free Swatch Access watch. Not any old watch, the Swatch Access (worth pounds 29.50) allows swanky skiers to load their lift-pass data on to the waterproof watch and sail through turnstiles with a flick of the wrist - an integrated microchip communicates with the terminal and automatically opens the barriers - putting an end to fumbling for ski passes. This price per person includes a one-week ski holiday with seven nights' half- board, return BA flights (selected routes), return rail transfers and the Swatch watch. Swiss Travel Service (tel: 01992 456145).

pounds 799

gap-year students can take an around-the-world trip from London stopping at Bangkok, Sydney, overland to Melbourne, Los Angeles, overland to San Francisco, then back to London. The price does not include overland travel costs and is available to students and those under 26. Campus Travel (tel: 0171-730 8111) or, for general gap-year inquiries, Campus Travel's Gap Year Hotline, open 9am-12 noon until 14 September (tel: 0171-881 5105).

pounds 969

those suffering from asthma, eczema, psoriasis and rheumatism can enjoy the therapeutic properties of the Dead Sea. The lowest point on earth, the Dead Sea has unique mineral-rich water, mud and brine which is said to have natural curative properties, along with the climate and air. Based on two travelling, Interhealth Holidays are offering 14 nights half-board at the five-star Caesar Hotel, with return flights and a holistic skin- care pack in this per person price. Interhealth Holidays (tel: 0181-441 6500) will be at the Mind, Body and Spirit International Festival at the Alexandra Palace, London, from 3-6 September.

pounds 1,395

per person you can take a 22-day tour of Peru exploring one of the world's great mysteries, the Nazca Lines. Possibly gouged into the desert some 1,500 years ago by local Indians, these ancient markings have baffled experts for many years and are believed by some to be the world's largest astrological calendar or the work of extra-terrestrial visitors. The tour takes you over the lines in a small plane and also takes you to Lake Titicaca, Taquile Island, through the vast Altiplano to the Inca city of Cuzco and on a four-day trek to the "lost city" of Machu Picchu. Tours depart monthly and this price includes flights, accommodation, some meals, transport and guides. Explore Worldwide (tel: 01252 344161).

pounds 3,295

you can explore Chile's Patagonian wonders on horseback. The Torres Del Paine riding safari takes in the eponymous snow-covered granite pillars which rise 8,000 feet, flanked by turquoise lakes to the south and huge glaciers to the north. Riders follow secluded routes through the southern beech forests and plains to reach the edge of the ice cap where glaciers pour into the Paines great lakes. The safari is led by an experienced guide and nights are spent in local refugios. This 19-day tour includes return flights, full-board accommodation and ground arrangements. Worldwide Journeys & Expeditions (tel: 0171-381 8638).