Anyone remember when you could do Europe...

Anyone remember when you could do Europe on $10 a day? This was back in the early ‘50s. And while it’s possible barely to buy a good pizza for $10 these days, students can still do Corsica on 10 bucks a day. This is the island off the French mainland (Napoleon’s birthplace), and for $10 you get lodging with a Corsican family and three meals a day. Or if you prefer, you can choose a dormitory for the same price in Ajaccio, the Corsican capital. The offer from the Corsican Travel & Trade Commission is aimed at students (all ages), youngsters or seniors. The season gets under way in July, ends in September. Another offer involves a weekend cruise from Nice or Marseille to Corsica, with a return to Nice, for $99.

Telephone the Corsican Travel & Trade Commission in Orange County--(714) 458-8868.

Scottish Travel: Between now and May 31, Scottish Travelpasses are selling at discounts (peak season rates are $88/$112). The passes are intended for Yanks who prefer not to drive on their holidays. Besides trains, the passes are good on ferries as well as buses, with a one-third discount. With the pass comes a discount card entitling travelers to 10%/50% reductions at shops, hotels, restaurants, tourist attractions.

Details by contacting your travel agent or Scots-American Travel Advisors, 26 Rugen Drive, Harrington Park, N.J. 07640.

Canada by Rail: Summer will mark the inauguration of new transcontinental luxury train service between Vancouver and Toronto. Up to 188 passengers will be accommodated in 94 bedrooms, each with private bath/shower, bar, telephone, TV and VCR. The service will be offered four times a month starting July 1. Dining will be under the supervision of L’Auberge d’Ill, a Michelin three-star restaurant in France. Rates start at $1,866 (high season), $1,440 (low season) for the three-day, 2,900-mile journey. Passengers can book space on the same train between Calgary and Toronto. Start-up of the new service is good news for rail fans who expressed disappointment over the recent discontinuation of the Royal Canadian train that traveled between Vancouver and Montreal.

Details from your travel agent or by calling Blythe & Co. toll-free at (800) 228-7712.

A Letter From Australia: “We would like to exchange our motor home for a similar one in California with anyone planning a visit to Australia. As seasons are reversed, traveling here is better between October and May, and if you want to visit the Outback (Alice Springs, Ayers Rock, Darwin) or the Great Barrier Reef (Cairns, Townsville), the best time is April/May. In six to eight weeks there is time to do both. Our motor home is best suited for two people but will sleep four. Shower, toilet, hot water, stove, TV. It is a Ford, six cylinders, automatic and runs on LTG and/or petrol. This is important since it doubles your range for Outback travel.”

Write to Roy Spence, 160 Blackwall Road, Woy Woy, New South Wales, Australia.

Hawaii Rental Guide: A handy new 84-page accommodations guide for Hawaii is being mailed free by the Hawaii Visitors Bureau. Rentals on all islands (Oahu, Kauai, Maui, Molokai, Lanai, the Big Island). Hotels, condominiums, B&Bs.; Dozens of choices. Daily, weekly, monthly rates. For L.B. of Thousand Oaks who inquired about B&Bs;, write to Bed & Breakfast Honolulu, 3242 Kaohinani Drive, Honolulu 96817, or call toll-free (800) 288-4666. Besides accommodations, the guide lists car rental agencies on all islands.

Copies from the Hawaii Visitors Bureau, 3440 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 502, Los Angeles 90010. Telephone (213) 385-5301. At the same time, ask the bureau for its restaurant guide.

French Connection: A Connecticut-based company is arranging home-stays in French residences. Apartments, farm houses, villas. Owners volunteer as guides, help you plan your itinerary, prepare picnic lunches. Rates in private homes from about $40/$70 per couple a day, including breakfast. Apartments in Paris start at $100. Long-term rentals can be arranged at reduced rates. Other accommodations in manor houses/chateaux throughout France.

Free brochures from Friends in France, P.O. Box 1044, Rocky Hill, Conn. 06067.

Meanwhile, travelers 13 to 26 years old are being invited to vacation with French families for three weeks for $895 (round-trip air fare, lodging, all meals, sightseeing). Contact Europe-U.S.A., 1081 Westwood Blvd., Suite 211, Los Angeles 90024.

Biking: Backroads Bicycle Touring of Berkeley has issued a new catalogue that describes trips in the United States, Europe, the Pacific, Asia. Special-interest tours for singles, seniors, families, photography buffs. Destinations include California’s Big Sur coastline, Mexico, France, Italy, Ireland, Bali, Australia/New Zealand, China. A total of 50 destinations around the world. Bikers stay in hotels, inns, mountain lodges, villas, chateaux. Trips from two to 17 days are designed for beginners, intermediates and advanced riders. Other bikers camp in Yellowstone, Bryce, Zion and Grand Canyon, as well as destinations along the Oregon coast, Puget Sound and in the Canadian and Colorado Rockies. Rental bicycles available.

For a free copy of the 62-page catalogue, write to Backroads Bicycle Touring, 1516 5th St., Suite PR40, Berkeley, Calif. 94710-1713.

Hotel Guide: A 162-page guide listing 880 Best Western hotels in Britain and Europe contains details on currency, banking, shopping hours, post offices. Best Western’s Atlas & Hotel Guide provides rates by season, telephone numbers of the various hotels, more than a dozen maps and a chart listing distances in kilometers between major European cities.

For a free copy of the “International Atlas & Hotel Guide” write to Marketing Services, P.O. Box 10203, Phoenix, Ariz. 85064-0203. Other details by calling toll-free (800) 528-1234. Note: Best Western publishes a road atlas and travel guide for North America that is free at BW properties or by mailing $2 to BW (above address).

Massachusetts: B.J. of Santa Monica asked for the name of a B&B; in the Boston area. Our vote goes to Cambridge House, 2218 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, Mass. 02140. This is rated by many as the best B&B; in the Boston/Cambridge area. Nearly a century old. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Antiques, canopy beds, fireplaces, classical music. Guests are served wine, mulled cider, coffee, tea, pastries on arrival and a full breakfast each morning (omelets, crepes, Belgian waffles).

Rates: $49/$165. For reservations, dial toll-free (800) 232-9989.

Reader Recommendations

California--Gail P. Sass, Los Angeles: “The Headlands Inn, P.O. Box 132, Mendocino, Calif. 95460, is a warm, cozy B&B; owned by Pat and Rod Stofle. Pat’s full gourmet breakfast is the best we’ve ever had in a B&B.; Newspapers delivered to your room every morning. In the second-floor parlor, guests gather at 5 p.m. for wine, mineral water and nibbles. My husband and I do a lot of B&Bing.; This is one of the best. Rates: $89/$125.”

Washington--K. Chertok, Santa Monica: “For a quiet studio apartment on the waterfront in the San Juan Islands ($75), write to Whale Watchhouse (Orcas Island), P.O. Box 729, Eastsound, Wash. 98245.”

Mexico--Alexander and Catherine Ciurczak, Capistrano Beach: Praise for Restaurant El Campanario, Canal 34, San Miguel de Allende.

Scotland--Jock and Joan Mirrey, Arcadia: “For a touring or golf holiday in Scotland, we highly recommend the Carlogie House Hotel, Carlogie Road, Carnoustie, Angus, Scotland DD7 6LD. Excellent accommodations, good food, friendly and personal service at 38 for two people, bed and breakfast.”