Q&A
LEAD:  Seattle-Vancouver  Question:We are planning a trip to the Pacific Northwest and would like information on travel between Seattle and Vancouver by boat. - P. N., Hoboken, N.J.  Answer:Two ferry companies operate daily service between Seattle and Victoria on Vancouver Island. There are several ferry crossings a day between the island and the city of
Seattle-Vancouver  Question:We are planning a trip to the Pacific Northwest and would like information on travel between Seattle and Vancouver by boat. - P. N., Hoboken, N.J.  Answer:Two ferry companies operate daily service between Seattle and Victoria on Vancouver Island. There are several ferry crossings a day between the island and the city of Vancouver on the mainland.
The Princess Marguerite and Island Princess each does a round trip each day between Seattle and Victoria. They are operated by the British Columbia Steamship Company (2700 Alaskan Way, Seattle, Wash. 98121; 206-441-8200). The Princess Marguerite, carrying up to 1,400 passengers, makes the journey in 4 hours 15 minutes. The Island Princess, with a capacity of 900 people, does it in 3 hours 45 minutes. Round-trip fares are $32; children 5 to 11, $16. A buffet breakfast is $6.50 ($4 for childen) and dinner, $12 ($6 for children). The Marguerite carries cars for $40, one way, including driver's fare; the other vessel takes motorhomes and trailers. Reservations are not required for passengers but they are for vehicles. The service started May 7 and continues through Oct. 2.
The journey between Seattle and Victoria takes about two and a half hours on the water-jet catamaran Victoria Clipper, operated by Clipper Navigation. The 300-passenger craft, built in Norway, makes two round trips every day through Sept. 5, then one trip a day in each direction until May. The round trip costs $59, or $49 for passengers under 12 and over 59. Bar and beverage service and snacks are available at extra cost. Clipper Navigation is at 2701 Alaskan Way, Seattle; 800-888-2535 outside Seattle; and 206-448-5000.
Passengers take a bus from Victoria to the island's Swartz Bay to board the ferry to the outskirts of Vancouver. Service every two hours, and hourly from June 23, is offered every day in both directions by British Columbia Ferries (its number in Vancouver is 604-669-1211). The trip takes about 1 hour 40 minutes and the one-way fare is $21 for vehicle and driver and $4.50 for other passengers, with children half price. The hourly service from June 23 will continue until mid-September.  Toddler's Fare  Question:Our son will be under age 2 when we buy our air tickets for a trip to the Far East but over 2 when we return after six or eight weeks. Do we have to pay full fare for his return flight? - B. R., Austin, Tex.  Answer:The fare is determined by the departure date, say airlines that fly to the Far East. If the family sets out before the child's second birthday, his fare will be an infant's fare, 10 percent of what one parent pays. His round-trip ticket would remain valid for the return, an official of Japan Air Lines said. Only if the toddler was 2 before departure would he travel as a child (ages 2 to 12) and pay 50 percent of an adult's fare. British Airways and United Airlines said the child's age on the date of an outgoing flight determines the fare, which for an infant is 10 percent. B.A.'s child fares (2 to 11), a spokeswoman said, are calculated proportionately according to the type of adult fare. For an advance-purchase ticket, the rate is 67 percent. United said children aged 2 to 11 pay 50 percent.  European Trains  Question:Using a two-week Eurailpass, how long would it take me to travel by train from Copenhagen to Madrid? I would continue to ride on the pass in the south. - S. A., New York, N.Y.  Answer:There are options for the journey to Madrid, but one preferred by some train enthusiasts is via Hamburg and Paris. Leaving Copenhagen on, say, a Monday afternoon, the traveler arrives in Madrid at breakfast time on Wednesday. The three trains involved run every day. From Copenhagen, the EuroCity 32 train leaves at 4:40 P.M. and is scheduled to reach Hamburg at 9:59 P.M. The No. 234 train departs Hamburg at 10:47 P.M. and reaches the Gare du Nord in Paris at 8:38 next morning. The passenger then has to wait in Paris until 8 P.M. for the departure of the EuroCity 409 from Gare d'Austerlitz for Madrid. It is due at the city's Charmartin Station at 8:32 next morning.
An alternative is to catch the No. 127 from Austerlitz in Paris at 2:18 P.M., reaching Irun in northern Spain at 9:11 P.M., but you have to make another connection there for Madrid. The No. 204 leaves Irun at 10:45 P.M., arriving in Madrid at 9 A.M.
A 15-day Eurailpass ($298) is for travel in first-class on all trains, but does not include slpeeping accommodations. A Eurail Youthpass (for those aged under 26; $320 for a month) is for second-class, and the traveler has to pay a supplement of $35 when riding most EuroCity trains. The first-class traveler on the Hamburg-Paris overnight journey could have a single sleeper for $116, a less luxurious one for $83 or a double at $50 a person. In second class, a sleeping compartment for two or three people is $33 a person; a couchette, $15 a person. On the Paris-Madrid run, in first class, a single sleeper is $155 and a double, $66 a person. Second class: $44 a person for two or three sharing; no couchettes.  Colorado Ranches  Question:Are there any guest ranches, with horse riding, near Denver? We want to fly to Denver and not drive far. - P. J. T., Wilmington, Del.  Answer:There are some ranches within a two-hour drive of Denver, but to reach others vacationers can take commuter flights from the city to Colorado Springs, Steamboat Springs, Aspen and Gunnison. If flying only as far as Denver is preferred, one of the closest dude ranches is the North Fork (Box B, Shawnee, Colo. 80475; 303-838-9873). It's about 50 miles away and the ranch meets guests at Denver's Stapleton Airport. The transportation charge is $80 for a family of up to four people. Tumbling River (Box 30, Grant, Colo 80448; 303-838-5981), 62 miles from Denver, charges $100, round trip, to drive a group of up to six visitors arriving at the airport. Lost Valley (Route 2, Box 70, Sedalia, Colo. 80135; 303-647-2311), about 65 from Denver, picks up visitors and charges $125 for a couple and $160 for a family, round trip. The Colorado Tourism Board (800-433-2656) supplies a booklet about ranches.