TRAVEL LOG

Tickets for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens will cost about 30% less than those for the Summer Games in 2000 in Sydney, Australia, according to the travel agency that holds the exclusive ticket concession in the U.S.

Cartan Tours Inc. of Manhattan Beach began selling event tickets and travel packages last week.

Prices range from about $14 to $281 per sports event; $468 to $1,170 for the opening ceremonies; and $140 to $936 for the closing. Popular events such as women's gymnastics and swimming finals generally cost the most and sell out quickly, said Don Williams, Cartan's vice president of sales and marketing.

Besides Athens hotels, nearly a dozen cruise ships in Greece's Piraeus harbor will provide lodging. Six-night packages with round-trip airfare from New York start at $4,900 per person, double occupancy, at hotels (including daily breakfast), and $6,700 aboard Royal Olympia's Olympia Explorer ship. The ship stays cost more because they include meals and entertainment, Williams said. (Add about $300 per person for airfare from Los Angeles.)

Contact Cartan at (800) 360-2004 for brochures. Ticket applications are also expected to be available online by April 1 at www.cartan.com.

Preparations for the Games, Aug. 13 to 29, 2004, have been plagued by delays in building roads and venues. Last month the International Olympic Committee expressed "serious concerns" about the problems but said it was committed to holding the games in Athens.

Exhibits mark

150th birthday

of Van Gogh

The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is celebrating the 150th anniversary of the artist's birth with two special exhibitions. "Vincent's Choice," through June 15, presents about 200 works that Van Gogh admired. It includes pairings with his own paintings, such as "Self-Portrait as an Artist" (1888) with Rembrandt's "Self-Portrait" (1669). "Gogh Modern," June 27 to Oct. 12, presents postwar artists influenced by Van Gogh. Admission fees, about $10 for adults, will be waived on March 30, Van Gogh's birthday. 011-31-20-570-5252, www.vangoghmuseum.nl.

RV renters get

a break on

gas prices

Spurred by soaring prices, motor-home rental companies are offering rebates on gasoline.