Travel Briefs

The new company Get My Boat (San Francisco, CA; 415/365-6383) lists a selection of boats around the world to rent, either from companies or individuals. 10,500 boats in over 1,000 cities in 70 countries are listed. Some come with a skipper.

Prices vary from a few hundred to a few thousand dollars per day, depending on the size of the boat, and some rentals require a deposit. Example — a 38-foot sailboat that sleeps seven is available for rent in Marseille, France, for $294 per day or $2,064 per week.

For people of all ages, more than 50 one-week courses are offered at Christ Church College in Oxford, July 4-Aug. 7, 2010. Among them are “Castles in Britain,” “Jane Austen’s Heroines” and “Victorian Scandals.” There are no prerequisites to enroll, and the classes are taught without papers to write or tests to take. No academic credit is offered.

£1,050 (near $1,738) covers the course fee, residence in student accommodations and three meals a day in Tudor Hall. Optional excursions include visits to stately homes, pub walks and attendance at Evensong in Christ Church Cathedral....

A guest room lying 13 feet below the surface of the Indian Ocean is part of a structure floating over a clearing in a coral reef 250 meters from Pemba Island in the Zanzibar Archipelago, off the coast of Tanzania.

Spotlights outside the room’s eight windows illuminate any sea life swimming by. Guests can climb a ladder to a lounge and bathroom at water level and continue up to the roof to sunbathe or stargaze.

Per-night rates are $1,200 for two people or $720, single, or, after June 30, $1,500 or $900, respectively. Book through the proximate Manta Resort (phone +255 776 718...