The Via Francigena is a legendary pilgrimage trail across the Italian countryside to Rome. Whether you’re looking for a pilgrimage or just want to hike from Siena to Rome, a new trip being offered by Wilderness Travel will fill the bill. The 10-day/nine-night tour covers 80 miles of hiking, which ends in Rome by walking into St. Peter’s Square. The trail is not as well known as the noted El Camino pilgrimage trail and has much less foot traffic, particularly in the fall when these tours are scheduled. Among the hotel options are some converted 15th century buildings and a former nunnery. The trip is priced from $4,995 per person, double occupancy for 11-15 people or $5,395 for six to 10. All meals except two dinners are included, as are services of a trip leader, lodging, a glass of wine or beer with dinner and luggage transport. Info: 800-368-2794, http://tinyurl.com/znajxwn
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WalletHub ranks airlines
We all have had personal experience and heard horror stories about airlines. WalletHub, an online site that offers advice to consumers on credit cards and other financial matters, also likes to publish travel-related studies. Its latest is a 2016 rating of the best and worst domestic airlines. To compile the list, it used government figures on such things as cancellations, flight delays and complaints. The main findings put Virgin America, JetBlue Airways and Alaska Airlines in the top three slots. (Virgin will soon become part of Alaska.) United Airlines was ranked worst, and American Airlines was second from the bottom. The study also ranks airlines in other areas. Delta Air Lines was tops in reliability, with Envoy Air at the bottom. In the area of comfort, JetBlue led, with Spirit Airlines and Frontier Airlines worst. Probably not surprising is that Spirit was most economical; Frontier was third in that category. You can read lots more at http://tinyurl.com/j5ah6fl.
Bird fans flock to Honduras
Birders may want to fly south for the Honduras Birding for Conservation Tour that’s scheduled Nov. 4-13. Five international birding experts and five Honduran birding guides will lead five teams of 10 bird watchers on a quest to uncover the most tropical species and win prize money that will go to a variety of bird conservation efforts in Honduras. Participants will spend four nights in Pico Bonito National Park, two nights each in Cerro Azul National Park/Lake Yojoa and Copan and a final night in San Pedro for a closing dinner and awards. The cost is $2,286 per person, double occupancy, or $2,673, single occupancy, and includes lodging, meals, in-country transportation, guided birding outings and park entrance fees. International airfare is extra. Info: 888-428-0221, www.hondurasbirdtour.com
Phil Marty is a freelance writer.
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