Giorgio was a great guide! Very knowledgeable and made everyone feel comfortable. He was very accommodating!! Well worth the money!! Highly recommend!!

We were excited to visit Pisa and the beautiful cliff towns of Cinque Terre. Little did we know how essential having a guide to navigate the day trip from Florence would be. Five trains and a boat ride with big crowds of tourist who were not sure which way to go would have been impossible for us. So, at the most basic, he got us there and back without a problem. Although we would be anxious about making a train or finding a place for something to drink, Raphael always assured us everything would be ok. One of the highlights when arriving at Manarola was a table waiting for us in a very cool restaurant—wine and water served right up. It was surprising because we saw many lines outside restaurants. We were told we would have a little snack and were surprised at the delicious sandwiches we were served—enough that this snack was our lunch. We continued our tour and enjoyed the beautiful views from three of the five villages. Getting our train back to Florence was a bit exciting—the stairwell was crowded and folks were not interested in letting us by—even though Raphael was telling them our train was coming and that they were going to the the wrong side of the track. He walked us up the stairs through the crowd and we easily made our way back to Florence. I think the crowd of people were very surprised when they found themselves on the wrong side of they track. We really did enjoy the beautiful villages, shopping, and dipping our toes in the Ligurian Sea. Leaving the navigation up to Raphael was definitely the right decision!

Firas is a knowledgeable, kind, engaging and warm guide. I cannot imagine having spent the day with any other local expert. He made our trip to Pisa and Cinque Terre an amazing learning experience but also an intimate culinary journey. His descriptions of the history and culture made the monuments and food come to life. Grazie Mille!!!!!!!!

We. Love. Mattia! Wow...what an amazing day we had! It started with a fun train ride, despite it having temporary mechanical troubles, causing it to stop mid-way for a bit. Obviously, NOT Mattia’s fault! This simply allowed him more time to fill us in on some of the history of what we were about to see. Upon arriving at our first stop, Monterosso, we got caught in a DELUGE of rain! 😂 It was actually kind of fun and, fortunately, very short lived. We happily waited it out under cover at a little seaside bistro where we got to enjoy a flight of four wines plus snacks. We then walked around for awhile taking in the sights of the beautiful little town then headed to our next stop, Vernazza. Again, we walked around enjoying the beauty this amazing part of the world has to offer. After a bit, we stopped and Mattia bought us a selection of delicious fried seafoods from a tiny storefront vendor. They were wrapped in little paper cones and meant (IMO) to be taken to the sea to sit awhile and just enjoy having a quiet moment watching the waves - which we did! Everywhere you looked you saw little cairns (~6”-12”) folks had made using the flat, smooth stones that completely covered the beach. Hundreds and hundreds of them! This might have been my favorite moment...Time to head to our last stop, Corniglia. You could either take the bus up the mountain to the city or the (somewhat arduous) switchback of stairs. We chose the stairs and once again were treated with seeing beautiful and colorful houses, shops, and panoramic views of the sea. All in all, it was a day my husband and I won’t soon forget! Touring with Mattia was perfect. Friendly and chatty as the day is long, insisted on paying for everything during the tour, and I CHALLENGE you to ask him a question about Italy - past or present - that he does not know the answer to!! Seriously. He has a near encyclopedic knowledge of history, art, the military, geography...It makes visiting an area infinitely better to do so with someone who can provide knowledge you wouldn’t otherwise get if doing it on your own. We have another tour with him tomorrow and I can’t wait!