FLORENCE TOURS

I have and need to upload real tour descriptions (I have a

ton), but briefly - most of the Florence tours are

3 or 4-hour “intro” walking tours. I usually advise one

3-hour tour of the highlights of Florence that include the

Accademia (where the David statue is housed) and another tour,

focussed on the exquisite Uffizi Museum.

Of course there is also the Medici Chapels with princely tombs designed by Michelangelo, and Santa Croce church with tombs of more of the most important names in Florentine history - including Michelangelo himself (stolen from Rome in the middle of the night!), Machiavelli, and Galileo.

Across the river you can visit the lush and labyrinthine Pitti Palace (which you can access with the newly reopened Vasari Corridor!) There is the 14th century Palazzo Davanzati and the iconic Duomo, the dome of which was designed by Brunelleschi, and the Baptistery with its bronze doors carved by Andrea Pisano (14th c) between 1330 and 1336 and Lorenzo Ghiberti, 100 years later. Note: You can book to climb the tower or the dome on your own, fun!

Florence had a important Jewish presence and eventually Jewish ghetto (though a mercantile one like Venice, unlike the Papal punishment type in Rome). There is also a Jewish museum and synagogue.

Note: Tours in the synagogues and museum are conducted only by Museum staff. Once in a blue moon they let my guides do it, but don’t count on it. :-) I can try....

It is also fun to go across the river to Piazzale Michelangelo for the iconic view of Florence from afar.

Boboli Gardens you can probably do on your own (as well as shopping!)(and eating!) Related - don’t forget the Central Market

I also organize Siena tours, San Gim, wine tours, etc

FLORENCE RAVES

Fernanda

 

Rothmel (cruise group):

We had the best time with Fernanda. She is awesome and a walking encyclopedia of art history. We walked around town on the way to Uffizi on the bridge etc saw important sites and then she did a "best of" trip thru Uffizi for us since we were short on time. Ken and Tracy showed up just in time for Uffizi. 

 

We loved Sabrina too, she told us all sorts of interesting things on the way to Florence. You sure find the best guides!!!  You are amazing, and I really enjoyed getting to know you.

 

Dembo:

We had a wonderful time this afternoon. So Much education and interesting discussion. Thank you!!

Conne:

Another great day! Fernanda is wonderful.

 

Morse:

Fernanda was lovely and a wonderful, knowledgeable guide.  Thank you for giving us such a perfect choice in a guide.

 

Bugden:

Yes all very good! We really enjoyed our day, lots of wine and soaking in the famiglia italiana!  Thank you so much for arranging this wonderful experience for our family.

 

Lombardo:

She was fabulous. She is so knowledgeable. We learned so much and she really went with the flow for us.  Shout out for Fernanda!!!!!

Natale:

Fernanda was AMAZING! She knew the answer for every question we asked!! I never want to leave! 

 

Morelli:

Great and awesome tour (David and the city center)!! Look forward to tomorrow. After tour 2: Once again an outstanding time. Fern was awesome - Uffizi was incredible. Thank you so much!!  

 

Foreman:

I wanted you to know how much we loved the tours.  Our guides were perfect for us and made for lasting memories.  We bonded instantly with both Val and Fern.  They had different styles, which was perfect for each segment they did.  I cannot imagine doing a trip of this magnitude without personal guides. We had an absolutely terrific day yesterday in the countryside.  It was great to get out of the cities and away from the tourists. I am so glad we were recommended to you and will not hesitate to pass the word to our friends and associates.  Your team made for everlasting memories.

 

Polly:

FERN was unbelievable!  Warm, so smart, so flexible with the kids and just a genuine gem. Thank you!

 

Dixon:

Fernanda really knows Florence, and she was able to bring things to life too. This is a pretty overwhelming place without the historical/cultural context, and she really helps with that. For example, most people just duck in to see David at Accademia, because they are told it is a big deal. She spent lots of time there with us explaining how things came to be. Lots of other interesting points- we saw the medieval areas and other things we might not have found on her own. To sum up, she's great. Well worth it from our end - thank you.

 

Kantz:

Wanted to let you know that Fernanda was a lovely guide today.  She was very knowledgeable. Florence is beautiful and you can see how she loves this city. Thanks for everything this week.  We may try to hit up a winery tomorrow on our way out of town. Cannot wait until we come again!

 

Stout:

Dear Laura, We had a fantastic time! We all agreed that our favorite day in Italy was the day we spent with Fern. Her knowledge of all things Florence was amazing, and her presentation style was extremely engaging. We really appreciated Fern’s flexibility and her willingness to do things that may not have been originally planned. By the end of the day, we felt we had a good overview of the city and its many delights. Plus the sun came out after lunch!  Please thank Fern personally and share with her that according to my FitBit, we clocked 14,696 steps that day or 6.18 miles! She will know exactly what that means.

 

I would highly recommend Fern for a guided tour. I truly appreciate your professionalism in making sure that the tour went off without a hitch and the way you kept us in the loop about everything. Thanks again! Grazie!

 

Nall:

Fern was fantastic. A wealth of knowledge. Florence is day place I would like to spend more time in. Thank you for another wonderful day!

Friedman:

Fernanda was perfect. She is a doll and so beyond informative. There is just no question for my family to be on the go from 8:45 till we for home about 6.....OMG we were sooo tired. Anyway we look forward to seeing her tomorrow at 1:00. Thanks again!

 

Angelo

 

Enemark:

Had a fantastic time with Angelo!  Please let him know that we did have lunch at Zeb.  Great food and wine.  Owner was a bit abrupt but luckily Angelo warned us of this so we took no offense. Thx!

 

Brown:

We had such a lovely day.  Angelo was truly wonderful.  Perfect with the amount of information and sites.  Thank you 

Santa Lucia:

It was fabulous! Angelo was amazing. He was so informative and really great with the kids, too! Below is a photo of Angelo killing Medusa with the kids. So funny! Thanks again for connecting us. We will be sure to recommend others to contact you for tours!

 

Thompson:

It was simply fabulous! Angelo is amazing and not only very knowledgeable, but quite passionate about his craft. We were able to handle the rain pretty well. His guidance was superb, and he was most helpful particularly with our return tickets. Most of the trains were

sold out! Just a memorable day. Thanks for everything.

 

Fleismans:

Recien llegamos al hotel. El viaje fue muy bueno. El guia EXCELENTE!!!!!. Gracias por todo Laura. Espero en el proximo viaje volver a conectarnos contigo. Muchos cariños. Susana y Jorge.

 

Kaufman: 

Angelo. He's just so good! I'm really excited for my parents to tour with him. When he took us to the synagogue I told him afterwards my grandparents and mom were Holocaust survivors. He asked if he could hug me cause he's never had a connection with anyone who had a personal story of the holocaust. So sweet. My grandfather wrote a book which I will send with my folks for him.

 

Roebuck:

Hi Laura,Yesterday's tour with Angelo went great. He was very informative and we learned a lot about Florence! Thank you for all your help organizing these tours for us. They both worked out well!

  

ps one year later - If the girls get to Florence I am hoping Angelo would be available for them. He was the best guide we have had in all our travels. We still talk about what we learned from him!

 

Isabella

 

Clewley: 

Isabella is wonderful! We learned so much. My boys really enjoyed listening to her. We finished the tour just before it started raining. Phew!

 

Taylor:

Wonderful! Isabella was very personable and friendly and engaged with each of us very naturally and kindly.

Wendy and Tim (honeymoon):
Isabella was very special. She taught us to rethink the Renaissance. Thank you for connecting us with her. We loved Florence. Also please tell her we loved her recommendation for lunch. Sooo good. We had a wonderful day. Thank you so much for everything. 

 

Abramo:

Isabella was great.  Very knowledgeable and made it fun.  The time flew by!!   

 

Antonella

 

Henry:

The tour was great! Your guide was wonderful. She did a fantastic job. Thank you so much for setting this up for us.
 

Galambos:

Great.  We loved her- good at adapting, good with the teens, and her English was great. Liked her a lot!   
 

Grazia

Margit and her daughters: 

Thanks - everything was terrific. We saw a lot, learnt a lot and happy to know a little bit more about this amazing city. Grazia is a very knowledgeable lady who had an answer for every question.

 

Roberts:

It was great! Grazia was wonderful, very nice and knowledgeable. Great introduction to Florence! 

Mittleman:

Hi Laura, just finished touring the Uffizi with Grazia. It was a wonderful 3 hours and she was fantastic. A great lady with a wealth of great information. My wife was thrilled. Thanks again!!

Tussey: 

Grazia was absolutely wonderful today!  We covered a lot of ground and had a truly amazing day in Florence.Thank you for everything!

 

Pulio:

We very much enjoyed both Fern and Grazia....very different styles but both very enjoyable.