Tomas was very knowledgeable of Assisi, Cortona, and all of Italy. He also spoke English very well…read moreand was very friendly. He was an excellent and very safe driver and knew the area very well. My wife and I highly recommend him as a driver and tour guide.

Absolutely incredible service -- Thomas went above and beyond!…read more We had the pleasure of having Thomas as our driver in Siena, and we honestly couldn't recommend him enough. It was a Sunday in Italy and we were completely stuck with no transport. Thomas arrived in a lovely, air-conditioned van, helped us with our bags, and immediately went out of his way to make sure we had the best possible experience. As soon as we got in the car, he told us all about Montepulciano -- the best vineyards to visit, what prices to expect, and how to get around. We hadn't booked anything, but Thomas contacted his friends and organised everything for us. He even took us to our hotel, waited patiently while we checked in, and never rushed us. He then arranged a taxi to collect us after our vineyard tour and even negotiated the price for us -- something we never asked him to do! At the vineyard, he personally walked us in and introduced us to his friends. Thomas truly saved our day and turned what could have been a stressful experience into one of the highlights of our Italian trip. He was incredibly kind, patient, generous, and genuinely wanted us to have the best experience possible. If you have the option to book this service, do it! And if you get Thomas as your driver, you're incredibly lucky. Thank you so much, Thomas, for making our experience so special!

Loved walking around and taking tours and taking in as much as possible as we fill our day.read more

You have to wait way too long in the heat for each bus. Long lines waiting for the bus. Part of the…read moreseats on the top deck are broken and roped off so you can't use them. It didn't seem like the narration went with the tour. It was not nearly as good as we've had in other big cities.

We did the day tour to Siena, San Gimignano with Alessandro. He was an amazing tour guide! Very…read moreknowledgable, energetic, & kind, & you could tell he wanted to make sure we had the best experience possible. Siena's Cathedral alone was worth the trip!

Had a great Cinque Terre Walk About tour with our guides Naomi and Luca. Both brought their…read morepersonalities and knowledge of the area to the tour. You should be proud to have them as employees. Since they went the extra mile and smile, I have a little suggestion. It's best done to the Aerosmith song "Walk this Way". Enjoy... Walk About ( To the song Walk this Way by Aerosmith) Cinque Terre lovers There's a tour like no other Who can fill with your day with so much fun From the bus to the train Their always there to explain As you travel town to town in the sun Always with a smile They go the extra mile Naomi and Luca should really be praised For the hard work they do I have a suggestion for you How bout giving them both a raise Walk About We all shout Without doubt Don't cop out Just give them a raise Seaside villas Lined up and down the hillas Stretching up the Italian Coast With breath taking views So many we never knew An experience we all will boast Speaking for the rest These two really gave their best A credit to your industry by far So maybe tomorrow You can give them some more Euros And on Yelp I will give you 5 STARS Walk About We all shout Without doubt Don't cop out Just give them a raise

The Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore is one of the most breathtaking landmarks I've ever visited…read more Pictures truly don't do it justice. The detail on the exterior is incredible, and seeing Brunelleschi's massive dome up close is something everyone should experience at least once. The entire area around the cathedral is beautiful and full of history, making it easy to spend hours exploring. Whether you're admiring it from the outside, going inside, or climbing to the top for the views, it's an unforgettable experience. If you're visiting Florence, this is an absolute must-see and one of the highlights of the city.

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore. Also known as Florence Duomo, is the defining landmark of…read moreFlorence and one of the most impressive cathedrals in the world. Dominating the city skyline, it is instantly recognizable for Brunelleschi's magnificent dome, a masterpiece of Renaissance engineering and artistic vision. The exterior is eyecatching , with its intricate façade of white, green, and pink marble that feels both elegant and monumental. Standing in Piazza del Duomo, the scale of the cathedral is awe‑inspiring, especially when viewed alongside Giotto's Bell Tower and the Baptistery. Inside, the cathedral is huge and relatively restrained compared to its ornate exterior. This simplicity emphasizes the immense size of the space. Climbing the dome was a highlight for sure although it nearly took out the hubs. Smile. Folks back in the day must have been tiny because there steps are so small and curvy. When you reach the top, you think you can walk out on the ledge for the spectacular panoramic views. No!!! You have to climb a ladder to get to the perimeter. Similar exhale to that of crossing the finish line at a marathon. The panoramic views are spectacular!

We did three tours with Artviva during our stay in Florence and each one was fantastic. Yes, the…read moresubject matter is wonderful, but what sets Artviva apart are the guides. Each tour was a different guide and each guide was as great as the other. All are super passionate about what they do and their town - it is impossible to not be inspired by the subject matter when the guides are so passionate. We did the David Walking Tour, Best of Tuscany and Uffizi Walking Tour. We had two of the tours set before we arrived, and signed up for another after our first experience. The groups we were apart of were small and easy to follow around. David tour was quick, but amazing. I was surprised by how moved I was by the subject matter. Best of Tuscany was a blast with our guide. We visited four locations, had an amazing lunch at a winery and had great conversation on the ride. Uffizi Tour was packed, but the passion from our guide made everything not just bearable, but really enjoyable. Artviva is highly recommended from this traveler!

ArtViva has really great ratings here and on that other travel review site, but our experience was…read moreunderwhelming. I found their pre-tour communication really unprofessional. I had reached out asking about a few different tours and inquiring whether we could bring our 4 year old. They responded promptly that we could, and offered us 10% off if we booked three or more tours. I responded yes, that sounds great, we want to book these three tours on such and such date. No response. I followed up, no response. Followed up again, no response. It was getting pretty close to our trip and I was nervous about things filling up, so I decided to just book online. It annoyed me that I couldn't get the discount they'd offered with an online booking, so I decided to only book two tours with ArtViva and get the third tour from someone else. So I booked the two tours online, choosing from their available dates and times, which seemed to track with reality (i.e., tours for museums weren't sold on Mondays when museums are closed). I almost immediately got an email that the date I had selected for our gelato making class wouldn't work and they would have to move it to some other date. Um, why did you sell us that date, then? I responded with some dates that worked and said we could also possibly do Monday if necessary. Of course they rescheduled us for Monday. Ok, fine, we moved some things around. Then right before we left for our trip they emailed us that actually it would have to be at 9 am on Monday. I was a little wary about that since it was our first full day and I thought we might be jetlagged and starting a tour that early wasn't a good plan. When I asked if we could keep the later time, they said they could keep our original date and time (Friday at 10 am). So much drama just to keep the times we had originally booked! I also asked them multiple times what the meeting point for the gelato class was, because I needed to know if we needed a stroller to get there. Our hotel was in central Florence, no more than a 15 minute walk from all major tourist attractions, so this was the only thing we would possibly need a stroller for. It was like pulling teeth to get a response. I think I had to email them three times before I finally got a response with the address, and it was indeed quite far from our hotel. The tours themselves were ok. We did a tour of the David and a gelato making class with ArtViva. In hindsight, we did not need a tour of the David. The tour only lasted about 30 minutes and cost about four times what museum skip-the-line tickets did, and while the David is amazing, but it's also impossible to miss. (A tour is much more important at the Uffizi, which has a much larger collection.) But I don't know that I can really fault ArtViva for that, it was kind of poor planning on my part. The gelato class was advertised by ArtViva as kid friendly and it is not. We did an actually kid friendly pasta making class at an agriturismo and the difference between them was like night and day. I knew it was not going to go well when we showed up and they told us they didn't have kid-sized aprons so my 4 year old just wouldn't get one (that went over like a lead balloon, as I'm sure anyone who has ever had a 4 year old can imagine). ArtViva had specifically requested our favorite gelato flavors in advance, and although we'd told them our favorite flavor was chocolate, the gelato chef had chosen to make a flavor that had wine, honey, mascarpone and orange extract as ingredients...not exactly kid-friendly. I'm also not sure what the purpose of asking your favorite flavor is if they totally ignore it? Fortunately they had some chocolate and caramel gelato in the freezer they kindly let us sample. The gelato chef was nice, and tried to roll with the situation, but it was clear she was not prepared for a kid and didn't have much if any experience cooking with kids. They really need to make it clearer this class is not set up for young kids. I know things are weird with Covid now, and I'm trying to cut them some slack, but I feel like the communication issues are not really related to Covid. Also I was mostly communicating with the owner, who is British, so this is not a language barrier issue at all. I would not rule out booking with ArtViva again if they had a tour I couldn't get anywhere else, but I would definitely not seek them out.

I had a two hour walking tour through the historical center of Florence with Claudia. I enjoyed…read morethe tour greatly. Claudia is friendly and is interested in what you are interested in. She will make sure to cover topics you are interested. Also, she is comfortable answering questions you may have about specific historical details. I was impressed by her knowledge and the amount of research she has done (ex. researching whether Etruscans actually lived in Florence). She will show you art and architecture and explain why they are of historical importance. I feel that I have a much better understanding of the Renaissance as a result. With her tour I was able to get much more out of my trip to Florence. I recommend requesting a tour with Claudia. She has a lot of information also she can share with you to make the most of your travels. She is a great resource.

From the owner: Ciao! My name is Claudia and I am a licensed tour guide of Florence and surroundings. I have a…read moremaster's degree in architecture, and my studies were focused on history of architecture and gardens in Florence. I'm in love with my city and I am happy to show travellers how beautiful and lively it is. I will show you the authentic side of Florence, its history and I will tell you the stories of the famous florentines who made the city a masterpiece of art and architecture. I can arrange for you customised private walking tours, museum guided tours and theme tours according to your interests.

We were a bit unsure of what to expect from this tour. Having used private party tours in Rome, our…read moreexpectation was high, but honestly, we took this option as an introduction to a four-day visit to Florence. It was a perfect introduction, for sure, and Andrea made it even better! The tour was organized very well. Although a large group gathered at the Basilica di San Lorenzo, they quickly divided into multiple groups. Andrea introduced Florence in a very unique way. He touched on history, architecture, and many other details. In fact, many of those details made our follow-on tour of the Uffizi and Academia galleries even better. They do rely on tips, and people should trip the guide generously

We used Alessandro from Tusci Car Service for a day trip to Pisa and Cinque Terre from Florence. We…read moretold Alessandro on what our goal for the day but will need to customize our pace as we go along, as we had our young daughter with us. He knows the area in and out. We could not believe that we managed to get a lot packed, seeing most of Cinque Terre, spending 2 hours in each village. But we never felt rushed. We will use Alessandro again when we are back in Florence, and do not hesitate recommending him to friends and family.

We would give a higher rating if we could. Brothers Alessandro and Leonardo were amazing hosts,…read morelike part of our family of 9 adults and teens. They know both the popular and hidden spots in Tuscany, Pisa, Florence and Cinque Terre. They took us to the best pizza, gelato, fancy and casual spots. Everywhere was a hit with our group. The Mercedes vans were new, clean and very comfortable. I can't say enough good things about our time with them. So seriously, stop looking for another service and DM Alessandro and Leonardo, you won't regret it.