Their cooking class was the best time I've ever had in Italy! Full day. Started with short, very entertaining walking tour to central market to buy ingredients. Guide Becky was a wealth of interesting and useful facts. Then a bus ride to a teaching kitchen and estate high above Florence...gorgeous place with sweeping views. Instructor Carmella taught us how her grandmother made pasta (only tools were a fork and a rolling pin. Also learned how to make a wonderful beef ragout to go with the pasta. Then pizza making from a pro, roast pork and tiramisu. All accompanied by excellent wine and beer. Carmella is a force of nature! Pure energy, humor and warmth. She only speaks Italian, and staff member Olivia translated and added her own excellent insight to the experience. We were with them from 9 am to 5 pm, and this was the nicest day I've had in a long time. read more

Walkabout - Our friend Rick making Tuscan style pizza sauce. - Tours Near Me - Florence, FI

I chose to take the Florence Food Tour and Small-Group Cooking class at a Farmhouse because in this tour we would get to not only cook, but also shop for the ingredients in one of the most amazing markets I have ever been to and learn from local vendors about their products. These were the highlights from this tour/class: Started our morning with a visit to a popular bakery and we were treated to a coffee of our choice. This is also where the bread for the bruschetta was purchased. Explored San Lorenzo's Mercato Centrale and were given samples to taste (e.g., olives, cheese, bread, cold cuts/prosciutto) Cooked with a small-group of people at a farmhouse set in the rolling hills of Tuscany We learned to make Bruschetta, Pizza, home-made Pasta, Tuscan roast pork with potatoes and Tiramisù! Enjoyed our meal with wine in an outdoor dining room with my new friends and an amazing view of Florence Stop 1 Starting the day right with an espresso! Or caffè since they call espresso, caffè in Italy. Most espressos are €1 and in some parts of Italy, like Naples, you can get a pastry and an espresso for €1 (no tax and tip added or needed since in most of Europe, a tip is never expected). Needless to say, I spent about €4 per day on espressos. :) Stop 2 Toured Mercato Centrale, an indoor market filled with fresh local ingredients, produce, meats, etc. The purpose of this stop was to pick up the meat for the ragù sauce, the pork for the roast pork, the cheese for the pizza, potatoes for the rosemary potatoes, and we had picked up the tomatoes at a small market on the way to the Mercato Centrale (Olivia, our fantastic tour guide/leader, explained to us why the tomatoes at that one small shop were the best - can't remember why though. Ick!). At the market Olivia also purchased different things for us to try: olives, prosciutto, bread and cheese. Stop 3 The villa! Dish 1 Making the ragù. The ragù needs to cook on a low heat for a long time, so we needed to start cooking it before we did anything else. Our teacher wanted the class to partake in the making of the ragù, so each ingredient was added by a different person. Dish 2 To hold us over while we prepared the main dishes, we made bruschetta. We cut the bread, the tomatoes, chopped the herbs, and grilled our bread with olive oil. Then we put it all together. Quick and delicious! Dish 3 Making the pasta! First our teacher showed us step-by-step how to make the pasta. The she showed us how make different types of shapes and explained to us what pasta goes with what sauce. For example, wider noodles are best for rich meat sauces. For example, tagliatelle, pappardelle, fettuccine, mafaldine are best paired with rich meat sauces. For this class we were making pappardelle to pair with our ragù sauce. Dish 4 Making pizza dough. We watched the process but we did not make our own. Cooking the pizza - a Neapolitan pizza! My favorite! This type of pizza must be baked for 60-90 seconds in a 485 °C (905 °F) stone oven with an oak-wood fire. Our instructor made the first one, and then with a partner we made our own. This was one of the best pizzas I have ever eaten. My partner and I had so much fun putting it together. We had an array of toppings to choose from, but I wanted to keep it simple so we only added tomato sauce, sliced mozzarella, olive oil and basil to ours. In other words, we made a pizza Margherita. Food is ready! We all marched into the dining room and minutes after sitting down, platters and platters of food hit our table. It all looked fresh and delicious! And we made it all (minus the gelato)! To be honest, we all looked a little freaked out by the abundance of food since by that point we had already munched on snacks at the market, eaten bruschetta and pizza! But somehow we made room and I couldn't stop eating the pasta! This was officially the best pasta and ragù sauce I have ever eaten. I knew after the first bite that this dish could not be surpassed. That packaged pasta would never do again. So what do you think? Didn't this all look incredible or what?! I can't tell you enough how in love I fell with this class. You not only get to eat the most incredible food, but you also get an education on Italian cuisine from the experts, and you walk out with a load of new friends! All of this plus more for $95.18 CAD! The current price on the Walkabout Florence website is €80 so I may have gotten a bit of a discount on Viator since I had booked over 5 tours through them - so always check both Viator and the vendors website to compare prices! A special thanks to Olivia, our fantastic tour guide, and now friend. She was so knowledgeable, kind and patient! I hope to do more tours with her in the future. For full review and photos, check out my blog: http://t.co/LwN8qQ81oz read more

Our travel agent booked this tour for my mom, brother, and me, and we went to Siena, Chianti, San Gimignano, and Pisa. Siena was foggy, so the highlights of the tour were Chianti (for the landscape views and lunch, which was provided by the vineyard (Fattorio Poggio Alloro), that included three types of wine, bruschetta, organic whole grain penne, and the dessert which was delicious almond biscotti dipped in their dessert wine. 10 minutes away was the village of San Gimignano (featured in the movie Tea with Mussolini) where we had "the best gelato" at a shop called Doldoli. It should be noted that it was difficult for my mom and other seniors/handicapped people to navigate Siena and San G. because of the steep inclines those cities have before you get to their main plazas. I wish I could give this tour 4-1/2 stars because Olivia (our guide) and Marco (our bus driver) were great, and the cities we visited were also very beautiful. However, the audio Whisper machines we each got so we could follow the tour provided very choppy and garbled audio so that kept this tour from being perfect. I highly recommend both Olivia and Marco, but the company needs to make sure all audio equipment does what it's supposed to do. read more

We did two tours with Walkabout Florence - the Cinque Terre hike and the Best of Tuscany Tour. The Cinque Terre hike is exactly what it says it is. It's a HIKE. We overheard some lady with our tour group complaining to the tour guide (Luca, who was awesome by the way!) that she didn't know it would be this strenuous, how the tour didn't specify for her not to wear sandals and a skirt, etc. Um, lady....it's a HIKE! It clearly says it in the description and says you should wear the right shoes. I mean really, what was she expecting? A stroll along the beach? It was her own fault for not reading it! Anyway, let's get back on track. The hike covers all 5 towns. But don't worry, you won't be hiking the whole time. The bus picks you up near Santa Maria Novella station and drops you off in Manarolo. Then you hike 4.5 km to the next town, Corniglia and have lunch there. Then you hike another 4.5 km to the next town, Vernazza. You have about an hour to explore Vernazza. Afterwards, you get on a boat to Monterosso, where you have another hour or so to explore. Next, you get on another boat, which goes to Riomaggiore and again, you have approximately an hour of free time. Finally, from there, you take the train to La Spezia, where a bus picks you up and takes you back to Florence. It was very tiring, but it was worth it. I feel like there is no way we could have done all five towns without the tour. Since they're all very small towns, there's not too much to see so the time spent in each place was adequate. I can't say the same for the Best of Tuscany tour though. While it was nice that we got to see so many things (a bus takes you from Florence to Siena, then vineyards in San Gimignano, then the town of San Gimignano, and finally, Pisa), not enough time was spent in Pisa and it felt extremely rushed. Once we got there, we took a 15 minute trolley tour around the town. Then if you signed up to climb the top (I think it was an extra 20 Euros), then you go and do that. After we came back down, we only had 15 minutes to take pictures. Mind you, we pretty much raced up and down those stairs and spent less than 5 minutes at the top. So one of my suggestions for Walkabout Florence would be to spend less time in Siena, since I'm sure most people would rather see Pisa anyway. Our tour guide, Sandra was really nice. She took the time after the tour to personally say goodbye to everyone. Props to her because if I was a tour guide, I would not have the energy to be doing that! The tours are pretty expensive for 85 Euros (for a youth ticket) but I think it was worth it. We saw a lot in one day that we otherwise would not have. I would recommend it. If I ever go back to Florence, I would definitely book another tour with them. Tip - I don't know if it's still going on but if you book two different tours with them, you can get a discount! I believe it was 10%. read more

We booked two tours with Walkabout Florence, not really knowing what to expect. We contemplated doing a Cinque Terre and Tuscany tour on our own, but because of our limited time and unfamiliarity with the area, we decided our trip (and sanity) would be best served with a paid tour. I found Walkabout after briefly searching the internet. The Tuscany tour promised visits to Siena, a Chianti vineyard with lunch, San Gimignano, and Pisa. The Cinque Terre tour promised visits to all five villages, hiking and lunch. We did our Tuscany tour first. We boarded the bus just outside the train station, Santa Maria Novella. Agatha was our tour guide. She was professional and informative. She kept our tour group together and we were on time. Our bus/coach was comfortable and safe. Each place we visited offered something different. With so much to cover, we felt a bit rushed at each location, but it was understandable. Siena was smaller than Florence, but had very upscale shops. Lunch in Chianti was fabulous and the wine was plentiful. We were just happy to just wander and get lost in the little alleys in San Gimignano. And their gelato is said to be the best ever. We took our obligatory cheesy photo in Pisa, then went home. A couple days later, we had our Cinque Terre tour. Our guide was Lisa. She also did a great job keeping everyone together and making sure everyone was safe and had a good time. We started in Manarola, then took a train to Corniglia. We then hiked mostly uphill to Veranaza, where we lunched overlooking the Mediterranean. The hike was spectacular all the way and we we had fabulous weather--not too hot, not too cold. We then took a train to Monterrosso, where we had free time. We decided to put our feet into the cold sea. The sea was too rough for the boat ride, so the guides treated us to wine on a high patio overlooking the sea in Rio Maggiorre. My husband and I cut out early so we could do some shopping and we found a little shop where a woman was making her own jewelry and shoes--so cool. We then boarded the bus back to Florentine, satisfied with another great tour. We highly recommend this tour company. It saved us from trying to plan and also saved us time (not to mention fighting with each other and getting lost). read more

BEST TOUR EVER. I did the tour of Tuscany and the towns, Lavi was the best tour guide ever, her passion and excitement for her regions was infectious. We saw so much and learned so much, the wine and food was out of this world. I have recommended it to everyone and will do it again just to be able to see all those parts again. Thank you so much Lavi for making us feel at home and make it the best tour I have done anywhere in the world. I want to bring you along and have you tour guide everywhere I go :). You rock.. read more

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Wow! Both my husband and I loved this experience. We did the "Cooking Class and Lunch at a Tuscan Farmhouse with Local Market Tour". Our day started with Martina and a two-hour walking tour of the historical center of Florence while making stops along the way to pick up ingredients for the cooking portion of the day. We were pleasantly surprised at how much we saw and learned during this portion of the day. The group was smaller and Martina was a lovely, energetic, and knowledgable. She also learned all of our names and made a great effort to include everyone. At the end of the walking tour, we met up with Gloria and her small group, and we all boarded the bus to go to the Walkabout estate. It's a 20-30 minute drive, in which Gloria and Martina took turns explaining what to expect in the second portion of the day. They are both high-energy and clearly love their jobs, as they were entertaining and informative, and kept us paying attention. The estate is breathtaking. It has a beautiful view of the city from the hills of the Tuscan countryside--along with a state of the art kitchen, plenty of outdoor space and a dining room enclosed in all glass, so you can see all of this from where you sit. The cooking class is obviously the bread and butter of the day--and it did not disappoint. After our two smaller groups joined together, it seemed like a lot of people 25-30. But it actually worked well--we all took turns with the various tasks and everyone had room to breathe. It was fairly a relaxed environment--so you were never forced to participate but you were always welcome to if you wanted to. Carmella, the house chef, is an absolute joy. There is so much life in that woman it's impossible not to be infected by her positive energy. You can easily see that she has a passion for what she does, which is not only cooking tremendous food but also sharing that gift with so many people. The food was amazing--some of the best we had in Florence. We didn't need to eat dinner afterwards and we cannot wait to get our recipes to start cooking for our friends! If I had to list one area for improvement, it would be to make it more clear in the description just how much walking is required for this day. Again, we walked for about two hours at the start of the day--though Martina was really great about keeping it to a slow pace and making sure everyone was keeping up. Also, while we were transported to the estate by bus, there was an additional 7-10 minutes of walking downstairs/downhill upon arrival. That means uphill/upstairs to get back. While this may be easy for many, there were some seniors in our group concerned about the trek back up--so I think it's just important to note for anyone with reduced mobility. Overall, one of our favorite days in the two weeks we spent in Italy--do yourself a favor and book it! Edit: I wrote this review for another site, shortly after our return. Just wanted to throw an update in and let you know that, 6 months later, we still make the ragu on a weekly basis! read more

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This tour of Cinque Terre at 90 Euros is an incredible deal. Day trip from Florence covers about 7 miles of walking. Our guides Gloria and Johnny were fantastic. A must do trip when visiting Tuscany. The trip departs from the Florence train station by bus. read more

This review covers 2 tours since apparently I can't review this place two separate times. We went on the "Best of Tuscany Tour" and loved it. THat night while we were on the bus back we booked the Tuscan cooking class for the next day since we had such a great experience with this company. We met at the main Florence train station and boarded a modern air-conditioned tour bus that was comfortable. Our tour stopped at the following Tuscan hillside towns - Siena, San Gimignano, and Pisa. We also stopped at a Tuscan winery/Farm where we did wine tasting and had lunch. The entire day lasted about 12 hours since we left at about 8:30am and got back to Florence at about 8:30pm. At no point was I bored and all of the stops and sights were interesting and fun. Our tour guide's name was Olivia. I believe she said she lives near Florence now but is originally from Hungary. She was upbeat, friendly, and FUNNY. She really made the entire day enjoyable. Some reviews stated that they felt a bit rushed at each town. However, I disagree. I felt that we had plenty of time at each of the towns for us to wander around freely after we had some introductory remarks from the tour guide. Each town had its own unique characteristic. Siena had this amazing plaza where Olivia explained to us holds an annual competition each year among the different groups of Sienese. San Gimignano boasts a world award winning gelateria that had very unique flavored gelatos. We loved it. Lastly, Pisa was great to visit because we went near sunset and the Leaning Tower had a beautiful orange glow to it. The winery we stopped at was called Fattoria Poggio Alloro. We were able to walk through the vineyards, see the cows that would likely become Florentine steak, and have a meal full of bread, pasta, salad, and proscuitto. My husband wished there was some main course (e.g. meat dish) though since he was still hungry. The lunch included 3 different bottles of wine (1 white and 2 reds) which I enjoyed. Overall, the tour was great and our guide, Olivia really did a good job. We had such a great time that we booked a cooking class with the same company for the immediate next day. I would highly recommend this tour as you are able to see a lot without having to worry about transportation and time. This part of the review is for the Florence food tour and cooking class in the Tuscan farm house. This was one of the highlights of my several days in Florence. Our guide's name was Antonella and I believe she is originally from Pompeii. We all met at the WalkaboutFlorence office and then walked the streets of Florence to buy the ingredients for our cooking class. First stop was vegetable market to purchase tomatoes. Next stop was a bakery to get coffee and bread. Lastly, we stopped at the Centrale Merchant's Market to get the rest of our ingredients. On the way to to the main market, Antonella would stop here and there and give us some welcomed history about the sights in Florence. She was a joy to be around and very happy and friendly. At the Centrale Market we bought cheese and meat. As we walked through the market we were able to sample a lot of different food as well. It was a lot of fun and the group we were with was hilarious. Our group was about 11 people and we had a blast. Afterwards we took a small minivan to the Tuscan hillside where we walked through the gates to a beautiful small farmhouse/kitchen that really was on the hill. We had a beautiful view and were in awe of where we were. Our chef, Carmella, was a riot as she only spoke Italian but she communicated with her body and by translation from Antonella. We learned throughout the afternoon to make bruschetta and the tomato topping for it, we all made our own pasta which was so much fun, we made the meat sauce for the pasta, we made tiramisu and gelato, pizza and pork. All the while we opened several bottles of wine and were happily cooking and drinking. Additionally, we learned out to make pizza outdoors near the pizza oven they had which was a lot of fun. We ate throughout the afternoon since we ate what we cooked (e.g. first bruschetta, then pizza). At the end we all sat down in this beautiful glass house that overlooked the hillside and enjoyed the fruits of our labor. The pasta, pork, tiramisu and gelato came out and we had a sit down meal. Our group was so much fun and it seriously was the highlight of my time in Florence. If you have a day just to do nothing but wander, I would suggest spending it with this cooking class. It was such a memorable experience. read more

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It was a nice tour overall. We didn't have enough time on our own though (less than 1 hour at each place). So I felt rushed. Everyone was really hungry - we ended up having a late lunch around 1:30pm. They could've at least provided us with snacks and water. They did have water, but for an extra fee. read more

This was SO much fun!!! It was a full, 8 hour day but didn't seem too long at all! I was a little concerned at first with the length but it was perfect and flew by! We started off meeting the group in Florence, did a small tour of the city, went to a market, and bought some delicious fresh foods!! Then we took a big charter bus up to the CUUUUUTEST farmhouse in the gorgeous hills of Tuscany. I could live there! :) It was perfect and so peaceful! Part of it was inside and part of it was on a covered patio that had an incredible view!!! The chef and guides were so awesome! They were so knowledgeable of the area, ingredients, etc. They even had great English! lol We had a full meal! They definitely fed us well and we cooked well!! My favorite was by far the authentic Italian bruschetta!! Yum!! I already miss that a ton!!! The only thing that prevented me from giving it a 5/5 star is I thought it would be a little more "hands on" and individualistic. Still a great class, and I'd do it again but for a lot of the time everyone in the group worked together to make the food, which then didn't give everyone a chance to prepare the meal since the group was a pretty big size. I was thinking we'd have our own station for the entire time and get to make everything ourselves but it was one big kitchen and we all just did random things (if you were a little more bold/pushy and could jump right in). We got to make our own noodles so that was really fun but everything else was a group effort. Again, GREAT experience and I'd do it again!! Just a few minor changes and it'd be perfect! I think they did a great job picking their staff and hired people you could tell really loved their jobs!! We loved it!!!! read more

Went on two tours: Tuscany wine tour with guide Martina who was awesome. Very friendly and knowledgeable about wine and the history of the area. Fun day touring around wineries, tasting wine and eating local cuisine. 2nd tour was in cinque terre with guide Gloria who was also very nice and did a great job leading us throughout the villages of the area and on our hike. Fun and active day outside of the urban scenery of Firenze. Both highly recommended! read more

We did the Vespa tour and the cooking class! Loved every minute. Bring your GoPro for the Vespa tour is an adventure you will want to remember! The cooking class was fun... but there are a lot of hands in the kitchen so do expect to sit back and relax with a glass of wine while others prepare. Again we brought our GoPro to catch our homemade pasta skills in action. We made great friends with others in the class. An unexpected highlight to our day. read more

Walkabout - Vespa ride - Tours Near Me - Florence, FI

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This was definitely a worth visit. We went for the pizza and gelato cooking class in a farmhouse. It was such a lovely experience. The bus takes you to the farmhouse where you're welcomed and they show you the garden from where they get all their vegetables. We went for the gelato making class first after which they taught us how to make the pizza dough and finally a pizza. Wine was served with the pizza as well. Overall it was a wonderful experience with great views and a must visit! Thank you Luca, Luigi and Max for an awesome evening in Florence. read more

Our tour guides Chris and Marola were fantastic! Their instructions, language, and guidance were easy to understand. We had a wonderful tour sightseeing the beautiful Italian countryside and immersing ourselves in Cinque Terre. This excursion was one of the best highlights of our trip. Massimo the bus driver was a reliable and safe driver as well. The three of them together make an excellent team! Whenever we return again we will make sure all our tours are booked with this company. read more

AMAZING!!! The Walkabout Farmhouse Tuscany cooking class and short city tour of the markets in Florence was the most memorable day of our seven day trip in Italy! Our tour guide, Olivia was knowledgeable, upbeat, and friendly! The chefs on the farmhouse (Carmella, native Italian) and a rotating chef will teach you and help guide you to create Italian masterpieces! We made: Bruschetta, pizza, pasta sauce, pasta, gelato, and tiramisu from scratch. We were provided a demo on preparing an in-bone pork loin with potatoes (traditional Florentine dish). The location and view was breathtaking, meeting other travelers and sharing the experience was amazing, and escaping from the hustle and bustle of the city was nice. The tour lasted about 8 hrs. Highly recommended! read more

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We went on the cinque terre day trip from Florence. This was the only guided tour we went on and we loved it. Our tour guides , Freddie and Julian, were really informative, helpful, and awesome guys. There were no embarrassing stickers, sticks with scarfs, or any other obnoxious "tourist" identifiers on this trip. There were approx 50 on our tour but since everyone hiked at their comfort level it didn't seem stifling. The tour was stress free since all of transportation among each of the 5 towns was organized by our guides. The coach bus was was comfortable and spacious. The trains between towns could be hectic with so many visitors to CInque Terre, and the boat ride offered great views of the coast. Our lunch was the best food on our entire trip in Italy. The seafood was so fresh and tasted so phenomenal. The restaurant view was simply breathtaking. The hike itself was moderate. I don't typically hike and this was easy enough for me to complete but not so easy that my husband wasn't bored (he is an avid hiker). The views were some of the most beautiful I've ever seen. The ocean, the lush green trees, vineyards, little towns, and even their cemetaries were truly an experience I will never forget. The trails weren't congested which was a relief since the streets of Rome and Florence were flooded with people everywhere. The trails did have uneven terrain but that is to be expected when you are on the side of cliffs overlooking the ocean. We had time in the towns to get some gelato, a few magnets, and obtain a hiking patch to put on our backpacks. We only briefly dipped our feet in the sea but would have loved to been able to swim. We didn't have enough time to swim but the water felt good on our feet. Strongly recommend this tour. The tour guides make a huge difference and we were so lucky to have Julian and Freddie. Do not pass up this tour--it was the best day of our trip. read more

We did the tour of Siena, San Gimignano and Pisa- such a fun day! Our tour guide was great, well spoken and informative. The bus we traveled on throughout the day was very comfortable. Our favorite stop of the day was the winery and homemade lunch with wine pairings. We wished we had a bit more time in San Gimignano! If we had another day in Florence we definitely would have taken another tour with Walkabout. read more

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I've taken half a dozen cooking classes in different countries and this was the best. Chris, Luigi and Matteo were incredible chefs, instructors, hosts and entertainers. They taxi you 10 minutes outside of Florence to a beautiful estate overlooking the city and start you off with focaccia, tomatoes and drinks. The class combines culinary theory, hands-on practice and just enough downtown so you're not exhausted but also not feeling like you're wasting any time. I'm an avid cook and learned a ton of techniques. I was worried that it'd be tough since there were so many of us in the group but it still seemed very intimate and organized. The instructors are incredibly knowledgeable but also hilarious and welcoming. It was a highlight of our trip and we can't recommend it enough. read more

I went on a day excursion to Cinque Terre as a chaperone with my son's high school junior "capstone" trip to Europe. Our guide from Walkabout was a young lady named Lavania (Lavi). She knew her subject matter well. She was funny, interesting, well-spoken and charming. She was forthright about the technical challenges of the tour as well as very helpful with advice about safety and enjoyment. I will gladly use Walkabout again. If all the guides are of the quality of Lavi, then I expect more great tours in my future Italian pursuits. read more

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My wife and I did the Tuscany cooking class with Chef Isak. As been said over and over, it was one of the highlights of our Italy vacation. Chef Isak is very knowledgeable, entertaining, and fun. He is extremely personable, you will enjoy him. So if you book this cooking class confirm that Chef Isak will be the instructor. The pizza guys were fun, we had a blast making pizzas. The food was plentiful and amazing. Super fresh bruschetta and a glass of wine to start followed by pork roast and roasted potatoes, hand made pasta in a fabulous meat sauce, pizza, finally, tiramisu and a few more glasses of wine. We left completely happy and stuffed. About the tour, the class was advertised including a tour of the local market. This didn't happen. We went directly to the cooking class which was no more than 15 minutes outside of Florence; and that was OK with me. The bus was air conditioned and comfortable. The tour started on time and there were no issues. I'd definitely do this one again! read more

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I took the day tour from Florence to Tuscany, and it was a highlight of my vacation in Italy. Our guide Elisa was such a gem. The trip was well worth every penny. The motorcoach was spotlessly clean, the lunch at the winery was delicious, and the scenery was breathtaking. I appreciate that there wasn't a hard sales pitch by the owners of the winery; you were welcomed to buy wine but there wasn't any pressure. One tip - I traveled in early November which is not peak season. Walkabout offered an add-on for climbing the Leaning Tower of Pisa but I declined at purchase. Because we were not traveling at a peak time, I was able to buy tickets to climb the tower when we arrived at the site, and they were a bit cheaper than what Walkabout was charging. At the end of the day, while the view was nice, I would not have been bummed out if tickets had been sold out and I had missed the climb, so choose accordingly. read more

Amazing tour! The long day tired me out but enjoyed how well organized it was. Appreciated the knowledgeable, caring and friendly guide Alessandro and extremely capable and quick bus driver Marco. Would definitely use this group again! read more

Cinque terre tour out of florence This was the best tour - amazing value. We got to see so much of cinque terre without the stress of trying to figure out how to get from one place to another - it was truly stress-free. The main hike had breathtaking views. In some of the towns we had free time to explore, which was really fun. Our guide Katie was extremely friendly and helpful. I will recommend this tour to my family and friends. read more

Elisa was our tour guide and she was so sweet and amazing! As soon as she introduced herself we knew it was going to be a great tour. She was very patient and gave us great tips and recommendations. I highly recommend the "Best of Tuscany" tour. It is a long tour, about 12 hours, but you get to experience three different cities in a day and it was awesome. It is a lot of walking so definitely up your exercise prior to this tour. I managed, but older adults may find it a tad difficult. Beautiful views, delicious gelato and a great luncheon at the winery in San Gimignano. read more

Do this trip!! Stefano was a great and careful guide. Riding a Vespa through the hills was great fun, but to be taken where you can see vineyards, olive groves and wild deer running through fields was a break from the 1000 year old church we also toured. His knowledge of the history both religious and social was fantastic. The lunch break was equal to any restaurant, fresh and delicious. read more

Amazing tour! Went on the walkabout Tuscany trip with a bus full of people and a nice, knowledgeable guide named Michelle. It starts at the Santa Maria Novella train station right at the very end of the taxi stand. There is no fixed sign but rather the buses themselves, a bunch of people on the tour with you, and a couple of tour guides holding signs. We started off taking the nice air conditioned coach bus to Siena where a local guide took us on a pretty long tour through the picturesque town. The cathedral was huge, and the frescoes are comparable to those in Rome/Florence. Make sure you look for the flags of the most recent winner of the Paleo (the Siennese twice annual horse race)! The flag represents the neighborhood that one the most recent of the two summer races. Look up the Paleo for more info. Lunch at an organic Tuscan winery with a banquet style setting with your tour mates. Fabulous views and good food/wine. Then a trip up to San Gimigniano, which is only possible to get through by bus/car, so a nice treat! Plenty of time to shop. And finally a long-ish ride (and post lunch nap time) to Pisa to load up on souvenirs of the world famous leaning tower! Ps. Galileo lived there read more

All the places in Tuscany you want to see and none of the ones you don't - Siena, San Gimignamo, lunch at a wine estate, drive through Chianti countryside, and Pisa. It also included a wonderful lunch at a winery with free flowing wine all for a great price. My compliments to the driver Nardo and the tour guide Antonielle for job well done. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g187895-d1799599-r311873703-Walkabout_Florence_Tours-Florence_Tuscany.html# read more

Our family of four had a very bad experience with Walkabout tours. We took the Best of Tuscany tour. When we arrived at the meeting point at 8:15, the guide told us our group was going to be the end of the line for the first bus. There were other couples who arrived before us but they put them in the second line for another bus. So we ended up being the last ones on the first bus despite getting there on time and there were no seats together. We asked the other passengers if they were willing to move but they refused so we asked our tour guide for help. She asked the same people again and gave up after one try and just said please sit down, we are on a tight schedule and to not move seats later because it would make people upset. Because our feelings didn't matter? Our group of 4 was forced to sit in 3 different sections of the bus. We ended up going up to each passenger at the first stop asked them again if they were willing to switch seats. One of them finally agreed. But we still sat in two different areas of the bus. At the end of the tour when the tour guide came to visit each row one by one, she completely skipped our parents' row. It was extremely unprofessional, especially when you stop by each and everyones row to ask if they had questions. I called Walkabout about the situation and they just said there's nothing they can do and the situation happens sometimes. Well, if you book two full buses with no assign seats then yes, parties won't be able to sit together. The tour guide could have asked everyone on the bus for help and not just two people. The lady just argued for their side and said there's nothing they can do about it. Poor customer service. Just beware, they book out the entire bus so you might not be able to sit with your family even when you get there on time. There is only one guide for the entire bus so it's hard to hear and follow when walking. Overall, very unprofessional tour. We took a CityWonders tour in Rome and they had two guides on the bus and they came by to each row to ask if we had questions and didn't skip anyone! read more

Wow!!! What an unexpected surprise. Our Hotel recommended the Tuscany Tour. Plan on a full day of visiting the Tuscan countryside ( Siena, San Gimignano, and Pisa) with an outstanding lunch at a vineyard. Our guide (LaVie) was wonderful. She provided a historical perspective and attended to our needs. Thank you Walkabout. Glad we found your company. read more

The tour was great, the people on the tour and Carmella (the head chef) truly made the tour. She was the authentic Italian personality. The timing of everything was great, a good mix of learning culture and food. Being at the villa in Tuscany was the best part. They try to sell you on products at the end, some of which can only be bought there (e.g. The olive oil). However the cookbooks later found out can be bought for at least 5 euro less at other places such as mercato central. Overall recommend the tour but be choosy on the stuff you purchase at the end. read more

My girlfriend and myself recently took the "A day in Tuscany" tour. We started off by visiting Siena where we saw the Duomo of Siena which was absolutely beautiful. We also had the pleasure of learning about the Palio horse race. After that we travelled to just outside of San Gimignano at a local winery/farm where we had an amazing 3 course lunch the views, wine, and food were amazing. Then came the city of San Gimignano a very small city but home to the world winning gelato. We finished in Pisa and got to see the field of dreams and of course the leaning tower of Pisa. Our guide Gloria was great! She was very informative and helpful on our ride back she talked with every person who had questions and helped to find trattorias that weren't so touristy and more off the beaten path. Without her and our driver Mauro this experience wouldn't have been the same. I would highly recommend this to anyone. read more

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All Day Cooking Class! Incredible experience! We made bruschetta, pasta, pizza, roast loin, ragu sauce, roasted potatoes, gelato, and terra masu The chef is a riot! We sang, and laughed, while drinking good wine! We ate until we popped! We actually had to cancel dinner reservations as we were stuffed! You will not be disappointed! Take an appetite! read more

Such an AMAZING experience!!! Staff was were all very kind and helpful...our guide Stefano was the absolute best!!! He was funny, informative and really made us all feel very safe and comfortable on our travels through Tuscany...The lunch and wine tasting at the private farm we got to experience was incredible!!! I highly highly recommend this tour of Tuscany...and if you can request Stefano to be your guide..you will not be disappointed!!! Definitely a must do, especially for first timers to Florence like my husband and I...although we did have a couple who already visited Florence with us at the time, but the too where extremely impressed, because instead of just walking and seeing...you really get a much better understanding of everything!!! Take this tour!!! read more

All Day Tuscany tour. I signed up for this tour through Get Your Guide. If you book this tour, you won't regret it, especially if you want to see the countryside. The highlights of this trip was visiting Siena and having lunch at Poggio Alloro, an organic farm. In Siena, we met up with a local guide that made the experience special and meaningful. The tour also includes a stop in San Gimignano and Pisa. read more

Highlight of our Italy Vacation!!!! Best cooking class ever. Julian our tour guide was fantastic and Carmela was our chef. We broke our 20+ person group between two guides and started off with a walking tour. We went shopping for vegetables, fresh bread along the way we got a real sense of life in Florence blended with a lot of history that still has influence in lives today. Then onto central market to get mozzarella, ground beef and pork, then a short bus ride to the villa to cook. We started off by making a ragu, then prepared potatoes and pork for our main dish. Next Carmela taught us how to make pasta; then she sent us out to make it ourselves. After pasta a local Pizzeria owner (husband and wife) came and taught us about Roma pizzas along with helping us prepare and wood fired our own creations. Pizza paired with Peroni Beer and coupled with that amazing view looking back over Florence was just out of this world. Then we gathered back together to make make our desserts ... tiramisu and gelato. When that was finished we went to the open air dining room and ate our pasta with ragu, pork and potatoes, tiramisu and our amaretto gelato. Topped it off with an espresso and wine. It was a amazing experience. If you are a foodie this is a MUST DO when in Florence. read more

Excellent. Thank you Olivia for a great day and a very informative tour. The lunch was fantastic.

Usually booking tours is a crap shoot since your experience is dependent on the guide that is assigned to your group. A guide should be of course knowledgeable about the subject matter, but also have personality and humor. My expectations were exceeded as I considered myself lucky to have Stephano assigned for my Cinque Terre hiking tour. He has trekked all over the world, ran marathons, is a wine sommelier, and was born locally so there are many things to discuss while the hike was going on. We had an excellent hike and saw some amazing sights of beautiful Cinque Terre and learned about the area's wine making and local attractions. Walkabout has other tours available and they are all in English. I would highly advise going with them if you're in Florence and wishing to have an adventure. read more

Gloria our tour guide and Ricardo bus driver made our wine tour to Tuscany a trip to remember! They were outstanding and highly recommend!

We happened to be staying in an apartment right next door to their office and we decided to go on one of their tours after walking by their shiny Vespas every day. Sadly we were too late too fit into the group riding a Vespa, but they offered us a Fiat, which was fine by me because I was a bit too scared to ride a scooter around the windy backstreets of Florence anyway. What I didn't realize is that the Fiat is perhaps more scary, especially if you haven't driven stick in a while. But at no point did I feel like we were unsafe in any way because we were in the capable hands of Angel, our tour guide. He was incredible from start to finish: funny, prompt, and a wealth of knowledge about every spot he took us to. We viewed great vistas of olive fields and one of the best views of Florence on the trip. The four hour tour ended with an absolutely delicious meal where we got to know our tourmates and just unwind a bit. I'm not usually much for tours on vacation, but I was so glad we signed up for this one. It was a great way to see parts of the area that we never would have otherwise and just appreciate the beauty of the city and countryside. I highly recommend it! read more