We just came back from a trip to Italy and I wanted to share with you my experiences with Giovanna Donadio. It was our second time to Italy so this time we added Sorrento to the trip. In the Rick Steves' book for Sorrento and Capri, he recommends a private tour with Giovanna Donadio. I want to tell you that contacting Giovanna was the best thing we could have done. We first booked her for a tour of Capri, then we added a private car to Positano, Amalfi and Ravello, then we added a private driver from the Naples' Train Station to our hotel and the return trip. Everything was wonderful! Giovanna always responded immediately to my many e-mails and made our time in Sorrento and Capri so fun and easy. I always plan our trips but this time there were six of us and it was so nice to have someone else take charge of the day.
Giovanna's sister, Paola, drove us from Naples to our hotel. She was lovely! She was waiting for us when we got off the train. After taking the local train to Pompeii later in our trip, hiring a private driver to Sorrento was so smart. On the local train, there is hardly room to stand. With six of us with two pieces of luggage and a carry-on each it would have been such a miserable train ride to Sorrento. Paola drove the winding roads to Sorrento like a pro. Even with all our luggage and two large men in our group, we all fit and had a comfortable ride.
We were able to schedule Giovanna for a day-long tour of Capri. Giovanna made the day so fun for us. She is delightful and so easy to be with. She is so knowledgeable about Capri and knows her way around, saying hello along the way to all the locals. We had such a wonderful day including a chair lift ride up the hill to Anacapri, a tour of the Isle of Capri, a wonderful lunch at a restaurant she recommended and a boat ride around Capri. We didn't have to worry about where to go or what to do.
The next day, we had a private driver to take us to Positano, Amalfi and Ravello. It was such a wonderful day. Elliott was our driver and he was so funny. He had us laughing the whole day. He was knowledgeable and he sure knew how to drive the very crazy, winding roads of the Amalfi Coast. Each town was beautiful but the best part of the day was that he took us to the restaurant Zio Sam near Sorrento for lunch. It was like we were Italians, eating with family. We didn't order our meal ... The owner just brought out tray after tray of delicious foods to share family style. We met the family and walked around their farm. It was one of the best experiences we had in Italy.
We ended our trip with a private driver back to the Naples Train Station. Mario (I think I have his name correct) was right on time and the ride was comfortable and, even with morning traffic, he had us to the train in plenty of time.
If you are hesitating to hire Giovanna for a day tour of Capri or a drive up the coast, just do it. You will be happy you did!