Tour of Italy: Which Company Do You Recommend?

Alexandra,
I couldn't recommend a better organization that meets your needs than "Rick Steves' Europe through the Back Door". I have participated in two of his tours: 21 Days through Europe and Village Italy and are looking forward to our third in 2013. You will find that there is plenty of "down time" and well as "exploring on your own" time. If you have any specific questions, please feel free to PM me.

You can go to the Tours section on this website and click on "Scrapbooks". You can read people's trip reports of RS tours they've been on. Many are well written and give you a good idea of what a RS tour is like. The 1st place winner for 2011 was particularly fun to read.

Rick Steves gets my vote. I have done Hill Towns, It's a wonderful tour with plenty of non-tour time and you get to see plenty of places. I added on three nights in Venice before meeting the group in Padua. I think it is a good tour for first timers to Italy. Last year I did southern Italy and I am off to 7 days in Rome in 10 days time (but who is counting?). I like Rick's tours because they are smaller groups (20-28 people), have excellent leaders, many of whom live in Italy and has a lot of inclusions (admissions, meals etc.). Local guides are used and there are some delightful surprises along the way. He also offers city tours includes one that takes in Venice, Florence and Rome and he now has some tours where your hotel and some excursions are included and the rest is up to you. Do look at the trip reports to get a feel for them and contact the Rick Steves Office and get a copy of Europe Through the Back Door and the DVD. You should be able to get a copy from your local library.

Alexandra, That's a bit of a "loaded question" to ask on this travel board, but I most definitely agree with the others. Especially for such an important "once in a lifetime" occasion, I can't think of a better tour than a Rick Steve's tour. They might at first seem expensive, but when all is considered I believe they are excellent value. The Best of Italy tour would be the best one to take (if it's within your budget and you have the time). One of the shorter tours might be easier to manage both financially and in terms of time, but I'm sure any of the Italy tours will be excellent. Rick's Guides are outstanding, and I'm sure it would be an experience both of you would remember for life. I'd suggest requesting the free 2013 Tour brochure and DVD, as that will provide a good idea of what the tours are like. The DVD has just been revised, so you'll be getting the newest version "hot off the press". Also the 2013 tours are now listed on the website, so you'll have fun perusing them. I've taken five RS tours so far, and will definitely be taking a sixth. I can't imagine travelling with any other firm. ETBD took almost 12,000 people to Europe last year on 400 tours, so there are lots of satisfied and repeat customers. Read the "Tour Reviews" section to get an idea what other tour members have experienced on the Italy tours. Happy travels!

Thanks for all the replies. Duh... I didn't include the RS tours, although I've been checking them as well.

We have been on 4 RS tours and planning our 5th. In Italy our favorite was Village Italy. Like everyone else has said, there's a good mix of tour time and free time. The guides are great and when you do the finances and keep in mind there is no extra tipping for guides, driver, hotel or restaurants it is a great value. We have made friends on these tours and are staying in touch and are trying to travel with each other again! Have a great trip!

Alexandra.. I can only speak from my own experiences, but I took my mother on a Trafalgar Tour ("Best of Italy and Sicily") and it was the very best.. we were treated like kings and queens, the guides were fantastic, the food was great, the tour bus was first class, and our hotel accommodations were wonderful. I RECOMMEND THEM HIGHLY.. Ron

My only tour experience was with Trafalgar, and it left a distinctly bad taste in my mouth. In a nutshell, they cancelled the tour due to lack of participation but didn't think notifying those of us who did sign up was important. And repeated phone calls were stonewalled. After it was all done and dusted, they never apologized or even offered a similar tour in its stead. They just dropped us. They could not have cared less about their customers. But I do thank them now -- I put together a similar route independently (last minute of course) and it was a million times better than any experience I could have had with them. After so many independent travels, I would not really consider a tour, except perhaps an RS one. There does seem to be unique selling points to them that intrigue me.

@Andrea, I was surprised to hear of your experience with Trafalgar Tours. I would have thought a large firm like that would treat it's customers with more professionalism and not leave them with nothing when a tour is cancelled. I will definitely remember this! I very much doubt you will EVER have that problem with RS tours. I hope you decide to give them a try sometime. Cheers!

We are about to take our 10th RS tour, that one being 14-day Village Italy Tour. We have never been disappointed on any of his tours. His tour schedules for 2013 are now available elsewhere on this web site. Suggest you go there and check out his Italy tours. Happy Travels