Italy Advice & Tips In Your Inbox
Italy Advice & Tips In Your Inbox
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Read testimonials from happy clients, below. Note that starting in 2017, we expanded online testimonials to include Google Reviews and Facebook Reviews.
We had a wonderful trip! We did so many amazing things and experienced many wonderful places yet never felt like we were running ragged. We were and are so thankful we found you and worked with you to put all of this together. Everything moved along seamlessly. Thank you!
We thank you so much for all you gave us, guided us to, arranged for, and detailed for us. Not just memories and mental highlights, but also allowing ourselves to embrace the Italian way of life, the pace, the inclusion of beauty in everything, the complex relationship of humans/history/land, and the people with their warmth and caring. Perfect.
We are in love with Venice and the Dolomites. The ski adventure was amazing and beyond anything we could have ever dreamed. We had an absolute blast and loved the trip. Thank you for creating an experience we will never forget.
Absolutely everything that you planned went off without a hitch. Every tour, every restaurant, every train and activity came through exactly as you outlined it. Your advice on when to leave, how to get places and where to go was perfection!
We cannot thank you enough for your guidance! We experienced so many things. We ate and walked our way through four cities and because of your detailed itinerary, were able to do so much! Many, many thanks!!!
Thank you again from all three of us for your help in planning such a delightful trip. I know that we were a challenge, since I’m an experienced Italy traveler (this was my seventh time there), we wanted to visit a region that is off the beaten path (Emilia-Romagna) at a peculiar time (the week between Christmas and New Year’s) , with an 11-year old child, and had some very specific ideas of what we did and did not want to see and do. Every detail that you arranged came off without a hitch, including our polite and prompt driver Roberto, all our many tour guides (especially Manuela in Ravenna and Elisabetta in Parma and Modena), the pleasant trattorias and especially the two terrific hotels you recommended – the Commercianti in Bologna and the Palazzo della Rosa Prati in Parma. Our itinerary included plenty of time and variety and allowed us to enjoy all the many things we sought, including Romanesque cathedrals, Jewish synagogues, food shops in Bologna, mosaics in Ravenna, learning to make tortelli di erbette, watching the “birth” of Parmesan cheese and tasting balsamic vinegar straight from the barrel. We appreciated your patience and flexibility as we changed plans up to – and beyond – the last minute. You made the planning for this trip a breeze, and enabled us all to enjoy it more fully than we otherwise would have. We look forward to planning our next Italian vacation with you, and wish you the happiest of New Year’s.
Madeline carefully planned a fabulous, personalized 19 day itinerary (Lake Garda, Dolomites, N/S Tuscany, Rome) that enabled us to be travelers, not tourists. Great restaurants, amazing hotels, wonderful guides, and out-of-the-way jaunts made our trip more than special. All of Madeline’s contacts were of the highest caliber, and went out of their way to please us. For example, one restaurant owner called us several days ahead of our reservation at his open-air restaurant to give us an option to come on Saturday rather than Sunday, since rain had been forecast (we took the option and were glad we did; it poured on Sunday). Each day provided a unique experience that took our preferences into consideration, yet our trip was well-balanced, with active days followed by not-so-active ones, enabling us to enjoy the trip without being exhausted. Knowing Madeline was only a phone call away gave us the peace of mind we needed to thoroughly enjoy our trip!
Madeline is a delight to work with, easygoing, yet detail-oriented. We put our trip in Madeline’s hands and had the time of our life, stress free.
Love the app! So much better than paper. All ground and water transportation was excellent. The level of scheduling was perfect! We had time to walk and relax on our hotel balcony. Thank you so much for your careful planning. We enjoyed the relaxation, the adventure, and the absence of American tourists.
Madeline and her team planned a customized vacation for us that perfectly accommodated our specific interests and timing. For example, we stayed in a restored castle with volcanic thermal pools, loved driving the Tuscan countryside in a rented Italian sports car and following her suggested routes, enjoyed a home-cooked and fantastic lunch with a local vintner (very off the beaten path), we had private tours with local guides in the countryside and ancient cities. Every transfer was planned for and seamless; when we asked for a spur of the moment change, her local team simply made it happen for us.
Madeline is a consummate professional with a ‘can-do’ attitude about everything. She offers a knowledge of Italy that is truly beyond the obvious. We offer our highest level of recommendation for her services.
We had a fantastic time – the Dolomites will forever live in my best memories with hopes to return! The hike with Alberto was wonderful, he was delightful and so kind – would do a bigger hike again with him! Lagazoui – divine and we had no idea about the sauna in the sky – wow! Cortina, all that you set up and offered was perfect – we fell in love with the wine bar owner – stayed late talking on our second visit after dinner – and the wonderful dinner at the farm …
Piedmont: All the wineries we visited were great experiences. They tended to be intimate and in one case especially memorable. The owner/winemaker Marco and his wife had invited a couple of Italian wine writers to join us and we spent an incredible afternoon tasting through his entire line, sitting around discussing life and politics and having one of those serendipitous life experiences that will stay with us forever – and that only seem to happen in Europe. Sicily: This was the part of the trip I wasn’t sure about beforehand but upon reflection, I have to say I loved the place. This was a real pleasant surprise and I’m on my second book about Sicily and its history since returning home. We will go back there one of these days. Rome: Everything was perfect: the hotel, the restaurants, the sites, the guides, you name it. It was the perfect capstone to our trip.
We arrived home safely on Friday afternoon, east coast time and spent the weekend recovering from a truly wonderful trip! My son asked me to tell him about my favorite part of the trip and you know, I couldn’t pick a favorite. We did so much and saw so much and everything was different and I just loved it all! Thanks so much for everything! I do hope to make a second trip to Italy at some point and I will definitely reach out to you for your help again. I will also pass your name on to anyone needing assistance in planning a trip to Italy! Claudia, thank you for your support as well! It was very comforting to know we had someone local to call when we needed assistance!
Madeline was phenomenal to work with throughout the entire time which spanned many months. She is organized and responsive and genuinely cares about her clients. The hotels and guides were top-notch, and we had a fabulous trip as we crisscrossed Italy. Having a local contact was invaluable and we made contact with her during the trip. We had such a wonderful time, that we are planning to go back next year!
We had a BLAST and I’ve never seen such beautiful mountains. I think the scenery in San Cassiano is the prettiest in the world. Prior to this our all time favorite place was New Zealand but these mountains and hiking rank right there with it. You did a great job! I really haven’t come down to earth yet, still floating from such a magical trip.
You did a great job in planning our trip and we’re very happy. Italy is a wonderful place with very friendly people that seem to know how to take life at the right speed – unlike us Americans. All the hotels were great with each one having its own charm. Our favorite tours were the bicycle tour, the balloon ride, the all day boat tour and the Vespa tour. All the guides were very good and I would recommend them all to others but our favorite was the Vatican guide.
We wanted to say ‘Thank You,’ from our hearts. Memories for a lifetime, for our family, that we will cherish and always look back fondly upon. From restaurant reservations to choreographing our travel times – you did it all – and, importantly, you managed the process with such grace and poise – we are in awe. Thank you for making this trip so ‘easy’ for us. We are deeply grateful.
We loved the hotels and did not have a single bad hotel experience which is really impressive considering that we spent 12 nights in Italy. We loved our Venice guide and hope to see him someday again. Our Florence guide worked so hard to make Florence interesting to both adults and kids. I will come back to Florence again just to listen to her talk about art. Our Vatican tour was awesome! The guide is awesome! This was our 10 year old daughter’s favorite tour by far. In general we were very pleasantly surprised by the service in restaurants with friendly waiters and just generally welcoming vibe. A lot of credit for this goes to you who picked these places – I would imagine not every restaurant in Italy is like that. Thank you to you and Claudia for providing on trip support when we were in Italy. It meant so much to be able to reach someone if we needed help.
Some of our favorite things were: the villa in Positano. It was beautiful and they took great care of us. And we loved the hike! The restaurant at the end of the hike was great also. The boat trip to Capri was also a highlight. Our favorite meal of the trip was in Positano – the view was breathtaking and the food was wonderful and the service was amazing. We also loved the Ape tour in Rome.
It was incredible – your help with locations, hotels, activities, train and boat schedules, rental cars, maps – was over the top. I’m looking forward to our next trip to Italy – with your help, of course!
You did a superb job and we will recommend your services to any people that are going there for a trip! It was so nice to have no worries, make no reservations and just avoid all of the potential pitfalls and hassles while planning an international trip.
We made it back ok on Sat. night around 8pm. We enjoyed everything and all of our guides and drivers did a superb job in taking care of us. We were happy in all of our hotels and the food well we will never be able to eat pasta in the U.S again without complaining.Thank you for doing such a great job! We hope to visit again and see more of the beautiful country and we will be contacting you again in organizing our trip. Thanks again we really had a wonderful time thanks to you.
Her knowledge of the areas we visited included, Lake Como, Tuscany, Florence & Amalfi, was impressive as she developed an itinerary that suited our interests and activity level.
Being well versed in both Italian culture and language, Madeline made wonderful recommendations and reservations to hotels, restaurants and sites not frequented by foreigners, providing us with a unique and memorable visit. We enjoyed a romantic and fun vacation we will remember for years to come. The success of our trip was due to the amazing scenery and food of Italy and Madeline’s expert planning.
We had a fantastic trip. Thanks so much for all you did for us. We will certainly recommend you highly to anyone we know who plans to visit Italy.
Italy Beyond the Obvious designed and arranged a trip for me that was not only Beyond the Obvious, but Beyond Perfection. I had a limited budget and limited amount of time to explore World War II battlefields in the Northern Apennines.
IBTO lined me up with the right hotel, the right guide, the right drivers, and at surprisingly reasonable cost. All my daily getting-around and getting-by issues were taken care of, and I could concentrate on my research. And it was consistently a pleasure dealing with IBTO’s friendly, well-organized, and well-informed staff.
The Rome hotel was one of the best I’ve ever stayed in. The Naples guide was a highlight of the trip, and I would recommend her to anyone. Laura has a lot of stomach pain when she gets into gluten, and she didn’t have it at all this week, which shows that your recommendations were really top notch at preparing food properly.
Thank you again for all your help. There’s no way I would have found the great restaurants and hotels without your advice, and they really made the trip. Please let me know if you ever need a recommendation. I’m happy to provide one.
The trip was fantastic! You really planned something that matched what we are into. The little area near Bevagna where we stayed was ideal. I’m getting a lot of satisfaction in that no one here (people who have travelled extensively) has ever heard of Bevagna, Montefalco, Bastardo, Perugia, etc. That’s EXACTLY what I wanted to do. The scenery, food, and hospitality were just as good as anywhere–without throngs of tourists!!
All in all, we are extremely pleased with your services. No time was frittered away being lost, searching for a good place to eat, or standing in long lines. Thank you, Madeline! We will be recommending your services to our friends whenever we can!!!
I just wanted to offer my/our deepest gratitude for your trip planning. I couldn’t be happier with the process and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome. Just as an FYI, comparing to a luxury package 7 day, 6 night trip, I estimate we saved about $1300 pp even with a far longer trip. That includes the costs for your services and those exorbitant Amalfi taxi / driver fees so really you offer an enormous amount of value, not to mention personalization.
In general, we have nothing but high marks for our hotels, hosts, experiences, drivers and guides. What can I say… it was a grand trip. Grazie mille.
We could not have put this wonderful trip together without you! Thank you so much! The people you connected us with were amazing! The experiences we will never forget. We fell in love with Italy! I would have to say my favorite experience was the day trip to Tuscany! I loved being with Sandra and her family and employees. The countryside was amazing. The food was incredible! So fresh! Our driver was so nice too! The restaurant in Capri was fabulous! And the hotel there was amazing. Thank you so much again!
All our guides were wonderfully interesting and informative, each with a uniquely engaging personality. All our accommodations were perfect. But for me the highlight was the 90 minutes in Faro Superiore with Mr. Maggio and a couple of the other local residents, who magically appeared, speaking only Sicilian and gave us such a warm and enthusiastic tour of their little town, all the while insisting that, “there’s not much to see here”. I’ll always remember their kindness and that welcome feeling, very much like that of a homecoming.
My senses were overloaded with so much breathtaking beauty, both natural and manmade. We had perfect, unseasonably warm weather, fantastic food and wine at outrageously low prices and people, who took a moment to size us up, then couldn’t do enough to accommodate us.
Madeline was referred to me by a good friend because she planned her trip for their family and it was amazing. I thought initially I could do it alone and coordinate but soon realized that I would end up spending a lot of time and money and still not be able to do half of what Madeline did for us. She not only is kind and hardworking but she listens to you and everything you need to plan a perfect trip for you and your family. We went from Rome to Venice through Tuscany, Florence, and the Motor Valley. She coordinated every detail from amazing places to stay at, tours, trains, planes, automobiles, directions, hikes up a volcano, restaurants, vineyards, gladiator school and fun kid stuff. Initially when we first started, it was my family including 10 and 11 year old boys, but then we had another family join us, so she coordinated both of our schedules to the ultimate detail. The tour guides kept four kids under the age of 11 engaged and giggling while the parents had plenty of time for vineyards and adult time. Some of the places including the home in Vinci were to die for and really affordable and we never waivered off her plan because it was perfect. Even though we were concerned we would be overscheduled, we weren’t! Thanks Madeline for a great gift to me, my family and friends. I wish you covered the whole world as I would never leave you, next trip to Northern Italy and Switzerland I will call you—hoping 2017!!
We had an amazing and unforgettable trip to Italy. We cannot thank you enough for all of your help with planning and for tailoring the trip for us. It was a big success. Overall we fell in love with the people, the food, the wine, the landscape and the history of Sicily which is so unique and amazing. We’re already talking about our next trip.
Madeline did such an amazing job planning our trip for us! If you have never been to Italy, are unfamiliar–as we were–with international travel, you will feel well prepared and ready to move through the cities with ease after having Madeline’s help. Her itinerary plans are well thought out, detail oriented and absolutely thorough. She won’t let you leave on vacation until you feel comfortable–from transportation to restaurant and sight seeing information. You can not get this in a guide book. Not even from an average travel agent. We loved every single day of our vacation and feel like we got such an amazing value for the investment because of Madeline’s expertise.
Our trip had been talked about for a couple of years, and the first time we vacationed alone for 14 years. With your help it was trip of a lifetime. I highly recommend you and the people and places you recommend. Grazie!
Madeline helped us plan our family’s first trip to Italy (a family of 4, with 2 girls ages 10 and 12). Madeline was great to work with – very responsive and always willing to provide good advice and a range of options to choose from. The result was a trip custom designed to our family’s interests and pace. We experienced all facets of Italy, including cultural and historical sites, outdoor adventure activities, cooking classes and fantasic meals. And all with a touch of luxury that made the experience special and memorable for all of us. This was by far the best planned holiday we’ve ever had, and working with Madeline was the smartest decision we could have made.
It was truly the most amazing trip! I never could have planned this so seamlessly on my own. It was truly a stress-free trip for me which is very unusual! Every day really seemed to work out perfectly and go off without a hitch. Now I just need to find somebody exactly like you to help me plan a trip in France and any other country we decide to visit.
We had a wonderful trip and all the arrangements worked as scheduled. All the guides were good and professional. We are thankful for the insights you provided us particularly with respect to the hotels all of which were good or better and in my view money well spent. We thank you and will be in touch when we return to Italy.
We all feel like having your guides, suggestions, numbers, etc. made for easy travel in a foreign country. Thank you!!
Madeline is not only a delight to work with, but she is detail oriented, thorough and prepares you for a one of a kind Italian adventure. Her background and experience living in Italy ensures you will have the best tour guides, restaurants and hotel recommendations.
A few highlights for us included:
Getting lost in Venice. As you pointed out, it’s half the fun, and we really got to know the neighborhoods and prominent landmarks along the way.
We just returned this evening to Munich, and I wanted to send you a quick note to let you know that we had a fabulous trip to the Amalfi Coast.
Thank you thank you for:
1) Guiding us away from staying in Positano — I was so relived when all of the American tourists got off of the bus from Sorrento at Positano and left us to enjoy an amazingly tourist-free life down the coast.
2) Picking a PERFECT hotel in a PERFECT location.
3) Great Restaurant Recommendations. I knew we were in good shape the first night when all we heard were conversations from boisterous Italians enjoying great food and company. It was a perfect first meal on the Amalfi Coast and set the bar high. This bar, however, was blown away by lunch the next day. Loved the view, loved the staff, loved the food. We ended up just letting them give us food of their choice, stuffed our faces, and then ate some more.
4) The Walks of the Gods hike was by far our favorite thing we did on the trip. If I had my choice, I would’ve done that walk every day that we were there (and next time, I just might).
5) Drinks in Ravello! The overpriced-as-expected drinks were absolutely worth it. We had a great view, great drinks, and the staff, instead of making us feel like squatters who weren’t true hotel guests, were really friendly.
Madeline, I can’t thank you enough for planing the perfect trip for our last family “Hurrah” before leaving Europe. You are a rock star goddess!!!!
Some detail:
Rome: The location of our hotel was great. We did everything on the program and maybe a bit more. Pizza was the best in Rome! For me the ballet was the highlight, it was excellent and what seats we had!
Elba: Another highlight of the trip, what magnificent beaches, I’m from the Bahamas and I believe I love the water so Elba more. The hotel’s dinners were gourmet, absolutely delicious! The beaches were out of this world, we rented a boat and went exploring around the island, swimming out in the middle of the ocean, ……all of us. Off to Camogli with the GPS and got there like going to the 7-11.
Liguria / Cinque Terre: Great hotel room, was spacious and a/c. The restaurant the first night was fabulous. The transit strike you had warned us about on the second day was on so we drove, with the GPS. I am used to traffic, especially in the middle east and found driving easy. The boat tour was very good, and we had a blast swimming and jumping off of cliffs. The Cinque Terre was great, could have stayed there for a week. Loved the shopping and whole feel. Definitely going back – next summer – and will stay in Cinque Terre itself.
Tuscany: Stopped at Lucca on the way, it was great. Made it to the hotel like 7-11 again.Hotel looked like a castle!. The rooms were very spacious.The cooking class was great, and was the highlight of the trip for my wife. We found San Gimignano and Siena too touristy but I guess it’s good to have seen them..We loved Florence, the shopping, the market etc. First night dinner was great, my wife loved it. The Uffizi was fabulous! The shopping in Florence is fabulous. I could buy up the town
I recently had the experience of working with Italy Beyond the Obvious while planning a trip to the Amalfi Coast. I cannot say enough wonderful things about working with Madeline and the itinerary that she put together for our trip! She was very thoughtful and asked several questions to discern exactly what things we liked to do, and not do, while on vacation. She kept in touch regularly as she planned our trip to Positano, Ravello, Sorrento and Amalfi.
When we left for Italy, we had a full schedule of things to do in each city which included sightseeing, walks, local festivals (with dates and start times), restaurants and even parking lots where it would be safe to park our car. Each city was accompanied by a map which showed us where all the relevant places were in that town. The itinerary included important tourist attractions as well as out of the way sights that we wouldn’t have found on our own. Madeline provided us with timely information, such as the fact that the road between Positano and Amalfi was under construction and only open for fifteen minutes every hour. I would highly recommend Madeline and will use her again when we plan our next trip to Italy!
Everything worked out perfectly. The itinerary and all the guides were wonderful. The kids had a great vacation filled with a lot of information. The Rome guide was especially outstanding. All the hotels were good but we especially liked the Naples, San Marino, and Venice hotels. Thanks again for this very memorable and exciting trip.
Your planning service was really excellent and I would highly recommend you for Italy. You saved me weeks of planning which is priceless. I think you went above and beyond and it was totally worth it for us.
I returned home from Italy this weekend. Just wanted to send a word of thanks for everything you did to make my trip go so well. The value of my trip was enhanced because you helped lead me to the authentic experinces of Italy and Italians that I hoped to have. I plan to recommend you near and far! If ever I can do anything for you, please let me know.
We accomplished and experienced a lot, including some random and memorable discoveries (like overhearing some terrific musicians practicing at a music school in Montepulciano or popping in an art exhibit in Venice). The vacation was everything we hoped it would be when we started planning 10 months ago. I’m not sure we could have pulled it together without your guidance and advice. So again, thank you very much, Madeline. It was a pleasure working with you.
Your hotel suggestions were excellent, My husband wasn’t excited about going to Europe because of time and money, but now he can’t wait to go back. I honestly couldn’t have done this planning without you. I’m quite sure I would have thrown my hands up in frustration and indecision, because I really knew nothing about Italy or about traveling abroad. Your knowledge was incredibly extensive and detailed. Also, having the time frame for coaching kept me on track; I couldn’t put things off for days or weeks, which I might have done otherwise. Our trip truly was fabulous, and I attribute that to your coaching. So thank you again, Madeline!
Madeline took my foggy notion of a 10 day trip to Italy and translated it for us into the best-planned trip I’ve ever taken. She provided us with options for every detail: where to go, what to do, where to stay, where to eat, and how to get to and around the locales we chose. Every recommendation was special, from the hotels we stayed in to the tour guides we used, the cooking school we went to, the winery we visited and the restaurants she suggested. There wasn’t a single miss. “It’s a Madeline recommendation” became a phrase oft repeated during our trip. Madeline took the guess work out of trip planning and made the process efficient and enjoyable. I highly recommend Italy Beyond the Obvious; it’s worth every penny.
I felt totally overwhelmed trying to narrow things down (and research from over here)!
I am so happy that we have a plan figured out and can get the most out of trip.
We really appreciate your hard work and responsiveness!
You can do so much research online that we never would have thought we’d end up hiring someone to plan a trip for us–but Madeline’s coaching service ended up being one of the best travel decisions we ever made. We knew we wanted to spend two weeks in Italy, but sorting through a whole country’s worth of itineraries and accommodations online turned out to be so daunting that it was almost paralyzing. So we decided to try Madeline and she took what had become a stressful process and sent it back to being fun! Her coaching service cut through the flood of options, so we just enjoyed ourselves cherry picking the ideas that seemed most right for us. Madeline was organized and insightful. Within one week we had the whole trip pretty much planned. We absolutely recommend it to anyone considering piecing together their own jaunt through Italy.
We are home from Rome and had an amazing trip! The hotel was perfect. Everyone was so helpful. My father-in-law said our guide was the best tour guide he ever had. Thanks again
All the special tours and experiences you helped us to book were fabulous. The cooking day was unbelievable. The Vespa tour was – I’m at a loss for superlatives! The hotels were all fabulous. A wonderful trip! Thank you so much for all your suggestions and advice. It was everything I was hoping for and more.
You are personable, knowledgable and have a talent for organization and analysis. You are perceptive in discerning where the client is with travel planning and the timing of your questions and suggestions helped me to move forward in the process. Your words helped when I got a bit frustrated when it wasn’t coming together…the counsel to sift through it all and the important things would be left. You are a good listener: which can be a big challenge with email! Another piece that was invaluable was when you explained the actual process: itinerary, accommodations, activities, restaurants. Makes total sense now!
I think you know how much I have appreciated your coaching!! I look forward to working with you again.
As we started to plan our trip to Italy, I quickly became overwhelmed with the number of great places to go in Italy, but I was short on time to figure it out. So I was really excited when I came across “Italy: Beyond the Obvious” – the name described exactly the kind of experience we wanted to have.
I could tell from the beginning that she knew what she was talking about, and was a truly committed partner to us in this planning. She understood our interests in food, wine, and ‘local’ culture and had some fantastic ideas related to those interests that I know we would not have found on our own, for example a wine festival outside of Padua, chicheti and wine pre-dinner in Venice, a truffle hunt, etc. etc. So many great ideas that aren’t in any guide book I’ve seen. Madeline definitely delivers on ideas beyond the obvious!
The specifics: Our hotel on Lake Garda was perfect! The woman at the front desk, super helpful! Also took the boat and walked up the mountain – spectacular views, sounds of cow bells, also interesting to see parasailors and sheep herder there at the top! We loved Padua for the architecture, the ‘local’ feel, energy and people watching. Our hotel was perfect! loved the staff, the room, and the location. Saturday food market – wow, fun! Venice: Wow, tourist season still at ‘high point’ .. but stumbled across less touristy areas and then able to enjoy ourselves. San Marco area – ugh. overrun with tourists. LOVED Campo Santa Margarita – we ate breakfast at Orange one day, and dinner the next day at another place there. LOVED the recommended Enoteca. Not what we thought it would be, so at first we were like ‘oh’ and then we quickly grew to love the place, the ‘system’ and chicheti! we ate and drank wine outside, against the canal and everyone was happy.
Based upon a recommendation from another friend, we contacted Madeline to help plan our trip to Italy. We used her “coaching” service, and it has paid off ten-fold.
Madeline!
We are back from Italy and wanted to touch base to tell you that you are a rock star!! Absolutely all accommodations that you recommended were PERFECT!
Ponza was dreamy (although we really were “off the beaten path” being the ONLY anglo’s on the island). We actually elected to stay an extra night. Our Vespa tour in Rome as great as was our hike along the coast. Madly in love with Positano and our meal was insanely good value and yummy. We had a great day trip to Capri which was a blast. Also loved Naples. Our hotel in Naples was beautiful.
You were really bang on Madeline, thank you so much. We passed your name on to many others along the way who were impressed with what we were doing. I hope you are well! Cheers & a few more photos to follow.
You can use us for a testimonial ANYTIME!
Thank you so much Madeline for helping us plan an amazingly wonderful trip.
Your ability to take the jumble of our wishes, concerns and indecision and make sense of it is a gift, and we appreciate how much you’ve helped us to create a trip that is uniquely ours, along with the comfort of knowing that someone who knows what they’re doing thinks that our plan works! Thank you.
Madeline provides an intellectual look at Italy, a perspective that I very much appreciated when planning our journey. Her knowledge of history, gastronomy, logistics and culture was essential to shaping our enjoyable vacation.
I was lucky enough to come upon Madeline and her wonderful Italy Beyond the Obvious web site and travel business. Madeline helped us plan our adventures in Florence, Venice, Lucca, and Pisa. She recommended hotel options, along with their direct web sites, best ways to get around the cities, tour options and many links to museums, and where to get the best Gelato! I had felt so overwhelmed with my travel plans, but Madeline set that all at ease and helped us plan out a wonderful trip! I am so grateful for her expertise! Thanks Madeline!
We are both so pleased with all the help you have given. The coaching service you offer is a real value, saving amazing amounts of time for us and headache and heartache.
We feel much more confident about our ability to enjoy our trip; one set up now for our specific needs.
Your advice has allowed us to plan a trip that will be right for our family not just what is recommended in the travel books. Thank you.
Just a quick note to say thank you for the wonderful recommendations/itinerary for Roma. The guide you recommended was well worth the time and money… our docent was fun and very knowledgeable. After getting lost we finally found the restaurant, which was lovely…lovely ambiance! We did take time to stop at the wine bar you recommended and thoroughly enjoyed the wine and location. Off we go to the next night’s dinner restaurant and loved this place! We made friends with the owner/family and had a great time. Overall we loved Italy and on our travels to Murano we bought a beautiful glass sculpture …so I’m happy!
We had a great time in Sicily — much to your credit. The cooking class was great, the rental car situation was awesome, and we LOVED all of our hotels. Thanks again!
We recently took a trip to Italy. Our trip took us to Sorrento, Pompeii, Rome, Florence and Venice.
Thanks to Madeline for helping us organize our trip and giving us great advice..One of the best pieces of advice she gave us was to forget driving in Italy and to use the train and subway system. Oh! How right she was. We found the train and subway systems very easy, comfortable and safe to use. We were so glad we were not driving in Italy. My brother, on the other hand, tried driving. While he was spending 3 hours trying to find his way to us in Florence, Gary and I were enjoying breakfast at an open air restaurant and basking in the Italian sunshine. After 3 hours of frustration trying to get from here to there, my brother gave up trying to meet us and went back to the vineyard. Meeting in the train station in Venice was so much easier. The bottom line is Madeline has lived in Italy and has traveled many places in the world. Her advice is practical and on target. She is great!
Thank you to Madeline for helping us plan our family trip to Italy this past summer. My husband and I, along with our two children, aged 5 and 7, had a fabulous experience exploring the Veneto region of Italy. The highlights of our trip were Madeline’s recommendations: the day spent swimming at Lake Garda, the adrenaline packed day at Gardaland, the night spent taking in Aida in the Verona Arena, the daytrip to university town, Padua, and the lazy days getting lost in Venice. We can’t thank her enough for helping us experience Italy and enjoying la dolce vita!
NOTE: These clients have volunteered to be available as a reference. If you would like to talk to them directly about their experience with Italy Beyond the Obvious, please contact Madeline for their cell phone number.
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