“Matteo Della Grazia made our dreams of a family vacation in Italy a reality! His company, FuorITinerario Discover Your ITaly, handled every detail from the moment we stepped off the plane in Venice to our driver taking us to the airport in Rome. I have only the highest praise for Matteo and his company.
I worked with Matteo, via email, before our trip to plan our itinerary. He was responsive, informative and easy to work with as we crafted our ideas into plans. Before we left for Italy, Matteo emailed me a detailed itinerary with dates and times for the entire trip along with vouchers and reservations for every driver, guide, experience, excursion or tour he had booked. This was such a luxury as we traveled around we knew where we had to be and could simply show up and give a voucher to our guide, hotel etc and everything was taken care of eliminating the hassles. It allowed for more time wandering the streets and exploring the sights and less time dealing with buying tickets or waiting in line.
Upon our arrival, we received a welcome kit from Matteo that included a pre-programmed phone with GPS and Matteo’s contact information. Matteo even called and checked on us a few times to make sure everything was to our satisfaction which is an example of his exemplary customer service.
Our trip started in Venice with an evening gondola ride and a private walking tour of the city the following morning. We took a train to Florence and spent time enjoying the city including a private walking tour. A highlight in Florence was a fun and delicious pizza and gelato making class Matteo arranged. We took a train and enjoyed a day trip to Pisa. After returning to Florence we rented a car, which Matteo arranged, and we drove to Siena and spent the day touring this incredible city with a local guide. We then drove to Castellina in Chianti for a few nights and explored the magnificent countryside. A highlight in Chianti was a bike tour through Greve that was organized by Matteo through one of his many contacts. We drove to Rome where we finished our trip. Our guide in Rome was incredibly knowledgeable about the Coliseum and the ancient ruins making the city come alive.
My whole family agreed that having a private guide to conduct a walking tour in each city made our trip richer. The guides were all knowledgeable, insightful and passionate about their cities or towns and added so much to each place we visited. The caliber of guides is a direct reflection of the type of people with whom Matteo works.
Matteo recommended we stay in different types of lodging to enhance our experience and it was a terrific suggestion. We stayed at a palazzo in Venice, an apartment in Florence, an old stone property with a pool in Castellina and an old hotel with a modern interior in the heart of Rome.
Matteo knew we were traveling with our three children ages 9, 13 and 14 and made suggestions for activities and sights as well as terrific restaurant suggestions that were local favorites. Matteo’s knowledge of Italy as well as his incredible guides and contacts made our trip a once in a lifetime experience.”
Leah Murchie (West Hartford, CT) – JULY 2014
Tuscan Landscape
Bike Tour- Tuscany