Italy Review: Ferry Trips to Murano, Burano, & Lido Islands, Cinque Terre, Florence, Pasta Making & Wine Tasting Class, Museums

We love water so we especially enjoyed our time on boats - the vaporetto & gondola rides in Venice and the ferry trips to Murano, Burano, and Lido Islands, around Lake Como, and in the Cinque Terre.
We appreciated the private guides we had for the special museums such as the Accademia in Florence and the Vatican & Sistine Chapel in Rome.  They were able to focus on the major exhibits and help us get through the crowds.  We were also very satisfied with the small group tours we had at the Duomo in Venice and at the Coliseum in Rome and we found the guides were knowledgeable, informative and entertaining.
We particularly enjoyed the food-related activities that were suggested by the travel company.  Our pasta making class with wine tasting in Tuscany was way more fun than we expected.  Also, the evening food tour in Trastavere, Rome was a highlight.  The location, guide, and food were all excellent!
Our 4-star accommodations were all superb.  All of the hotels offered delicious included breakfasts and the hosts were all friendly and helpful with local suggestions for dinner and excursions.