Travel Review: Italy Family Christmas Vacation, Rome, Milan, Venice, Florence, Pompeii, Mt Vesuvius Climb, Pizza & Gelato Making

This travel agent provided my family with excellent service.  He helped us plan a 10-night Xmas trip to Italy and the trip's execution was nearly flawless.  We were delighted when our driver was ready to pick us without delay upon our arrival to the Rome airport.  After checking into our 4-night hotel accommodation at Rome, we were surprised to see our agent had left us a message and a bottle of bubbly.  The hotel was comfortable and within walking distance of many historical sights and shopping destinations. We got to enjoy the first afternoon ourselves by acquainting ourselves with the surrounding area.

The next morning, our tour guide and driver were prompt and professional.  Since my wife does not speak English, we were pleased with our Vatican tour guide, who was proficient in Spanish and knowledgeable about the history of the Catholic Church and the museum.  We were the first ones into the Vatican and were able to take many pictures that made it appear we were on tour by ourselves.  After the Vatican tour, our guide gave us a tour of the Coliseum, the Roman Forum, and Palatine Hill.   Following the tour, she took us the Trevi Fountain and she joined us for lunch.  From the Fountain, it was a short walk to the hotel and we used the opportunity to go shopping.

The next day our driver picked us up early in the morning and drove us to Pompeii.  Our tour guide was witty, charming, and knowledgeable about the ruins and saved us much time by pointing out the most important buildings without being repetitive.  We then visited Mount Vesuvius and returned to our hotel.

The following morning we went shopping and then met our tour guide for the Catacombs and Crypts tour.  This tour was offered by a third party and our family could quickly distinguish between the personal/custom tour and the group tours.  This tour was rushed and there was little opportunity to converse with the tour guide.

The remainder of the tour was much the same, first class service and knowledgeable tour guides.  I would highly recommend this company to my peers.