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When searching around on the internet for Italy vacation packages, a myriad of options come up, but how many are there where you can create your own, small group customized Italy tour with the owner/operator who escorts you on your whole trip? There's only one, Custom Tours of Italy. My passion to share this great country with people is the driving force behind what I do with my travelers. I love to see the smiles on my tourists faces when they finally get to see what they invisioned Italy to be. I only work alone and work with you to determine what you would like to do in Italy, then I create a day by day itinerary for you and your small group vacation to Italy. Most of the pre-packaged tours have you moving around too much and only staying 1 or 2 nights in various locations - I don't do that. We do a minimum of 3 nights everywhere and sometimes we stay in places more then that. For example, I often book your custom, private guided vacation to Italy around the availability of my favorite farm "Agriturismo" in Southern Tuscany near Montepulciano. I like to suggest you balance the big tourist cities with a stay in the country in Tuscany. Everyone one of my past travelers have said the farm stay was the best part of their trip. I've been going to this farm since the Fall of 2013 and now the owners are "family". When you book Custom Tours of Italy for your private guided vacation to Italy you get to "order" what you want to do. You're not a huge fan of museums with just paintings? Then we don't plan that for you,....you don't get that choice with a big tour company tour with 25 other people on a bus going to the Uffizi Gallery in Florence......You're a big Roman history buff? well, you're going to the right place then, but let's plan more than 3 nights in Rome....the other tour guide agencies do not have this flexibility....so, let's create your own customized, personalized Italy vacation soon. Grazie mille! www.customtoursofitaly.com

I began my quest in 1997 to put together the best guided tour of Italy with my then girlfriend (who I was trying to impress) who became my fiance' after our first private tour of Italy - she later became my wife in 1998. She convinced me that I was a natural tour guide for Italy and to do this as a business! ....so I married her and we're still married and when I'm not guiding people in Italy, we go there and explore and our two grown children love it as well. Back then, I was determined to go to Italy and not do one of those bus tours with 25 other people I didn't know and I definintley didn't want to be another tacky American tourist. Being Italian American I decided to read and study every Italy guide book possible and also learn enough Italian to go to Italy on our own......it was the best decision ever and this was the inception of Custom Tours of Italy. I put together private Italy tours and love sharing this great country with people... www.customtoursofitaly.com

How to begin to plan for one of my best guided private vacation tours to Italy.... 2025 is a Jubilee year for Italy and things are going to get busy and booked up faster this year....January is almost over and you should now be thinking (about 4 months in advance) about a Spring or Summer custom tour of Italy. Prime tourist season in Italy is essentially May thru October but many will say "you're crazy if you go to Italy in July or August",....but I go,....sure it's hot in the summer in Italy but it usually cools down at night and thats when most of the daily influx of tourists get back on their tour bus or their Cruise ship. Evening is when the charm comes out and the night time fun begins. So, how to begin planning for your private tour to Italy? The best way to start is to start looking at guide books/ Youtube's or Italy travel by consulting the internet for some of the best things to do in italy. Then, you have to match up what you like to do and start making notes of this. If you're NOT into crowds and being inside Museums, then skip the lines and what you DON'T want to do,..and if I was guiding you, we surely wouldn't doing those things. This is the beauty of Custom Tours of Italy and what I do, by myself, when I guide you on your own private, guided vacation tour of Italy. The packaged bus tours don't give you a choice on these options. I do. Once you contact me, I begin with your airfare searches as I like to be able to fly with or at least meet my travelers on the way to Italy. Then we plan out what you want to see in Italy and I begin to book the hotels, the tourist activites, the train travel/car rental and also the restaurants in advance. I charge for all up front EXCEPT the lunches and dinners as we don't know what those costs will be. January and February are great months to get a jump on booking your Spring or Summer vacation to Italy. For Fall vacations, April and May are good months to begin booking things for your private vacation tour of Italy in September through the end of October. www.customtoursofitaly.com