DiscoveringVenice - Private Venice Tours

DiscoveringVenice-Private Venice Tours was one of the best decisions I made when planning our Mediterrean Cruise. My husband and I, along with another couple, had a free morning in Venice before our cruise left later that evening. Fredericka arranged a walking tour that lasted 3 hours and took us to the less traveled and less crowed areras of Venice, Dorsoduro and San Palo. She met us at our hotel and we previewed our walk and learned about the geography of Venice. Walking at a pace that suited our group we crossed the canals, stood in front of buildings and went into at least one church along the way. Fredericka's English was excellent and we learned a great deal about life in Venice, then and now. With a private tour company, such as this one, the monetary investment was well worth the use of our time and our ability to see as much of Venice as we wanted to. Expertise such as Fredericka's has made our visit to Venice memorable and hopefully we will...

This tour has been the highlight of our European vacation. Francesca Zanatta is a wonder! It was nearly seven hours that began with beautiful visits to the Doge's Palace and St. Mark's Basilica. In each visit, she wove wonderful information with engaging stories and was always, always compelling in her presentation. From there we did a walking "hidden gems" tour of the city. Imagine you were moving to Venice and your best friend lived there, and she agreed to show you everything about the city she loves so much. THAT is what it felt like. After a lunch on the Grand Canal, we took a beautiful, vintage wooden water taxi out of the canal, into the lagoon, and circumnavigated a large portion of the island. It's such a treat seeing it from the water.

If we're lucky enough to return to Venice, I would seek Francesca out to find out what other treasures she could share with us in the city she loves so...

My family had an absolutely fantastic tour with Federica Chiuch of Discovering Venice—it was the highlight of our stay in Venice. Federica was a joy to spend time with—extremely knowledgeable about both the history and art of Venice. She covered big topics and pointed out small, but fascinating points of interest. She made a special effort to keep our 10-year-old child engaged.

In addition to the great substance of the tour, Federica did an incredible job on the logistics. It was one of the hottest days of the year in Venice, so she re-ordered our schedule to put the boat tour first, before the sun got too hot. She managed our visit to the basilica for the one hour when the main lights were on, which allowed for better viewing. When we needed a break for lunch, she even found us the one air-conditioned room in the museum cafe!

Federica was well worth it, and we highly...