Buon Viaggio: Personalized Itineraries
Antico Sole Italy emphasizes the cultural side of traveling. Our insider’s knowledge of the culture and arts of Italy makes us ideal cultural “guides” to your wanderings through the beautiful sights of Italy. Your tailor-made itineraries include history, cultural tidbits, photos, directions, travel tips and other helpful information to make your journey as smooth and satisfying as possible. Together, we’ll design an itinerary that includes the cities and regions you want to explore. We’ll also help you find the perfect accommodation, restaurants, shopping and cultural activities that your trip requires.
Sogni d’oro: Accommodations
With your tastes in mind, we’ll locate ideal accommodations all over Italy, from hotels to charming inns to villas to farm stays. You can stay in a quiet medieval ex-monastery, an aristocrat’s rambling Renaissance villa or a Tuscan farm that produces its own Chianti wine. Depending on your needs and budget, we’ll do the legwork to find accommodations that work for you . . . all you have to do is enjoy.
Buon Appetito: Restaurants and Food
Eating well is one of the pleasures of daily life in Italy, for natives and travelers alike. Italians certainly know how to cook — and eat — with style. But knowing where to savor that truly exceptional meal — be it a 5-course feast, a simple panino or a divine cappucino — may be more difficult than it sounds when all those Italian menus begin to look alike. We’ll recommend the best trattorie, restaurants and caffès from every city and region . . . and what to try from the menu!
Made in Italy: Shopping
Made in Italy made easy. Whether you’re on the prowl for gold jewelry, hand-painted ceramics, designer labels, authentic antiques, Venetian glass, leather bags, handmade paper or simple tourist souvenirs, we can send you in the right direction. Just let us know what you’re looking for and we’ll help you find it.
Arte e Cultura: Private Tours
With a knowledgeable guide at your side, learning about the culture of, say, ancient Rome or Renaissance Florence is a joy. Experienced private guides who know the streets, historical monuments, museums and hangouts of Italy can help you appreciate Italy’s rich cultural and artistic heritage with ease. Touring a major museum like the Uffizi Gallery in Florence or the Vatican Museum in Rome with someone that knows the treasures intimately gives you insight and depth that guidebooks lack. Plus it’s always a treat to meet a local!
Andiamo!: Transportation
Don’t let getting around a foreign country intimidate you. Instead, let us help you find the right transportation — train, rental car, private driver, boat — for your needs. We’ll arrange the best local drivers or book your high speed trains as well as pass along insider’s travel tips and instructions.
Aiuto: Travel Tips
How do you validate your train ticket? Where’s the best place to find a clean bathroom? What does “guasto” mean? Knowing a bit about how things work in Italy can be essential to getting around without hassles. We’ll give you important travel advice and tips that will help you navigate the peninsula . . . even when everyone seems to be on strike.
Our Clients
Antico Sole Italy specializes in planning trips for individuals, couples, friends and family traveling together and small groups. Our personal service is highly individualized, and we have 20+ years of experience and happy clients behind us. Please contact us directly for a menu of full service pricing tiers based on your trip needs. We like to begin all detailed itinerary services with a personal phone call in order to assess your needs, wish lists, travel style and pace, budget and practical constraints. From here we work one-on-one to design the perfect trip itinerary, which is then sent to you before your trip.
We want to make your experience in Italy unforgettable.
It is our dream to inspire you to fall in love with this enchanting country as much as we have!
Please contact us as far in advance as possible before your trip to better benefit from our services. Many cities are particularly hectic during the “high season” (April-October) making the best hotels and accommodations difficult to reserve without sufficient preparation time. Ideal planning time is several months ahead, as many as 6 or more if you’re thinking about visiting in the busy summer months. Villa rentals can require even more advance planning. We’ll do our best from the moment you contact us, but please remember that quality will be higher if we have adequate time to work with you!
What We Offer
Help. Italy has much to offer its visitors. Things aren’t always as easy as they seem, however. Language gaps, unfamiliar customs and overwhelming online information can make planning your trip a challenge. We’ll help you with all aspects of your trip planning, from finding a room with a view in Florence to telling you the fastest way to cross the bay to Capri. With our bilingual travel consultants, you’ll save time and hassle.
Convenience. Do it all ahead. Reserve your hotel rooms, book a reservation at the renowned Uffizi Galleries, map out your driving routes, know the best places to shop — with us. The sooner you contact us before your trip the better . . . Italy’s spring, summer and fall seasons can be packed months ahead, meaning few vacancies in major cities like Venice and Florence not to mention small villages like Bellagio and the Cinque Terre. Contact us now for the best quality possible!
Experience. Our professional staff members have had years of experience living in Italy, allowing them to recommend the best of everything – hotels, dining, shopping and fun. Their rich backgrounds and post-graduate educations in Italian art and culture ensure that they know their stuff, from museums to churches to fine wine. They also speak the language and know the ins and outs of getting things done the Italian way.
Personalized Attention. Antico Sole Italy, Inc. believes that offering personalized, one-on-one customer service is the only way to help travelers arrange a truly unforgettable experience. From the day you contact us to the moment you return home, we’re at your complete disposal, working with you every step of the way. That’s how we stand out from the crowd of pre-planned package deals. Indulging in the dolce vita begins with us!