Reviews

Elena came recommended through the Rick Steves organization and we could have not been more delighted with our experience. Elena is Florentine and provided fantastic insight to daily life, amazing sights and extra fun things to consider doing. She also was very flexible helping us work through some logistical hurdles we faced (weather and scheduling specifically). We would 100% recommend her to others and would book her again for ourselves!

My husband and I are retired physicians and we travel extensively. I heard about Elena Fulceri through the Rick Steves travel in Florence/Tuscany book and I arranged private tours directly with her.
She guided us on 4 fantastic 3 hour walking tours through Florence and we visited the Duomo, the Academia, the Oltrarno neighborhood, the Medici Chapel , Santa Croce, the Uffizi and multiple other amazing places. Elena is sooo knowledgable, funny, energetic and kind. We had fun every day. She also recommended driving tours with a private guide . Our driver, Brando was a history buff and a very safe driver. He drove us to Siena where Federica guided us on a 3 hour walking tour through this lovely city. We also visited San Gimignano in the beautiful Tuscan countryside.
Another day , Brando drove us to Lucca where we met Paola who was raised there and she guided us through this historic walled city. From there, Brando drove us to to Pisa, another beautiful place on the coast where we met another energetic, knowledgeable guide, Davide. All of our guides were outstanding, spoke English well ,although they were all raised in Italy and they were charming. The last day, we had a wonderful 10 hour day where Brando drove us through the wine country near Siena and we visited 2 lovely wineries and sampled Chianti and Brunello de Montalcino premium wines and enjoyed a gourmet lunch . It was truly an experience of a lifetime. Elena and her staff were always punctual, very professional, and treated us like family. We hope to return to Florence and explore other delightful places with our new friends.

We had a fabulous and memorable tour with Ilaria! It exceeded our expectations! She crafted the tour to fit our interests and because of her vast knowledge of the city, she was able to take us through the rich history of Florence. Ilaria was lovely and engaging. Highly recommend a tour with her!

Elena conosce Firenze come le sue tasche. È flessibile e capace di personalizzare il tour in base al gruppo. Ad esempio, avevamo un bambino di 6 anni e lei è stata in grado di capire quando aveva bisogno di uno spuntino e di un momento di pausa! Avevamo solo un giorno a Firenze e onestamente non riesco a immaginare di visitarla senza Elena. Se dovessi tornare a Firenze, vorrei fare altri tour con lei e approfondire la conoscenza della città: è fantastica!

When in Florence you need Elena as your tour guide . Elena knows Florence and its history as if she lived through it all. Her tours are fun and informative. She will adjust the tour to accommodate your needs. Elena had excellent recommendations for restaurants, leather and jewelry shopping. The most amazing thing about her tours is Elena is just an amazing person you want be around and spend time with. Thank you Elena for sharing Florence with Amy and I. Thank you Rick Steve’s for recommending Elena and Florence with Flair! We shall return!

Elena was absolutely wonderful. She took us on a three-hour tour of Oltrarno and a beautiful private garden overlooking Florence, and somehow made the time fly by. Her passion for Florence was infectious, and she filled the tour with fascinating stories, historical context, current events, and countless fun facts.

She introduced us to local artisan shops (we loved one so much that we returned the next day), and her recommendations for an afternoon walk, cocktails, and dinner were all excellent. What stood out most was her warmth and genuine hospitality. The next morning, she spotted us while leading a different tour at the Uffizi and greeted us with such excitement and affection that it felt like seeing an old friend.

Elena didn't just show us Florence—she helped us experience it. A truly memorable and delightful introduction to the city.

Elena was everything you could want in a guide. She was always very prompt extremely knowledgeable and just a fun person to be with all day. We were with her two days and I was so impressed with how she planned our trips around what we wanted to see. Also, my husband was somewhat limited with a new knee replacement and she was very conscious and respectful of that limitation.. I highly recommend her and Will definitely use her again someday.

Our 3-hour tour of the Otrarno and gardens was a highlight of our week-long stay in Florence. Elena is simply a lovely person: kind, engaging, and clearly passionate about Florence, art, history, gardens, food, Italian culture, and artistry. She shared just the right amount of history and other information to keep us engaged yet never bored or overwhelmed. She was in tune with our pace and interests (allowing for a stop in a gorgeous linen shop), and shared many recommendations for things and places we could enjoy while in Florence. Communication was wonderful and easy from our first contact and throughout our interactions. As noted by another reviewer, I, too, wish we had had the tour earlier in our visit as Elena added another layer of depth and wonder to our experience that I would have liked to have carried throughout our stay. Highly recommended - and absolutely well worth it!

Our family spent 5 days touring Florence with Elena, and it couldn’t have been a better experience!! From the Duomo to Uffizi Gallery to Pitti Palace, to the secret garden and all the hidden spots in between, she made Florence come alive! There was no question we asked that she couldn’t answer. All of this in addition to just being a warm, wonderful person to be with. Her zeal and passion for all things Florence was engaging and educational. We honestly cannot say enough good things about her and will be recommending her to anyone visiting the area. We feel like we have a friend for life!

Three years later, we still rave to others about Elena and the magical tour of Florence she led us through. Her love of the city is genuine and warm and her knowledge of the artisans, the culture and the history are extraordinary and approachable. We can capture our experience with Elena best when we say “She gave us Florence”. We miss you Elena and we will be back ❤️.