We just returned from a marvelous cruise of the Mediterranean. We took one cruise ship excursion of Pompeii, which was very nice with an informative guide. But., we were then fortunate to take private tours of Rome and Florence with Miles and Miles the next two days. Luca was our expert guide in Rome and Elizabeth our expert guide in Pisa and Florence as we visited both the common and hard-to-get-to sites in comfortable Mercedes vans. The difference between a 50-person bus tour and a private tour is significant.. Both Luca and Elizabeth saved us a lot of walking on hot days as they took us down the narrow streets of Rome and Florence and, at the same time, provided an abundance of information about the sites and introduced us to the more insider look at these exceptional cities, inlcuding monuments, museums, churches, and shopping. Elizabeth showed us where to avoid the long lines at the museum and she was very excited about everything she showed us in Pisa and Florence. She even ran to get the rest of my family so that we could get a short cut in a line. Luca took us to the highlights of Rome, saved us significant wait time in lines and walked us through the Vatican museum with much information regarding the art in this wonderful museum. Our days were jammed packed with information and numerous sites. At the end of the day in Rome, Luca found time to introduce us to a terrific small family owned restaurant by the Vatican. Great pasta and appetizers! I am confident we saw much more than we could have seen in a bus tour, although, in fairness, the bus tour to Pompeii was very good. Interestingly, when we returned to our ship at the end of the day, we compared notes with those on the bus tours. They were exhausted by the heat and the walking and saw only a fraction of what we were able to see. I believe the cost of the Miles and Miles tour for a family of four was equal or less on a per person basis than the 50-person bus tour with the ship. Bravo, Luca and Elizabeth.

We booked Rome, Naples, and Florence. All three days were great! Our guides;Salvatoe (Naples) Rebecca At Pompeii , Amelio( Rome) and Johnny (Florence) were so knowledgeable it amazed us. Salvatore went out of his way to find us local olive oil and lemoncello. Amelio got us to every possible site in Rome that one could possibly do in one day! Johnny in Florence found us the best gelato in the city. We loved the personalities of the drivers and found a true glimpse into the cities they represented.
I learned a few tips that may be helpful for others:
1. In Naples see Pompeii as early as possible, skip Sorrento, and go straight to Positano on the Amalfi Coast. This was our favorite spot and the food/wine excellent.
2. Rome - Females can't have shoulders showing (tank top) for the Vatican or wear shorts into the Basilica. This was disappointing in that I could not see the Basilica.
Florence - If you want to see the statue of David you need tickets in advance for the museum. We were unaware and the lines were too long for tickets.
The guides were fun, knowledgeable and excellent historians. I would highly recommend this company.

We've been to Rome three times and luckily we had the people at this family business help us. SinceRome is one of our favorite cities in the world, it's great to have Roberto and Karen show us all the great places. Thanks guys. Until the next time!

We just returned from a 7 night Mediterranean with ports in Naples, Civitavecchia, (Rome), and Livorno (Florence) Italy. We felt the cruise ship excursions were extremely expensive for what they gave you and decided to use Miles and Miles for our family of 5 in each port. Nothing is better than a private tour and this company exceeded our expectations in every way taking us to places the tour buses could not have. We had an unbelievable experience.

Sergio in Naples drove us to Pompeii where we met our guide Franco who spent a couple of hours with us in the ruins of Pompeii. He was extremely knowledgeable and spoke very good English. We traveled on to Positano on the winding and breathtaking views of the Amalfi Coast. We even ate at a delicious restaurant in Amalfi on a cliff overlooking the water...a bus would never bring you here. The buses are not allowed on these roads. There was even time to have a picture taken with the mama in the kitchen. We drove to Sorrento known for the Limoncello drink and a great place to shop. We never saw lemons that big.

In Rome we met our guide Luca who did an outstanding job of driving us around Rome, and the Vatican City. We saw everything and had the most delicious pizza lunch to satisfy our appetites. Miles and Miles uses newer (less than 3 years old) Mercedes Vans that can hold 7 people but to be honest our family of 5 was comfortable and thought another person would have been too much. I understand they have bigger vans for 8 or more.

In Livorno we enjoyed Andreas as our tour guide. He was had more energy than a case of Red Bull. He engaged our children non-stop and no one had time for a nap on his tour. We traveled to Pisa and Florence. We had the best Gelato in the World...and trust me...it was! We had a scenic drive in Tuscany and saw the vineyards. Ate at a family restaurant off the beaten path.

Italy is a beautiful country. Miles and Miles gave us 10 hours a day of memories and smiles we will treasure forever. They don't take VISA...so you must carry either Travellers checks or Euros with you. I would use this company again and highly recommend them to anyone. They have been in business for 25 years and the guides we had have been with them at least 15 years. We made it back to the ship without any worries. It was worth every Euro!