https://www.capri.com/en/l/blue-grotto-tours

Your Rome hotel is in a very central location and the one in Florence is fine too.The Sorrento location isn't too bad and you can take a cheap train to Sorrento proper from Sant'Agnello if you don't want to walk.

You haven't said what you want to see but to be honest I would be very surprised if you need organised tours in an of them. You can walk from one end of tourist Rome to the other in an hour. - it's a very walkable city Your central location means you have the Metro & buses on your doorstep if you want to rest your legs. Florence is even more compact and you can walk just about everywhere. If you want to explore the Amalfi Coast or Capri from Sorrento, then the ferry service is the best way to do this. I don't know the Lido area in Venice but I'm sure someone will be along to fill you in on the logistics.

I wouldn't bother booking tours - buy yourself a guidebook and start reading up - it will be more rewarding.

Thank you for your insight. ! I plan on following your advice.

Good luck with your trip. I have recently started looking at the solo travels with go ahead tours. I’d be interested to hear about your experience with them when you return. I hope you will consider posting a follow up. Thanks.

Thank you! Surely, I'm happy to post a follow up when I return.

Hello. I saw your posting and wanted to follow up to see how you enjoyed your tour? I’m looking at doing the same tour this April/May? I saw you added the extension, would you recommend it? Did you end up booking any excursions? Any feedback you have would be appreciated. Thank you.

I have returned from my trip to Italy and as promised wanted to provide feedback on the tour provider EF Go Ahead Tours. I will give you the good, bad and the ugly of it all.

HOTELS: The accommodations were nightmarish and the team at go Ahead Tours provided no support. In Venice we stayed at Hotel Villa Mabapa. It had no AC and was like a hostel. The sink was over the toilet. Although their site says every room as AC & heating, this is false. We were told to open our windows to cool down the room. I and several other travelers woke up with close to a dozen mosquito bites which you can imagine was very uncomfortable.

The Travel Director provides no support. I found that she really didn't have any knowledge of the areas. She would point to a general direction and say you'll figure it out ... getting lost is part of the process. Even during the included tours, she was careless and left several behind. It was good that they were savvy and were able to find and catch up with the group. Although I imagine that was scary for them.

My room in Florence didn't even have a window and looked like a closet. Accommodations were acceptable in Rome but in Sorrento, Majestic Palace Hotel was another hotel without AC, smelled muggy and wasn't close to ay shops or restaurants. We paid 50 euros each for a cold dinner.

I got the impression they don't want you to do anything outside of their itinerary and buy their excursions and stick to that only. Also, they have you sit through several demonstrations and sales pitches: Glass blowing place, Winery and Leather Shop. It was clear that they get a kick back from the merchants.

The added excursions were good (some better than others). For the included tours, they have local guides walk you around and tell you about the sites. Have euros to pay each driver and local guide after each tour.

The Tour Director had us pay her directly to take us to Trevi Fountain and the Pantheon etc. She charged 25 euros cash.

I booked the following excursions: Iconic Sights: Vatican CIty (enjoyed it), San Gimignano Medieval Sights & Tuscan Flavors (enjoyed it). and Capri a day on the Iconic Island (enjoyed it). Fellow travels signed up for the Catacombs and the cooking class and they said it was nothing great.

Although I'm looking to make arrangements for my next trip, I would think long and hard about going through EF Go Ahead.

I hope this is helpful.

Thank you Sharon this is very helpful. I have a young friend, an inexperienced traveler, who's looking to join a package trip as a solo. I'll steer him away from EF Go Ahead!

I looked up EF Go Ahead on the Better Business Bureau ... 1.39/5.