My husband and I attended this day trip on a very hot day of over 35°C.
We started the day meeting our two guides Dario and Duna at the Florence Santa Maria Novella train station to await our coach. While we waited we were warned about the importance of being sufficiently fit to do a large amount of walking on rough surfaces and in the searing heat, and kindly reminded that if we did not wish to partake in any of the activities in the tour, it was okay. At this point we feared our future!!!
It was a very well organised tour in which
Dario and Duna split us into two groups of 15-20 on our coach ride, and at all times during the adventurous day, we felt well
cared for and supervised with head counts being made at each stage of the trip by Dario and Duna to ensure all of our group stayed safely together without getting lost. At the end, we nearly lost the group on the crowded train ride back to the first village to get the coach to our morning meeting place - but Dario arrived like a knight in shining armour waving his laAND given an excellent commentary of the local history, landmarks and geography of Liguria and the Cinque Terre by Dario. We were also advised how we would commute between the villages at different stages - coach, ferry and trains.
During the day, activities at the five picturesque villages included walking up 382 steps, an arduous 4km trek with breathtaking coastal views and a stop midway at a tiny shop in a shed where heavenly icy lemon granita could be purchased to provide the final boost for the last half of the trek, swimming at a beautiful beach, and a fabulous ferry ride.

If you have the fortune of going to Italy and visiting Florence, be sure to include this amazing day trip in your itinerary. It is
run by Walkabout Florence, and we discovered it on Viator and later saw it on Trip Advisor. Our guides Dario and Duna cannot be commended highly enough for their knowledge, passion and genuine kindness in making the day trip beautiful and a joy to remember.

I was super skeptical about joining a bus load of tourists. Wow, was I mistaken. This tour is so well organized and well done that I am officially a fan. Great food, excellent location choices, the right balance of talking/free time. If you only have a day this is the tour for you. Christian made it even more enjoyable with the right balance of information and good cheer.

What a fun way to spend the day in Florence! Isak was a great guide with a lot of knowledge and true passion for cooking and food. He also has a great sense of humor, so if this job as a chef doesn't work out I think he might be a good stand up comic.

I loved our tour of the market and getting tastes from the different vendors. Then we were off to our villa and exquisite kitchen to cook. Although Carmela doesn't speak much English, she shares her love for cooking in her songs and dances. It was especially amusing to watch Isak blush when he had to translate her naughty lyrics.

The food we made was delicious, the teachers were great, the setting stunning...I can't say enough wonderful things about the experience. It was a really nice way as a solo traveler to meet some people and enjoy a little company on the road. Thanks Isak and Carmela for making this an experience I will always treasure.