Travel Italy Guru
"Dear Ariela, We wanted to thank you very much for the wonderful adventure you planned for us - with a little notice!! When there was a minor “hiccup,” with the E bike tour, you handled it immediately. It was one of our favorite memories. Your restaurant guidance allowed us to experience delicious, intimate establishments that had wonderful character. We would never have found them without you! Our cooking class, that you chose for us, in such a perfect setting was an amazing and tasty highlight!! As you know, our travel plans had unexpectedly changed before our vacation and you were able to pull this together in a matter of weeks. We are so grateful to have ordered your book “Tuscany for the Shameless Hedonist,” and found your itineraries service offer. We will always remember this experience. Thank you for making it special." Karen, USA
“Ariela’s food and wine tour in the Chianti hills was simply fantastic. The wines were incredible and the food was delicious but what made the experience truly memorable was Ariela herself. I cannot recommend her highly enough!” Tom, UK
”Ariela is amazing! From the beginning she catered to our every need and planned an amazing trip. She planned everything from restaurants, events, tours, museums, wineries. She even would hang out with us for the day and do everything with us. Bringing us morning pastries. Keeping us out of trouble. Great advice. We got to do the unique things and the more common ones. WE HAD THE TRIP OF A LIFETIME-MOSTLY DUE TO ARIELA. You cannot visit Italy without involving her! Sweet and kind. We would like her to visit us in Oklahoma!” Beth, USA
“My wife and I are shamelessly hedonistic fans of Ariela’s amazing book “Tuscany for the Shameless Hedonist 2022”. So of course when we arrived in Florence, we had to hire her for one of her tours. We found Ariela to be ebullient, entertaining, and highly informative. In the midst of her colorful and detailed explanations on the tour, if we suddenly threw her a curveball question (which we did many times) it was remarkable how she quickly and cheerfully pivoted from what she had been saying to thoroughly answering our question, and then picking up exactly where she left off. By the end of the 3.5 hour Market Tour, we felt she was our new BFF. We wished we had booked her in advance for more tours during our brief stay in Florence, but of course, she was already heavily booked. No surprise there! Thank you, Ariela! We hope to see you again soon." Billy, USA
“Within minutes of meeting Ariela it felt like we had just connected with a friend who happens to know where all the best, authentic bites of food were to be found. Along the way she shared her knowledge of the cuisine, the history and secrets of where to savor the best pastries, prosciutto, cheese, panini and gelato. The stroll through the fresh fruit and vegetable market was a delightful revelation and left me wishing I had a huge home cooked meal to prepare. Her fluency in Italian ensured that we were welcomed and treated well everywhere we went. We delighted in our shared sense of humor throughout the tour and recommend her services very highly.” Babette, USA
“Hi, Ariela! We got home late Tuesday evening and we're still soaring from a thoroughly lovely trip…Our trip certainly would not have been nearly as impactful or efficient without your expertise!” Bart, USA
“Ariela put a wonderful itinerary together for our family, traveling through Chianti, Siena, and then Rome. She engaged with us to figure out what would best match our interests and what our family needed in terms of cadence and content, and then arranged everything very well indeed. She checked up on us and even made last-minute adjustments when little pieces of "life" happened along the way requiring some changes in our plans. I would highly recommend Ariela! Anne, USA
“Ariela, Thank you again for an amazing most memorable week. We truly enjoyed your company were blown away by the choices and the tour you put together for us!” Theresa, USA
"We loved our market tour in Florence! Ariela was such a delight. She is extremely knowledgeable but still has a great sense of humor. Her explanations managed to engage everyone in our little group. Both the food tour and the guided visit to the winery were an absolute highlight of our trip!” Mark and Ellie, UK
“Dear Ariela, I wanted to thank you for planning a perfect trip in Tuscany for our family of 16. From the very beginning you were serious and professional, took the time to get to know us and figure out our specific needs, and I knew that we were in good hands. Thanks to your careful planning, even my father, who can only move around with a disability scooter, was able to see the best of Tuscany. The detailed itinerary that you’d planned for us was incredible, and the morning that we spent together, on your wine tour near San Gimignano, was the highlight of our trip! You were passionate, charming and knowledgeable, and the entire visit was a wonderful and memorable experience. Thank you so much, and we can’t wait to return!” Tami, USA
"Ariela, Thank you for an amazing itinerary that suited our group perfectly. Your recommendations were spot on, and super specific which made everything so much easier for us. I’m so glad that we decided to join you for the farm and winery tour, too, it was amazing. We don’t usually go on guided tours, but this specific tour was absolutely fascinating (and delicious!!!). We can’t wait to return to Tuscany and have you take us on another adventure!" Miri, Israel
"Ariela, we had such a wonderful time in Tuscany and so much of it was thanks to you. We loved the itinerary and we LOVED our day out together, touring farms and wineries, it was such a special experience. I would highly recommend your services to anyone!" Lisa and John, USA
"Ariela Bankier planned our trip and was also a private guide on 2 days. She is a wonderful planner and knows the very best things to do and spends time to get to know her clients and match the vacation. She is very well priced and highly recommended. And we had a blast with her! Italy was phenomenal!" Dr. May, USA
"Our day with Ariela was one of the highlights of our 6-day trip to Tuscany. She is incredibly knowledgeable and has a wonderful sense of humor. Her tours shouldn’t be missed!" Elly, NY
"Ariela helped me plan an incredible day-by-day itinerary for my family’s trip to Italy last summer. She really got to know each family member’s preferences and made sure we included fun outings and day trips that everyone would enjoy. She made planning hassle-free, taking care of all the details, including all the times I needed a fluent Italian speaker to get something done. Ariela helped create unique, memorable experiences that I’m confident we would never have discovered on our own. Working with Ariela let me relax knowing we had everything taken care of - from great hotels to great recommendations for sites to see to reservations for dinners at amazing restaurants. I’ve already recommended her to friends who have had the same results - amazing, one-of-a-kind family experiences we’ll cherish for a lifetime. Thank you, Ariela!" M. Jackson, Texas
"Hi, Ariela, all five of us had a wonderful time with you on Thursday and Friday. Our experiences were amazing! We learned so much about wine, cheese, edible plants, sustainable agriculture, and much more. We will be trying your itineraries of Arezzo, Chianti area, and the Orcia Valley this next week. I also appreciate all the emails you sent, helping me prepare for this trip. Thanks for everything!" Sally
"Ariela, Thanks again for your help in organizing a trip of a lifetime... You did a great job and we would enthusiastically recommend you to anyone. We are so glad to have met you. We intend to return to Tuscany in 2025 and hope to see you again." Herb, USA
"Touring with Ariela is like touring with an old friend. She is so open and engaging, and unbelievably knowledgeable about food and wine. Her passion is infectious! We had actually changed our plans to be able to go on a tour with her, and it was worth it. If Ariela has an available date, book her!" Maya, USA
"Ariela, Thanks for all you did to make our trip to Tuscany a dream come true. Your book helped us imagine the possibilities. The itinerary you crafted helped us make the most of our time. And we loved having you as a tour guide for the food market, and the day in the country with the winery and farm visits. Your expertise and enthusiasm made it a truly special experience for us". Restor and Sally, USA
"Ariela, grazie mille for an incredible itinerary. Our vacation would not have been the same without your expertise!" Joanne, USA
"We contacted Ariela to plan our trip to the Italian Riviera /Tuscany - 2 families traveling with kids and very focused on culinary experiences. Ariela was amazing from the beginning. Very knowledgeable & responsive, she understood immediately exactly what we are looking for and built the perfect trip for us. Finding and focusing us to the right villas (we we’re looking for almost a month and after her suggestions booked the next day and all 3 Villas we booked from her suggestions were great). She planned every day in detail with great recommendation for restaurants and wineries in each and every city we visited, and gave us detailed instructions for every element of the trip. (Roads, driving, fairies, trains…). On one of the days my husband lost his glasses in the ocean. It was already evening and he was supposed to drive early the next morning we were concerned our plans will need to change - Ariela immediately guided us to the next town where we were able to get him contacts and get back to our plans in less then an hour. We had contacted Ariela after having had a negative experience with a different traveler planner. The difference was immediately noticeable and I am so glad we found her. She made our trip!" Avigail, Israel
"Thank you so much for putting together and leading us on the most memorable day of our trip so far. Your insight, stories, sense of humor and vast knowledge of Italian culture were deeply appreciated by the members of our group. Thank you, and see you next time!" Jim, USA
"I've collaborated with travel planners in the past, but Ariela truly stands out. Her dedication to her clients is unparalleled. From the initial communication, we felt confident and well-cared for. If you're dreaming of an Italian adventure, look no further than Ariela!" Barbara, USA
"Ariela, our food and wine tour in the Chianti hills was better than anything that we could have imagined. Thank you so much for showing us a side of Tuscany that we would have never discovered on our own. You are not only a fantastic planner but a truly incredible guide!!!" Joe and Roberta, USA
"Ariela planned the most wonderful day in Tuscany for our family group that ranged from small children to grandparents. She found ways to make it meaningful and enjoyable for all involved as we worked our way through a fantastic cheese farm to a gorgeous vineyard and back to the town for some of the best gelato in the world. We all agreed it was one of our favorite days of our Tuscany vacation and that was largely in part to Ariela!" Jaclyne, USA
"On researching for a trip to Italy we discovered Ariela Bankier's book "Tuscany for the Shameless Hedonist". We found it a great resource to use along with other guidebooks to create a very special trip. We saw that Ariela also is available for small group tours and after contacting her we signed up for a day in the area surrounding San Gimignano. All four in our group agree that the tour was a highlight of our trip. Ariela took us to a small artisanal cheese farm with an informative tour of the farm followed by a cheese tasting. Then a beautiful drive up into the hills to a small winery again with a tour followed by a light lunch with paired wines to taste. We learned a lot from Ariela as she is both a sommelier and a certified cheese expert. The best part was how low key and relaxing the day was. Ariela took great care in making the trip interesting and giving us a view into the world of smaller producers in the countryside. Our group would highly recommend her tours". Michael, USA
"Exploring Tuscany with Ariela was unforgettable. Her deep knowledge of the region kept our small group engaged and entertained. We loved spending time with her, listening to her stories, and visiting the wineries she handpicked for us. If you're planning a trip to Tuscany, look no further than Ariela's tour!"
"Ariela was a lovely host. She is friendly and welcoming and had set up a variety of tastings in places we would have never found on our own. We learned so much about the what the locals eat in Tuscany and how to taste wine like an Italian sommelier. We would highly recommend booking any of her tours. We were so impressed by the Pisa food tour that we tried to book a countryside excursion with her. Unfortunately, she was already fully booked for the week!" Shai, USA
"As soon as we read Ariela's book about Tuscany we knew we'd like to do a tour with her. I'm glad to say that the experience exceeded our expectations. She took us to places that we would have never found on our own and helped us experience Tuscany like a local. The venues that she selected for the foodie dinner tour felt so authentic and unique and the food and wine were delicious. I can't recommend her highly enough!" M.S, USA
"As good as it gets! We did two tours with Ariela: the Pisa dinner tour, and a private tour in the countryside. Both were wonderful! Ariela is extremely knowledgeable and manages to keep everyone in the group engaged. We enjoyed spending time with her and listening to her stories and we absolutely loved the food and wine that she had picked for our small group. It is clear that she goes above and beyond for her clients". Irit, Israel