I felt the need to give feedback on our recent trip to Sicily. I have used Gate1 before and have always had a wonderful experience. On this trip we were a big sized group (35). I thought to myself that this was going to be a mess with getting people to be on time, not to stray, slow walkers. However, Riccardo made his expectations clear from the beginning and we were all stuck with that. He went above and beyond as our guide and ambassador in Sicily. We had a few days of downpouring relentless rain, even hail, but he kept our spirits up with his positive attitude. He took time to answer our questions, taught us a bit of Italian, showed us around the new areas with helpful info such as where grocery stores and decent restaurants were. He always posted in the lobby where to be, so we were clear on everything. I would like to go so far as to say that because of Riccardo, our trip was the best Gate1 tour we have been on. Thank you Riccardo for your patience, jokes and information you provided.

What a great trip! We have done this trip twice already and recommended it to several friends. The Hotel Boston was our favorite location so far- close to the train station and outstanding staff (Shout out to Raffelle!). Great value, great opportunity to see a charming town centrally located near other cities with doable drives.

The trip was amazing and a big thank you to our Tour Manager, Sergio. He was organized, managed everything very well and was fun. What a great combination for a tour manager. The Southern part of Italy was wonderful not totally discovered by tourist yet. We took the optional tour to the heel of Italy - the rugged coast was beautiful. Loved Matera and Sassi. It was one of my best trips. I am a big fan of Gate 1.

Just returned from a trip to Italy. The entire trip was wonderful. I can't decide which stop was my favorite because they were all so great. Our tour Manager, Flavia, was the best, so knowledgeable about all our destinations. She was friendly, fun and very professional. As usual, Gate 1 takes care of everything. Food, bus, luggage, tours. Looking forward to our next Gate 1 trip.

I'm delighted to report that our journey through Venice, Florence, and Rome was truly exceptional. We were thoroughly impressed with the meticulous planning and execution of all aspects of the trip. The accommodations provided were not only comfortable but also perfectly situated, and the transfer services were incredibly efficient and reliable, making our transitions between destinations completely seamless. The itinerary was exceptionally well-structured, allowing us convenient access to all the historical sites and cultural attractions we had hoped to visit. This attention to detail significantly enhanced our overall experience, making it both relaxing and enriching. Given this outstanding experience, we are certainly keen to entrust our future travel plans to Gate 1 Travel. Furthermore, we have already enthusiastically recommended your services to our friends and family, confident that they will receive the same high standard of quality and professionalism we enjoyed. Thank you once again for providing such a memorable Italian adventure.

I just returned from the 9 Day Affordable Southern Italy: Puglia & Campagna (March 2026) and was amazed by the sights and history of these regions. Our tour Manager, Francesca, really made sure we were all taken care of, any special needs met, informed us of the activities each day as well as local suggestions, and she made herself available at any time for questions and recommendations. She was extremely knowledgeable about the areas, and was proud to share her culture, explain the language, local customs, info about the landscapes and architecture, economy and local living, safety, any challenging walking areas, and food & wine. Dino was our bus driver and he was just amazing driving that huge bus on some challenging smaller roads getting us safely around to each destination. All of the stops along the way were so unique and charming in their own way. Bari Old town, Alberobello and the Trulli homes, Masseria Farm for a wonderful authentic farm to table pasta and fresh mozzarella lunch experience with our host Signora Rosa, Lecce, Otranto, Matera with the cave-type homes cut into the gorge, iconic Pompei with Mt. Vesuvius watching us marvel at the destruction that occurred so long ago, and the bustling streets of Naples with over 500 churches, Cloisters of Santa Chiara, tons of shopping, food and bars and a couple of castles reminding us of the importance of this large coastal city. The accommodations were all very nicely appointed, spacious, and were comfortable. The breakfasts had plenty of options including local pastries, coffee, tea, juices, fruit, cereals, eggs, meats, etc...

I just want to say that Silvia was an amazing tour manager! This was our 10th trip with Gate1 and the managers have always been good but Silvia was outstanding. She was knowledgeable, organized, friendly, fun, easy to communicate with and always calm. Even when we had issues with the flight between Sicily and Malta she handled it beautifully and kept us informed at every step. The effort she and the local guide made to make sure we didn't miss anything was incredible. She is a gem!

It's not sufficient to check off " excellent" in each category for our most wonderful tour guide of Sicily, Gabriela. She is truly extraordinary - in her management abilities, her easy way of conveying information, her delightful personality and boundless energy. We have been on MANY Gate One trips and many guides have been excellent - but, Gabriela was outstanding -truly going above and beyond!!! She made a great trip into an unforgettable and awesome experience.

This is our 9th Gate One tour and our third "Stay & Explore" tour. And Francesco is the best guide we've ever had!! He was friendly but professional. He was very organized but flexible when necessary. He always had a smile for us and made everyday a fun adventure! My husband and I are extremely pleased with our guide Francesco. Gate One is fortunate to have him on their staff. Francesco is absolutely a 10 out of 10!! Thank you!!

This was an excellent independent travel trip. The hotels in each city were conveniently located to the train stations, and were clean and pleasant. The trains ran smoothly, and we especially enjoyed our optional tour to Pompeii. The guide was organized, understanding and spoke in 3 languages to address the group. Our stop in Sorrento was a special treat. We liked the fact that Gate1 had vetted the hotels and made the plane and train reservations for us. Italy was friendly, clean, interesting, beautiful, and had great food. Very enjoyable.

It was awesome! Vivi, our guide, and Luigi, our driver, were exceptional, as was Nicholas , guide in training. Italy was amazing. We love Gate1.

The Sicily/Malta was great. Francesca guide was wonderful in every way. Hotels, optional tours, restaurants all great. Very happy with tour.

Another fantastic winter break and G1 trip #70 for me - have never visited Puglia and it is attracting a lot of attention with its lovely sights and delicious food - really enjoyed the port city of Bari, the visit to Alberobello and its iconic Trulli, the Masseria visit for pasta and mozzarella making and a delicious four course lunch, Lecce with its beautiful Baroque architecture and the excursion down the coast to the most easterly point in Puglia, stopping at lovely Otranto on the way, where we pretty much had the city to ourselves, magical Matera and its stone dwellings in the rock, Pompeii in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius and vibrant Naples with its many sights and big city vibe. Weather was generally mild and we got to see the sun quite a bit. Hotels were all excellent with plentiful buffet breakfasts, included lunches and dinners well-chosen and tasty, and as always we were taken care of by a skilled & personable driver Dino and an amazing tour manager Dio - aka Dionisis - God of Wine - he was incredible - kind, funny, organized, so knowledgeable and a lot of fun - just a lovely person to be around. He treated us to many local food specialties which were always well received, as well as gifts such as small bottles of EVOO from our stop at an olive mill. Our cohesive group of 18 was extremely punctual and we all got along really well. Highly recommend the off-season Affordable trips - Sicily last year and Puglia, Southern Italy and Campania this year - they are fantastic! Thank you as always!

My trip to Italy was wonderful. Our Tour Manager, Viviana, was a delight. She brought the right amount of enthusiasm for her country, interest in her tour group, great ideas for things to do and a wonderful sense of humor to our tour. The history that surrounded us in each place we visited was breathtaking. The sites we visited were wonderful. Each of our local tour guides gave us a great orientation to their city and the sites we visited. Unlike other Gate 1 trips that I have been on, we spent less time with our bus driver. But when we were on the bus, Enzo was great. He was helpful and made sure we had some great views from the bus. I would recommend this tour with no hesitation, and I hope to return to Italy before too long.

Our Sicilian tour was exceptionally fantastic. Giuseppe was always on TOP every step from the minute we met him on the 1st day till the time we were accompanied on our Way home on the bus. Giuseppe is wonderful, Professional an extreme asset to gate1. If we decide to go back to Sicily that includes Malta, I will most likely request him. Not to mention maximus our bus driver is careful and courteous. Bus is constantly in Prime shape.

We were incredibly lucky to have Mercedes as our tour guide with Gate1. From the very first day, she was outstanding in every way. She is kind, professional, and extremely knowledgeable. Her explanations were clear, interesting, and full of cultural and historical insight. Mercedes has a special gift for making every place come alive. She is not only well prepared and intellectual, but also warm and approachable, which made the whole experience even more enjoyable. She answered all our questions with patience and always made sure everyone felt comfortable and included. Thanks to Mercedes, this trip became truly unforgettable. She didn't just guide us - she inspired us. I highly recommend her to anyone traveling with Gate1. She is simply exceptional.

I just completed a 12 day Sicily Malta tour with Michela. She is an exceptional tour director. During the tour we encountered Hurricane Harry. We had no place to eat. She was able to go to a local market and get enough food to feed everyone on the tour. All 29 of us had a great meal that night in spite of Hurricane Harry. I highly recommend her. She is a tremendous asset to your organization.

This was my first Gate 1 trip and I had an excellent time. The trip itinerary was outstanding with enough personal time to explore. Sonia, our tour manager was wonderful. Knowledgeable, helpful, personable, kind and caring, she insured every moment was perfect and always had a smile. Along with our driver, Massimo, they made the perfect team.

We recently returned from our first trip with Gate1. Our tour manager Flavia exceeded all expectations and was simply a delight! Clearly there are many details and logistics on trips such as that, but she handled the unexpected with grace and ease. Her experience in deftly managing varied personalities and guest needs/wants seemed effortless. She was a joy to be with. We would gladly sign up for any tours led by Flavia, and she is a great credit to Gate1 as an agency!

We enjoyed our tour from the beginning to the end. The accommodations were top tier in all three cities we stayed at. Our tour guide Francesco was the best! He was delightful and very knowledgeable. We couldn't have had a better leader for the eight days. Also the guides we had in the individual locations were very knowledgeable about the cities we visited and kept everyone's attention with stories about the people who lived in ancient times. This was our first trip using Gate 1 but I can say that it won't be our last !

It was perfect! Our guide, Allesandro and our bus driver were great. We had a very fun group of people in our tour and the whole trip was so organized. I will recommend Gate 1 to my friends and I will use it again! Thanks for the memories

Alessandro was the best tour director I have ever encountered. This was my first trip with Gate 1, but I have traveled extensively. No other tour director has ever come close to being an outstanding individual, that is Alessandro. He took care of us like a mother hen and was extremely professional while also being very personable. You have a real jewel in this individual, and he alone would make me want to come back for another Gate 1 tour.

The trip was fantastic! It was made that way due to the tour guide on our trip! Andrea made the trip what it was! I've never seen such attention to detail! The places we saw were unquestionably visual beyond comparison! But the details of travel and safety, knowledge of every location, humor, I don't know if anyone could compare to him! If I ever do a trip to say Ireland, I will still hope it was Andrea as our tour guide!! Please let Andrea know I feel comfortable speaking to everyone on our tour, that he made the trip!!!

We loved every single minute of our first tour with Gate 1. We will be looking online and at your brochures to find another tour which interests us. We loved all of the planned parts of the tour, and we loved there was a lot of free time as we like to explore on our own as well. The best part of the tour was our tour manager, Riccardo. If there is any way we can find out which tours Riccardo will be conducting in the future, we would love to do another tour with him. Riccardo went above and beyond his responsibilities adding personal touches and advise. He was always available and added interesting stories to our travel days.

It was awesome, I am glad I went on this trip! I am absolutely sure our tour manager Dario made a difference! He was an amazing tour guide. He was very informative about the areas we visited and had some of the best tours guides show us around. Dario has a great personality and is a people person. I loved visiting all the locations and when I decided to go on another trip, I hope I get another tour guide like Dario!!! He made this trip fun!! He is the reason why I would take another trip with Gate1!!!

Our trip to Tuscany was wonderful. We loved the itinerary and we used the trip to make it a family vacation. Our two 30 something sons joined us for their first experience with Gate 1. Our tour director, Oliviero, was great. He is so full of knowledge and his love for Italy shone through everywhere we went. Thank you for planning the Stay and Explore vacations. It's wonderful to settle in one place and explore from there. We loved Montecatini and we enjoyed every moment in Tuscany.

I would like to say that I enjoyed this trip immensely. Lorena was the Best. She was very knowledgeable about each place we stayed and the area around the hotels. She was full of energy and listened to every concern. And worked hard to make sure everyone heard her instructions. Couldn't have asked for a better guide. I loved all of this trip and I hope to do it again real soon.

I just want to say that the itinerary that Ignazio managed was one of the best overall we have had in all our trips with Gate1 (over 20). Most Tour Managers are very good, but the trip does not flow very well. This Discovery trip to Sicily and Malta was seamless, we went from one event or place with ease. I will recommend this trip highly to anyone wishing to see a small, fascinating part of Europe without spending time waiting in lines at venues.

Our trip to Italy was wonderful! We truly appreciated the small details that Gate 1 took care of! From booking the tickets to the Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel, to the water taxis and ferry rides, saving us valuable time in long lines, to the wonderfully thought-out group meals, to the top-notch motorcoach transportation, and the local tour guides that led our local tours, we were very impressed! This was our first time overseas from the USA, as my husband and I are both now recently retired, we definitely will choose Gate 1 for future travels! Our Group Tour Guide, Marianna, was such a pleasure and I thank her for the great fellowship that was created within our group. We have made some lifelong friends that we will stay in touch with.

This was our 8th Gate 1 trip, and we feel it was the best one ever. Our guides, Blaz in Slovenia, and Vivi in Padua were caring, kind, and made us all feel special, safe, and had such wonderful personalities. Everyone on both parts of our trip felt the same. Thank you for the gift of this trip. The tours were all interesting and lovely, and both of our tour guides went over and above with us each day.

Alessandro was absolutely wonderful throughout my entire 16-day Italy experience. Can't say enough good things about him as well as the tour. We did more sightseeing than I had expected, and Alessandro got us in and out of the scheduled tours before the big crowds showed up. Much appreciated!

Absolutely wonderful. Guiseppe was the best possible tour guide-funny, fun, kind, efficient, knowledgeable. I have travelled all over the world independently and been very leery of tours, so this was a real test for me. Gate One was recommended by friends who have taken 11, so I followed the recommendation. I am so glad I did. The whole trip to Sicily turned out wonderfully beautiful scenery, great food and wine, friendly people, and the lunches at the agriturismo places were terrific. Nice job. I would definitely go again.

Our trip was a wonderful experience. Everything was perfectly organized. Our Gate 1 manager Dario was beyond amazing. He was full of energy, knowledge and a personality loved by all. The transportation, hotels, tours and all the little surprises were amazing. Thank you for your part in booking this fabulous time We will certainly recommend you and Gate. 1 for our future travels Stay well and Thanks again.

Our trip, the 9 days in Tuscany with the hotel in Montecatini, was outstanding. Lynn made us feel welcome and very informed about all aspects of our trip. Marco, our driver, was also outstanding. Doug and I enjoyed this trip immensely. The countryside was remarkable, and all the chosen destinations had unique characteristics that made them special. We especially enjoyed the trip to Lucca, Pisa, and the farmhouse wine tasting, pasta making, and the fantastic dinner! We felt safe, and our group got along very well, with many people planning visits together. Thank you for the thorough planning and for creating wonderful memories of our visit to Tuscany.

Our 14-day Romantic Italian trip was so much more than expected. Dio, our manager, was the best! He went so far above and beyond to make all of our trips so memorable. He was organized, always so pleasant and calm, informative and just the greatest guy. My wife and I were on our honeymoon and at one of the dinners we had a cake and a local performer sing to us. We will go on another Gate 1 trip, mostly because of Dio! Allura and Grazzi.

Our tour guide Mercedes was fabulous she made a wonderful trip even better , she was very friendly, very professional and always available. I have been on other trips with other tour companies and Mercedes was the best tour guide hands down.

Tour Manage Alessandro was definitely 10 stars!! Hs knowledge and passion for his country and culture is second to none! That passion carries through in his narrations. He went above and beyond to celebrate a couple birthdays in the group. He is very well organized. Highly recommend the trip and Alessandro!

Tour Manage Alessandro was definitely 10 stars!! Hs knowledge and passion for his country and culture is second to none! That passion carries through in his narrations. He went above and beyond to celebrate a couple birthdays in the group. He is very well organized. Highly recommend the trip and Alessandro!

Our tour manager Flavia was superb in every way during our tour. She made the entire experience relaxed and fun. Flavia was most helpful to me and my two travelling companions as the airline had delayed our luggage. Flavia did everything possible to assist in our situation and we appreciated it very much. It was very helpful to know she truly cared. She was in contact with the Palermo airport and would provide us with periodic updates. She advised us where to pick up essentials and what to expect for available shopping in the towns we were travelling to. She helped to make a inconvenient situation less stressful and helped us to enjoy the trip given the circumstances. We enjoyed Flavia's company all week long, she was fun and has a thorough knowledge of the areas we were in. She was always considerate of everyone in our group. I was especially grateful that she knew the best times to arrive at our destinations and bathroom breaks to avoid crowds. Her pre-planning made our tour so much more enjoyable. She was fantastic and we're so glad that she was our tour manager. She was a perfect representative of Gate 1.

Lorena was our tour operator who went above and beyond in her duties. She was caring, fun, knowledgeable and high energy. I would go on any trip with gate 1 if she was my guide!! Gianni our driver was equally pleasant, and we felt safe in his hands as he drove the motor coach around Sicily

This was my 10th Gate 1 trip and my first stay and explore. I really like the hybrid - touring, but not traveling. I will be looking for more of these. I have never had a less than excellent tour manager and Carolyn was one of the best. It was a large group, but she gave us all personal attention. She gave wonderful recommendations and always was patient. She helped us have a harmonious group. I also want to mention how impressed we were with Victoria, our driver. Skilled and I appreciated how clean he kept the coach. This was an excellent trip! Thank you!

This was my first trip on a guided bus tour and it was amazing! Uta was the best Tour Manager ever, truly fantastic. She is a great asset to your team. She made our trip unforgettable - great attention to detail, caring about each one of us, fun and personable. We had a blast! Thank you

Just back from my 12 Day Italy trip that departed Boston on Sept 8. All I can say is WOW! It was a great time and the trip leader made this vacation AWESOME!! Giampiero was a great leader, very knowledgeable of the culture, history and the architecture! It was a pleasure listening to Giampiero discussing the importance of a places we visited. Giampiero also had great suggestions for things to do during our free time. This was my first guided tour and my first Gate1travel tour! Soon, I will be planning another vacation for the summer of 2026 and you can be sure, it will be a GATE1 tour!!

Yes I am back home. This trip with Gate1 was one of the best trips I have made. Nicoletta was the best tour guide I have ever had. The trip details, transportation, hotels used, local guides used, activities included all made this the BEST trip. I will definitely go on Gate1 again.

I just want to say that our guide Dario on the road trip was the most amazing guide we have ever had. Doubt, very much we will have anyone better than him. He kept us so entertained. He was so smart. He was so funny. He was so knowledgeable. He was so talented. He could sing he could dance, he just could do everything. He really made a trip for us, and I highly recommend him for anyone. He deserves 1 million accolades really really enjoyed him. He made us feel all like family, and we were so well taken care of.