Private Guided Tours of Florence with Sam
Sam has been a tour guide for almost 20 years now, during which time he has guided more tours than he can count and led thousands of guests through his beloved Florence. And after doing this for almost 2 decades, he still loves Florence just as much as he did when he was a small child and can’t imagine a better job.
Sam has a fun and lively spirit and he lives by the idea that a tour must be enjoyable above all else, so he infuses every tour with good humor, spontaneity, and a bit of mirth. His primary goal simple: to ensure that you have a great time while seeing the very best of Florence.
With a love of food, art, and traditional craft, Sam also tries to incorporate a bit of each of those into his tours. He’s always up for a quick stop to grab a gelato or pastry, and will of course point out his favorite restaurants and cafés, artists workshops, and local shops as explore the city.
Every one of his tours can be fully customized to accommodate you, your interests, and travel style. If you’d like, you’ll be able to work one-on-one with Sam to arrange the details of the tour together.
Highlights of Florence Walking Tour
Duration: 3.5 hours
Cost: $400 USD
Price includes: Your guide (Sam)
Not included: entrance tickets to Basilica di Santa Croce (optional)
Max participants: 10
Note: All tours are private (only you and your travel partners)
Cancellation Policy: Read our full terms here
If you’re visiting Florence for the first time and are looking for the perfect introduction to the city, this is the tour for you.
Together, we’ll crisscross the historic center (Centro Storico), visiting its main squares, strolling its cobbled streets, admiring the art and architecture all around us, and learning about the history of the city from the time of the Etruscans through to the modern day.
Of course, no tour would be complete without a stop for a gelato, so we’ll fuel up whenever hunger strikes!
We’ll start our tour at the Duomo and Baptistry (Florence’s cathedral complex), before moving on to Piazza della Repubblica, the square where everything began in Florence back in the days of the ancient Romans.
From there, it’s on to the Porcellino market, where we’ll see the famous wild boar statue. The Ponte Vecchio awaits us next, which we’ll cross over, bringing us briefly into the Oltrarno area. Here, we’ll make a quick stop outside the Pitti Palace, before crossing over the river again back into the Centro Storico.
The grand Piazza della Signoria is our next destination, where we’ll admire one of the greatest collections of statues anywhere on Earth.
Leaving the square and masses of tourists behind, we’ll make our way to our final stop, Piazza Santa Croce, which offers us two wonderful opportunities: we can either tour the incredible Basilica di Santa Croce, or learn about traditional crafts by visiting a leather workshop and the studio of one of the last great masters of Florentine mosaics.
Tour highlights: Duomo & Baptistry (outside), Piazza della Repubblica, Porcellino statue, Ponte Vecchio, Pitti Palace (outside), Piazza della Signoria, Piazza Santa Croce, artisan workshops or Basilica di Santa Croce tour
Build Your Own Walking Tour
Duration: 3-8 hours
Cost: $115 USD per hour (3-hour minimum)
Price includes: your guide (Sam)
Not included in cost: entrance tickets to museums/sites (if applicable)
Max participants: 10
Note: All tours are private (only you and your travel partners)
Cancellation Policy: Read our full terms here
Want to design a completely tailor-made tour of Florence? Let’s do it!
Sam guides all types of tours and covers everywhere in the city. He can work with you to design a unique, personalized tour of anywhere in Florence that’s focused on whatever you’re interested in (history, museums, architecture, neighborhoods, food, or anything else).
He’s licensed to guide anywhere in the city, so can also combine visits to museums like the Uffizi, Accademia Gallery, or Piti Palace, with walking tours to see the sights. How you spend your time together is completely up to you.
Sam’s walking tours are always a minimum of 3 hours, but beyond that, you can work with him to plan the tour however you’d like.
When you book a “build your own” tour with Sam, we’ll ask you to provide some initial details about what you’d like to see and do in Florence, and Sam will then reach out to you directly to discuss options and come up with a plan.
Custom Tours
Looking for something a bit different?
All of Sam’s tours can be fully customized to you, your interests, and travel style. If you’d like something totally unique, you can work one-on-one with Sam to co-create a one of a kind tour.
To get started, request a custom tour below and provide us some initial ideas about what you’re looking for. Sam will then reach out to you directly to start planning your tour together.