Tuscany with the Best - Martina was my guide 9 years ago for a memorable tour of Pisa. In the intervening years, we have become long distance friends, and I looked forward to seeing her in Tuscany some day. This last November, Martina gave my friend and I yet another memorable tour, this time of the Tuscan hill town, San Miniato—as ancient and as beautiful as the more well-known Volterra, but without the hoards of tourists. As a guide, Martina has it all. Beyond the fact that she is a stellar human being, Martina is steeped in art history and the history of her beloved Tuscany and weaves the past and present together beautifully. San Miniato is known for its truffle-hunting, so to top off a marvelous stay we had lunch in a truffle restaurant. It doesn’t get any better than that. Anyone interested in the best of all possible Tuscan experiences, in the company of the best of all possible guides, should know that Martina Manfredi, founder of Tuscany at Heart, is in a class all by herself.

Pisa and Lucca tour with Martina is the best of our trip to Tuscany. - Martina created a tour of Pisa and Lucca for me and my husband. Before booking, she reached out to ask what we were most interested in doing and what our interests were for our day. Our tour with Martina was incredible! Our day was full of her sharing her immense knowledge of not only the area, but also answering every question we had. She explained to us the deep roots of the history of the region, the tower itself, and how the geography of Pisa was important in their history. We had a wonderful lunch at a family owned restaurant she knows near the tower and we continued on to the beautiful city of Lucca, which was one of our favorite cities in Tuscany. Martina never ceased in sharing history, important facts and current events about both cities. We concluded our tour with a walk around the immense city wall, which is a hub for joggers, cyclists and families. Our personalized tour with Martina was absolutely incredible! She is professional, personal, and truly cares about creating the perfect tour. We will definitely contact her when we return to Italy to explore Cinque Terre.

Pisa is more than a photo-op - Specific Tour: Pisa Beyond the Leaning Tower. We couldn't be more pleased with our decision to trust Martina with our day trip to Pisa. Her depth of knowledge and infectious enthusiasm for the city enriched our experience far beyond what we would had on our own. By the time we arrived at the Field of Miracles, she had given us enough of a background that we could appreciate that marvelous architecture as much more than a photo op. As retired educators we give Martina an At.

A Towering Journey Back In Time. - Our guided tour of the ancient area of Pisa was not only a visual delight, but also full of facts we never knew. Our tour guide, Martina, spent three hours opening a period of time that allowed us to experience it as if we were there. Her extensive knowledge of history, art and architecture was told with a passion that made our visit truly memorable

Martina M.....the Queen of Cinque Terre!! - Cinque Terre...... Monterosso, Vernazza, Manarola, and Riomaggiore have been on my bucket list for years. If I didn't see the ALL the villages on this trip, I didn't know when I could return to Cinque Terre. We decided to go on the 9 hour Cinque Terre tour because it stopped at the 4 villages. Martina was fortunately our guide. Now, friend's had warned us that the Ferry boats won't run if it is windy or raining. So the day of our tour, Martina met us at the Spezia train station and we started our tour. The Ferry was only running between Monterosso and Portovenere due to the winds. We visited these 2 villages and then, we started our TRAIN adventure to Vernazza, Manarola, and lastly to Riomaggiore. Because of Martina's committment to her customers we saw ALL villages. Previously, I thought seeing the villages via Ferry was the only true photo op. HOWEVER, at each village, Martina took us to incredible photo op places both up on the hills and down at the water. Her tenacity and determination to show us all 4 villages + Portovenere was incredible....she never gave up!! Thank you Martina a million times over for helping me accomplish my bucket list dream!! Martina is extremely knowledgeable, intelligent, funny, compassionate and full of stories and laughter....an incredible woman. I wish her well in her career. I will always cherish my time spent with Martina M.

Pisa + Lucca shore excusrion from Livorno - Excellent!! - Martina built a custom and private shore excursion for us to Pisa and Lucca for a day this summer. A newer van with A/C picked up our family of four right from the ship. She knows SO much about the area, which made it very interesting for the whole family. It was a nice mix of the popular (The Tower) and the unusual - just what we wanted. Martina found a great spot for a Tuscan lunch and joined us where she told us about the local cuisine. At the end of the great day, our driver dropped us back right by the ship! We highly recommend Martina for a great experience in Tuscany. And we recommend the investment in a private tour - it is SO much better than a typical cruise line tour in a big tour bus.

Family Bike Tour Pisa - Martina was amazing guide, bike touring Pisa with my family of four including two teenage sons. I wanted a unique way to see Pisa in an afternoon, and this tour delivered. Martina met us outside the train station. The bike rental is within the square outside the station. It could not be more easy! We chose to use e-bikes, but Pisa is very flat and regular bikes would have been fine. Martina is very nice, easy-going, and fun! Biking allows for seeing some of-the beaten-track sites, in addition to the Field of Miracles sites. We stopped with Martina for a great pizza lunch. A great afternoon!

Outstanding Professional, Passionate Tour Guide - We found Martina through a web search for private tours for Cinque Terre. She responded quickly to our inquiry about a tour of Cinque Terre and a separate day trip to Pisa. We worked out itineraries for both days via email before our trip, with Martina providing detailed instructions on trains to take from Florence, where we were staying, to meet her to begin the tours both days. Our tours of Cinque Terre and Pisa were both full day tours so a great value compared to “small group” tours and both days were fully customized by us with Martina’s input. Martina is passionate about the regions and has an encyclopedic knowledge of both Cinque Terre and Pisa. There wasn’t a question she couldn’t answer, arranged lunch for us at great restaurants on both days. The restaurants she selected were off the beaten path so we were able to enjoy the local food and views while avoiding the crowded tourist traps!! Both Cinque Terre and Pisa can be incredibly crowded during high-tourist season. Martina helps you navigate through the crowds and avoid lines for a more enjoyable experience. For Cinque Terre, we hiked from Corniglia to Monterossa which was a great way for us to take in the breathtaking views while also getting to see and experience 3 of the 5 villages that make up Cinque Terre (Corniglia, Vernazza, Monterossa). And, for Pisa, she helped us realize there was more to Pisa than just that leaning tower. The Baptismal and the Duomo were equally impressive and beautiful. All-in-all, Martina did a great job and we highly recommend using her for tours in Tuscany.

Martina is the best! - Martina was so communicative right from the start. Constantly messaging me to make sure everything was smooth and what I wanted and what I was looking for. She was knowledgeable and kind and patient and took us to all the little secret spots in Pisa. I cannot recommend her enough!

Pisa with heart - We loved Martina and her half day tour of Pisa in 2015 so much that we knew when we came back in 2023 with friends we should ask her to show us the amazing Pisa again. Spending time with Martina is very much like travelling with an life long friend. And a very clever friend at that, who knows a lot about the Pisa complex and loves sharing that knowledge with you. She does it with heart. Would thoroughly recommend.