If you have been following this blog for a while, chances are you have heard me speaking about my Glam Italia Tours, and quite possibly don’t know what they are. I don’t have a website for the Glam Tours at the moment, mostly because I have been so busy writing my new book, Glam Italia! How To Travel Italy. Who knew how much work was involved with writing and publishing a book?? Not me!
Also, I only take a few tours each year, and they are always sold out, so I didn’t really feel any great sense of urgency.
I will be putting up a website at some point, but for now this post will tell you about the Glam Italia Tours, where we go, what we do, and what makes them soooo special!
What Is A Glam Italia Tour?
Glam Italia Tours are boutique, a la carte private tours of Italy for small groups of women. The average tour group is between 3 and 6 women. The idea is to keep it small and flexible so that I can craft the trip of a lifetime for each person on the tour.
Glam Italia Tour in Venice, 2018
The smaller group size means we are able to spend as little or as much time as we want in any given place. We can keep exploring little Tuscan villages if we feel like it, we can have 3 hour lunches with a view over the vineyards, or grab sandwiches and run to the Prada outlet – everything happens at our own pace instead of having to adhere to some big tour company’s schedule.
Glam Italia Tour in Positano, 2017
BUY MY NEW BOOK GLAM ITALIA! HOW TO TRAVEL ITALY HERE
Why Glam Italia Tours?
If you don’t want to be on a big bus tour with 40 other people, and want more than the 5 hours in town that you get with the typical cruise, but the thought of doing it alone feels a bit overwhelming then a Glam Tour might be perfect for you.
Glam Italia Tour in Volterra 2016
On the Glam Italia Tours we mix seeing the big tourist attractions such as the Vatican and the Colosseum, with exploring fabulous places that are a little bit off the beaten track where no tour buses go.
Glam Italia Tour in San Gimignano, 2016
My travelers get the chance to meet and mingle with local Italians, shop in village markets, enjoy drinking coffees or prosecco (depending on the time of day) in centuries old piazzas, and dine in real Italian restaurants – the ones the locals eat at, far from the tourist crowds!
Glam Italia Tour Volterra, 2018
Even when we are in major tourist cities such as Venice, Florence and Rome, we are far from the crowds, seeing amazing things the masses don’t know about, and having an entirely different type of travel experience.
It’s wonderful!
Glam Italia Tour in Ortigia, Sicily, 2014
RELATED POST: 10 THINGS YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST DO IN FLORENCE
Who Can Go On A Glam Italia Tour?
Glam Italia Tours are for women aged 35 and older. Sorry guys – this is all about female energy and we only do female-centric things.
Glam Italia Tour in Matera, 2016
Where Do The Glam Tours Go?
All Glam Italia Tours are a la carte, so they are built around your interests. Normally when it’s someone’s first time in Italy they want to see Florence/Tuscany, Venice, Rome and Amalfi Coast.
Glam Italia Tour in San Gimignano, 2017
When they come back for their second and third tours we go to Sicily or Puglia or the Italian Riviera. Italy has so much to offer you can keep going back over and over and not see the same thing twice!
Glam Italia Tour in Lecce, Puglia, 2016
Where Do You Stay?
The Glam Italia Tours use vacation rental apartments, villas, castles and palaces instead of hotels. I have to tell you, you will never forget staying in a centuries old palazzo/apartment/villa – the experience is just magic!
Glam Italia Tour in a 13th century palazzo, watching the festival down in the piazza below
the festival in the piazza
After a long day of sightseeing and being fabulous it’s nice to be able to lounge around on sofas, or sit out on the balcony with a glass of wine and an amazing view and just relax. In a hotel room you mostly get stuck with sitting on your bed, which is neither glamorous nor relaxing!
Glam Italia Tour traveler in San Gimignano, 2016
Another benefit to staying in vacation rentals is that we get the experience of shopping in local markets and supermarkets. This lets us feel as though we are actually living in Italy for a while rather than just visiting.
Eating out 3 times per day can be both exhausting and expensive, and you end up eating more than you want to. Having the opportunity to make the choice to eat in or eat out each day is quite freeing! The way I see it we are all grown ups and if you want to eat in or eat out it is entirely up to you! Typically we do a mixture of the two, with everyone generally opting to do the same thing.
What Makes A Glam Italia Tour Different?
In my book Glam Italia! How To Travel Italy I talk about how important it is to create incredible experiences, and that is the focus of the Glam Italia Tours. Yes you will see some amazing sights, but more than that you will have endless fabulous experiences.
Going to the Blue Grotto in Capri, 2017
When we go to Capri we don’t just walk around and look at things, we charter a boat, circumnavigate the island, and go swimming in the Tyrrhenian Sea. The experience is just amazing!
Glam Italia Tour chartered boat in Capri, 2017
In Tuscany we end our days with a glass of wine and a view of the vineyards, in Rome we take in the sunset from the Janiculum Hill with a view over the city. Every day is filled with incredible experiences that will become lifelong memories.
Glam Italia Tour in Capri, 2017
We also have incredible flexibility. You don’t have to be back on the bus at 3pm to go to the next attraction. We do everything in our own time. If we are in some little town and you don’t want to leave yet because you want to wander down more little streets and look at more things – no problem! We hang out longer. Alternatively if you have had enough and want to keep moving, we just jump back in the car and head off again.
RELATED POST: 10 THINGS YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST DO IN POSITANO
How Long Is A Glam Italia Tour?
Because they are a la carte the Glam Tours can be any length you would like. Most Glam tours run 10-12 days, which seems to be a really good length of time. I definitely do not recommend any fewer than 10 days. If you want to throw in a free day or a beach day on top of the tour itinerary then 12-14 days is a good amount of time.
Glam Italia Tour wine tasting in Tuscany, 2017
Are They Expensive?
No, Glam Italia Tours are not expensive. They cost a little more than the mainstream big bus tours but are priced for normal folks. Part of the point of doing this was to open up the opportunity to travel for regular people. For the average person a tour of Italy can seem out of reach, but really it can be quite accessible!
Glam Italia Tour breakfast in the piazza, 2017
RELATED POST: 10 THINGS YOU ABSOLUTELY MUST DO IN ROME
What’s With The Name?
Why are they called Glam Italia Tours? When I did my first tour it was for one lady, and she didn’t want to feel like the people stomping on and off the tour buses. She wanted to feel pretty and lovely without having to be dressed to the nines. The whole point of the trip was to have all these amazing experiences and feel a bit glamorous while having them, hence they became known as the Glam Italia Tours!
Glam Italia Tour, sunset on the Spanish Steps, 2017
How Do I Get On A Glam Tour?
If you would like to do a Glam Italia Tour reach out to me via the contact page on this blog.
I can attest and highly recommend these tours… because, I just came off one, and still flying high from it!!! The tour was amazing and that is almost an understatement… it was everything I expected, and I even got a little more from it! Corinna does a bang up job as a tour guide and mediator! Everything is SO organized and what was offered to us, happened. She has amazing contacts, accommodations, drivers and tour guides, who were worth every penny! She has so much passion for Italy and she wants you to see as much as you can, and since she speaks Italian, that is worth the price of admission, the locals love her, when we arrived in Capri, we thought we were with Sophia Loren, they went gaa-gaa for her!!! If you have always wanted to go to Italy… this is the tour for you ladies… don’t hold back, get on a Glam Tour Italia!!!
Author
Thank you Erin!! I had such a blast taking you through Italy – I am so bummed the trip is over! Capri was a scream. I would love to be back on the Janiculum Hill watching the sunset over Rome, or buzzing around Venice in that gorgeous boat heading over to the Cipriani. We made soe great memories on your Glam Italia tour!!
xoxo
it seems that you enjoyed your trip a lot, even next month me too going ialia with family for 7 days trip. Hope everthing would be good, your article is very helpful to understand the most scene places. Thanks for sharing your trip experience.
Author
Hi Prabhu!
Thank you for taking the time to leave me a message. I live for my Italy trips, it is my favorite country to visit.
My new book Glam Italia! How To Travel Italy is now available on Amazon.com! You can get it on Kindle or on the Kindle App in India. There is so much great information in the book – you will love it! It will really help you on your trip
This sounds amazing !!!
Author
Gretchen they are so much fun! And it’s not frantic travel – it’s all really chill, so you actually get to enjoy it and soak it all in.
Corrina B,
I would like information on your Glam Italia tours.
Author
Hi Maureen,
I would love to talk to you about the Glam Italia Tours! If you email me I can reply to you privately rather than publicly.
I’ll keep an eye out for it,
Corinna
Me and my Daughter are interested in going to Italy this year. Please let me know about the tour or tours you will be doing.
Thank you.
Author
Hi Jeana,
Can you email me? I just tried to email you from the email on this comment but am not sure if it went through or not. I would love to talk to you about the tours!
Corinna
Hi! Just bought your book & will be going to Rome & Florence this year with 5 girl cousins! But I’m still interested in goin on your personal Glam Tour!
Author
Hi! Thank you for buying my book! I would love to talk to you about the tours. I sent you an email with some of the details :))
Hello , I just bought your book and I am interested in finding out about t your tours I would like to go to Italy in the fall
Thanks,
Author
Hi Mary Beth,
Thank you for buying my book! I hope you enjoy it. There is a new book coming in the next few weeks, this one is all about fantastic things to do in Rome. If you get on the newsletter/private member list you will get all the early info on it.
I will email you about the tours:)
Bought your book, am interested in your tours, I have been to Italy many times, love Italy, and would like to see it from a different prospective.
Author
Wonderful! Send me an email and I can fill you in :))
Hi Corinna,
I want to learn as much as I can about your Glam Italia Tour! I’ve never been to Italy but have wanted to visit for many years. I’m a single Mom & don’t feel comfortable with traveling alone to a foreign country. Exploring Italy with Glam Italia sounds like my dream vacation. Can you provide me with some details about your tours?
Thank you,
Alison
Author
Hey Alison! I sent you an email 🙂
I just saw in my email newsletter you’re doing Glam Italia tours this Fall, I probably missed out this year. Can you please put me on the list for next ear? Grazie mille!!
Hi Corinna. Your trips sound amazing & I am definitely keeping your info. This trip, we will be on a cruise with 5 Italian ports: Civitivecchia, Livorno, Sorrento, Amalfi ( 4 days in a row) ending with an overnight in Venice. Do you do any tours from cruise ports? If not, can you recommend someone? Thank you!
Author
Hi Maria,
I sometimes do cruise families if the dates line up. This next trip I am fully booked but I can hook you up with a fabulous guide for Venice and another for Sorrento/Amalfi. Are you stopping at both ports? They are right next to each other.
Shoot me an email and I will give you some guides.
xo
Hi Corinna,
At the end of this month (September) I’m headed to Rome to spend a month there. I’ve used your wonderful books to plan my trip. However next time I’d be interested in doing a tour with you. I love the planning, organizing, deciding where to go but next time it might be fun to join your group and have you do all the planning!
Chris
Author
Hi Chris!
I am adding you to my mailing list for the tours. Keep an eye on your inbox!
I just got back from Rome having been in Italy for more than a month doing tours. I’m already totally homesick!
I’m glad the books helped you. Hopefully you will make it to some of my favorite places!
Have a fabulous trip 🙂
Hello Corinna,
My wife and I will be fifty next year and would love to celebrate in Italy. Exploring Italy with Glam Italia sounds like a dream vacation. Can you provide me with some details about your tours?
Thank you,
Author
Hi Maria!
I’m back from Italy now and am starting to get caught up on admin work and planning next year’s tours. Keep an ye on your inbox – you should be hearing from me in the next week or so!
Interested In spring 2020 trips startling the last week in May
Author
Hi Susan,
My end of May tour is full but I may have something in June. Send me an email and I can fill you in!
Sorrry… we are looking at end of May 2021. Is that also full? How would it work? What for the fees look like?
Author
May 2021 is still available! Shoot me an email corinna@corinnabsworld.com and we can chat
My twin sister & I will be 60 in August 2020 we want to come to Italy in October to celebrate our birthday. This is a long time dream vacation I’ve wanted to do and what better way to celebrate turning 60 than being in Italy?
Author
Hi Trudy! I have added you to my private list for people interested in tours. Keep an eye on your inbox, I should be sending something out in the next week or so!
I have been to Italy a number of times and would love to join a tour. I live in South Africa and come originally from the UK
Author
Hi Jen,
Shoot me an email at corinna@corinnabsworld.com and I can fill you in on all the details!
Do you have any tours planned between October 9 and Nov 1, 2020? My best friend and I would like to go for about 2 weeks.
Author
Hi Lynn,
Thank you for asking! I am fully booked for 2020 and about 50% booked for 2021. Send me an email if you want to know about tours for next year or would like to get put on the info list :))
What is your suggestion about renting a car in Florence? Train station or airport?
Author
I always recommend airport. They always have cars there, you avoid the ZTLs that are all around the in town rental places, and the rental place at the airport is right by the on ramp to the motorway. The taxi to the airport rental car lot is a set fee (aboout 22 euros I think?). It takes a huge amount of stress off your shoulders.