Hidden history – reviews

Above and beyond expectation! We’ve done many historical tours, but René’s was truly exceptional! He has a true passion for his métier and goes way beyond the standard Venice history trip. A true historian that can link ancient to contemporary sociology-economic and political history to every inch of the city. And anything else that may interest you 🙂 He is humble, professional, fun and flexible to accommodate any special requests. A truly perfect way to kick-off a Venice adventure! With his insights you will spot endless details that otherwise you would walk past. Anything from ancient graffiti, security markers, revolutionary building structures, geological and climate effects, political organizers,… fascinating! No matter if you are an absolute history beginner of well versed in the literature, you will certainly be mind blown! Don’t hesitate for a second to book René’s tour!

The walking tour was EXCELLENT, probably the best one I’ve ever taken in any city. René didn’t take us to the obvious sights, but explained the Venetian history and architecture through more hidden sights and regular buildings that you usually just walk by. His depth of knowledge is incredible and you can tell it’s his profession and passion at the same time. Would recommend for anyone interested in history and stories off the beaten path!

René connaît très bien sont sujet, il est passionné et passionnant. Son style atypique est spontané et fascinant. C’est un guide parfait pour les gens flexibles et curieux.

Tour guidato diverso da solito. L’esperienza ha rispettato quanto descritto con note simpatiche e appassionanti, coinvolgendoci con aneddoti personali. Abbiamo scoperto una Venezia che non conoscevamo e la storia di questa città che spesso non viene enfatizzata.

A really interesting tour of some of the sites of Venice. Some great historical information. Highly recommended

È stata un’esperienza interessante per l’arricchimento personale della conoscenza di Venezia

Rene was very kind, organized everything well and you could really tell that he knows what he is talking about. Very fascinating to get more historic understanding and one of the reasons I will definitely come back for another visit. Since the tour I’ve seen the city with other eyes. 😉

Ottimo per chi desidera conoscere in maniere seria ed approfondita la storia di Venezia con sguardo attento ai piccoli dettagli e alle curiosità.

We absolutely loved our guided tour with René! If you want to discover Venice’s history and architecture beyond the well known tourist attractions, René is the perfect guide for you. He is very knowledgeable in both Venetian history as well as current events and took a lot of time answering every question and tailor his tour to the groups individual interests.

René is very knowledgeable about Venice and its history. However, I left frustrated. The first hour of the tour we stood in front of the statue at Giovanni e Paolo square and got a little too in-depth with the history. When we started the walking portion, we spent another hour just in the small square, and it was already noon. The tour ran an additional hour over and we made it only about 500m, stopping often to hear about something small. A 30-second information stop turned into a 15-minute lesson. The history is nice and the tour concept is not bad, but I was disappointed I didn’t get to see more of Venice.

Die Tour war super um etwas über die Geschichte und Entstehung von Venedig zu erfahren! René hat ein sehr großes Wissen über Geschichte und hat uns viele Details und Kleinigkeiten erklärt, an denen man sonnst achtlos vorbei gelaufen wäre! Ich hab die tour an meinem ersten Tag gemacht U danach geht man mit einem ganz anderen Blick durch die Gassen ?! Abgerundet haben wir die Tour spontan mit einem aperol spritz in einer schönen, lokalen Bar mit lokalen preisen?

Rene was a great guide….took us through the history of venice….and was particularly passionate about society through the ages…..would recommend

Fantastic tour, and the host has super in depth knowledge of the area and Italian history. Highly recommended!

This is the best city tour we have attended. Rene is extremely knowledgeable about Venice and proud to share. He started from the broad-picture Venice history and then zoomed in on the details by showing city layouts, buildings, and even carvings on the walls. The tour started in a quiet Campo (square) and then went to some small alleys, with very little tourist or noise disturbance. Rene was so into the presentation and went over for at least a half-hour. His English is fluent, clear, and easy to understand. Rene was also accommodating by letting us postpone the starting time and then letting us join the next day, as our train arrived late. Our visit to Venice wouldn’t be complete without Rene’s tour. Thank you, Rene!

Ottima guida made in Danimark. Parla italiano perfettamente. Mi ha fatto scoprire piccoli particolari a cui non avrei fatto caso. Una visione di Venezia che solo chi vive ed ama Venezia può donare.

Rene’ is a nice guy and was very kind throughout our tour. However, I want to be honest and hopefully this will help his presentation. We just spent way too much time in one place. Should have kept moving and seen more. Rene’ obviously knows his material, however, in my opinion, the presentation was just too slow. My daughter and I took 5 tours on our trip to Europe – Doges Palace, Brussels, Bruges, and Prague were the others . This is the only one of the 5 tours that I would not recommend – at least not in its current format. Again, Rene’ is very knowledgeable and kind, however the presentation was very slow moving and had my daughter and I both looking at our watch to politely end our tour. I do not like giving poor reviews to genuinely nice people like Rene’. I hope this is seen as a constructive way for Rene’ to improve because he obviously has the knowledge of Venice.

If you are in Venice for only a short time – this is an experience I would much recommend. I got a much better feel of the place thanks to Rene’s tour.

René was so knowledgeable we learned so so much! This was a great way to kick off our time in Venice since we learned so much about the city!

Intéressa, sympa à découvrir en début de séjour pour affiner son regard sur Venise.

Was a great tour! I learned a lot about Venice and feel like I know much more about the city. Highly recommend

Hi René, thanks for a fantastic tour today. As an inorganic chemist I particularly enjoyed the attention you paid to the building materials and construction techniques and how they influenced the city’s development and slow deterioration. Fascinating stuff. And of course the politics of then & now gave us lots to discuss long into the evening too. I think the US American guests enjoyed it very much also.

René was an amazing host. During the experience you could really tell how passionate he is about his work and how much he loves the history of Venice. Would definitely recommend it to anyone that wants to know more about Venice.

Rene brought history in Venice to life and was patient and thoughtful all the way through the tour — he was super focused on our experience and extremely knowledgeable. We recommend this to anyone coming to Venice…we only wish we did this tour in the early part of our trip instead of near the end!

René is a great guide, deep into details. Very interesting, you start to pay attention to every part of each building around, a real trip to history. Thank you! Really need much more time to get in touch with the city.

What a tour. We got to see a wealth of small, hidden things which tell so much about the history of Venice. René is very knowledgeable and easy going and shares his deep knowledge of Venice’s history in an informal and pleasant way. We also got a great deal of information about what it is like to live in Venice these days, and Rene took us to a more local area where you get a good deal for lunch. We can highly recommend to book this tour.

Rene has an infinite wealth of information and generously shares his knowledge. He conveys even somewhat dry parts of history in a relatable manner and makes the past come alive. I truly enjoyed the tour and recommend it to anyone interested in learning more of what is beyond of what you see. Rene was very generous with his time and even made sure I got a seat for a good lunch after the tour.

Can highly recommend this tour if you’re interested in history. René really knows his stuff and is very knowing about both the “big picture” of Venice in the history but also small interesting facts about the everyday life in the city.

Really recommend this tour, it was very informative and interesting!

René is a very friendly guide who knows all the small details and stories about Venice. We had a really nice time with him and enjoyed our tour!

René knows an incredible about about Venice. It was a lovely tour, which lasted longer than we paid for.

Gentilissimo e preparato. Sicuramente da fare se si vuole approfondire la storia della città e scoprirne i tanti particolari più nascosti.

If you are looking for a tour that will take you somewhere else the usual most visited spots in Venice, this is it! René managed to explain how the city was built and works by paying our attention to the little details we passed by in the streets. He is passionate about history, life in Venice and adventures! René was happy to share his personal experience of life in Venice and he was definitely the warmest welcome in the city we could have wished for!

It was a pleasure to discover some new spots with René. He has tons of knowledge about the city, so even if you know Venice, you will learn something new!

Rene was a wonderful Guide He was very informative with all the small details while maintaining a continuous narrative of the larger history of Venice. He has embraced the History and spirit of Venice and deserves the title of Citizen of Venice. His command of the English language reflects his educational background. All in All , the Tour was easy , entertaining and educational

Una experiencia maravillosa. René logró captar la atención de toda la familia. Dinámico, didáctico y muy instruido. Definitivamente recomendamos a Rene para descubrir a una Venecia mágica llena de sorpresas y misterio.

René zeichnet kompentent und unterhaltsam ein Bild des historischen Lebens in Venedig. Er hat uns auf so viele Details aufmerksam gemacht, die wir ohne ihn nie entdeckt oder verstanden hätten. Perfekt für alle Neugierigen, die mehr als einen schnellen Überblick möchten. Wir sind mit vielen bleibenden Eindrücken nach Hause gekommen und haben wieder ein etwas anderes, genaueres Bild von unserer Lieblingsstadt.

I can highly recommend this tour if you want to discover more about Venice and it’s history. René has a deep knowledge of the subject and you can feel his enthusiasm. The walking part of the tour is rather short but it helps you to see Venice with a “trained” eye, which will help you to appreciate the different faces of the city even more than without the tour. I recommend taking the tour if you spend more than just one or two days in Venice in order to enjoy what you’ve learned when walking through the city.

This was a very interesting tour in a part of Venice that didn’t seem so touristy, so it was also a great way to explore a new area. Rene is filled with information and he is also very funny. He answered all my questions and even kept pointing out details after the tour ended as he showed me and the other group member our way to our next stop. You definitely pick up on things you would walk by without thinking about, and a few details will stick out to you the rest of your time in Venice.

René is very knowledgable and has so many interesting stories to tell. I feel like I got to know the city in a way I could never have done on my own. Highly recommend for anyone looking for a more in-depth tour.

The tour was very nice. We really enjoyed and we ended up spending more than the two hours.

Perfect if you are really into history and want to know every bit of Venice’s history. However I would say this tour isn’t for casual tourists who just want to hear some interesting information about places in Venice, as René often goes into really a lot of detail. He’s definitely an expert on the history of Venice, though, and is super passionate about it. I just expected the tour to be a bit more engaging, and that I would mostly hear more about the places or sights we see. Instead we often stopped for half an hour at a time and the storytelling wasn’t with much interaction or visual aspects.

René far exceeded my expectations for this walking tour! He is incredibly knowledgeable about the city, history and architecture and has a great sense of humor. Highly recommend this experience!

Rene is very knowledgeable. He introduced the history of Venice to me through many details which you may never find it by yourself. I learned how to look at Venice in a more specific way.

This was a unique tour that showed me some history of Venice away from the normal tourist spots. Fun activity, got to see more local Venice and explore areas I would not normally have visited. Rene is passionate about the history and a good storyteller.

A wonderful look at the history of Venice, René is a splendid storyteller that takes you on a romp through the early centuries of Venice. The smallest of details that hiding huge stories can be found on this tour. Strongly recommend for history or art buffs.

We loved this tour – René had amazing knowledge of Venetian history and was able to answer all our questions. We learnt so much and found it really fascinating. A highlight of our trip!

If you want to learn about the history of Venice and it’s architecture, Rene is your man! He’s incredibly knowledgeable, and I really got to know how Ventians lived over the centuries, and how to distinguish various architecture types and eras. I wouldn’t recommend this for kids- it was a great value and I learned a lot, but also a little dry.

Rene was very informative and clearly has a great love for Venice. We learnt many very interesting facts and mysteries and he was in no rush. We ended up spending 3.5hrs with him. Really well worth it!!

A gem of a tour, especially for people who love to understand how cities function. René even made a discussion of some crumbling bricks interesting. Seriously. René helped us gain a deeper appreciation for Venice. Highly recommend this tour.

War sehr lehrreich, wir haben viel über Venedig erfahren