Italy Expertise and Travel Experience

Sharon was very easy to work with. She was always available to answer questions, and to help with any problem that came up. She is very knowledgeable about travel in Italy and Europe. Her help and advice in all areas was invaluable! I was in over my head with planning our trip and she took a big load off my shoulders.

Sharon was the most capable and attentive travel specialist we have worked with. She helped plan the most memorable trip to Florence with 8 family members, including our 3 grandchildren.
When we didn’t have any idea what to do with a our grandsons, ages 6,9 and 15, she sent us truffle hunting! Genius, the most fun we’ve had in ages!

Sharon is extremely knowledgeable about Italy and was very helpful in sharing ideas and suggestions. She helped us plan our month-long trip and it was fabulous! I would highly recommend her.

Sharon was the best travel agent we could’ve dreamed of having. We traveled with a group of friends who all had tons of questions & different destinations. She completely set up our tour, taking into account all the details we needed. She answered all of our questions about luggage, money, excursions, passports, phone use, & many others.
Our vacation began in Ireland for a week & then we went on to Italy (Sharon’s expertise is in Italy). Sadly, my Dad, passed away while we were just beginning our Italian tour. Sharon really saved us! She contacted the travel insurer & set up our flights home. I can’t imagine any one else doing this for us on the Sunday before Labor Day! Although our trip was interrupted, we knew we were being taken care of by Sharon.
We had a wonderful first week in Ireland. We are so appreciative we had Sharon plan our trip and help us get home. We will definitely call her to help plan our next trip. We hope you do too! Thanks again Sharon!!

Sharon has helped me plan several ocean cruises and trips, including a wonderful tour of China. This year Sharon arranged and led a fun girls only tour of the island of Sicily. The group of ten ladies visited the marjor cities and sights , enjoyed walking tours of the cities, lunched at a small country winery, walked a colorful market with a local chef then cooked and ate lunch at her home. Sharon also helped me and my sister extend the trip to Naples and train to Venice.
Sharon attends to every detail and keeps you informed along the planning process. She knows Italy!

Sharon was a pleasure to work with, she's a great communicator. She went above and beyond all expectations.

Sharon was extremely professional yet very personal. Her attention to details is what made our who experience magical.

This Paris/Cruise was one of many trips that Sharon has planned for myself, sister and friends. She is detailed oriented and will answer any question on any detail any time. She checks in before you travel, monitors our trips and follows up upon our return. She is extremely patient, especially with people who have little or no experience in traveling. She is the best travel agent I have ever known

Sharon went above and beyond in helping our group plan a wonderful trip to Italy, including additional side trips for some of the couples in the group. She was very timely returning all emails, phone calls and text messages with questions that we all had. There were 14 in all in our group, and although Sharon was in Arizona and most of us in South Dakota, she handled everything as if we were right near her. Sharon often would remind us of upcoming things that we needed to get arranged and how she could assist us in getting these things arranged (ie: train, plane reservations and transfers). Her knowledge of Italy was exceptional and she was able to help us and guide us as we planned and enjoyed this trip.

Sharon was wonderful! She made great suggestions on what to do and see and places to stay. They were perfect. I couldn't have been happier with the hotels and events she booked. Sharon even wrote a special note to hotel proprietors asking them to give us special care -- and they did! Our trip wouldn't have been nearly as enjoyable without her expertise. She knows Italy so well and also understands her customers!

Sharon has been helping us plan our adventures for years now. I wouldn’t use anyone else. She is detailed, timely and very knowledgeable about all things travel related. We love working with her!

I cannot begin to tell you how fabulous Sharon was to work with. She far exceeded our expectations. Our trip to Italy was perfect . Every hotel, restaurant, excursion, private drivers were off the charts amazing. We celebrated our 40th Anniversary and Sharon helped orchestrate the vows, cake, flowers, photographer, videographer. It was so special. We did not worry about one thing. Do not ever use anyone other than Sharon. We cannot wait to go back and will definitely use her again. She’s the BEST!!!

Sharon is passionate about travel, has extensive knowledge and experience, and provides advice and service from the day you begin your planning to the final day of your trip. You won't find a better travel advisor on the planet!

We have used Sharon and her services on two FABULOUS trips to Italy. Sharon has booked us fantastic hotels, all our trains, rental car and even some excursions. She provides an automated day to day itinerary which is so helpful. Sharon’s knowledge of Italy and the information she provides is invaluable. She’s a pleasure to work with, well organized, and eager to provide valuable tips regarding your travel. I would not hesitate to use Sharon's services again for another future trip and I highly recommend her.

Sharon has worked with us for many years, giving us vacations of a lifetime. We splurge a little on private transportation, and Sharon's prompt planning has never failed. We just had a flawless trip to Japan, tour guides, drivers, help to trains was top notch. Never worried about being late or left behind. Will always use Sharon and her travel expertise for all of our travels. She is a find!

This was our first European trip for my husband and I and my dream was to celebrate my 40th Birthday in Italy. Sharon paid attention to every detail and answered every question I had about Italy. We traveled for 10 days but only had eight days in Italy and she made sure we had everything we wanted in those eight days. She planned the best lodging for us based on all we wanted to see and do, and the stays were perfect. She had numerous suggestions for tours, restaurants, things to see and do in every city. We visited Rome, Florence and Venice and traveling to each city was seamless with Sharon’s help. Throughout our trip, I referenced Sharon’s suggestions many times and we had the best experience. We had a chance to see all the great sites and had some wonderful time exploring. We couldn’t have had this experience in Italy without Sharon helping us along the way. We are truly grateful for her expertise. It was the best trip of our lives!

Sharon did a fantastic job planning our Rome trip. She is very knowledgeable about where to eat, how to get tour tickets. She even helped find us a hotel room with a king bed and AC. She had an amazing itinerary laid out, plus suggestions on travel tips, and what to pack. I would definitely have Sharon help with your Rome vacation

We enjoyed working with Sharon. She was very knowledgeable regarding trips that fit into what we wanted explore. We would highly recommend her!

Sharon was outstanding to work with. As two new travelers to Italy, Sharon's trip plan made our trip effortless. Her experience of Italy and the very helpful trip tips that she provided made our navigating Rome, Florence, Tuscany and Amalfi a breeze.

Sharon was so easy to work with. She listened to all our wishes for our vacation and made it happen. She's quick to respond and definitely put my mind at easy on this huge vacation endeavor. She has great recommendations and a wonderful network to get you where you need to go and see the things you want to see. Thank you so much Sharon for a vacation we'll remember forever!!

Working with Sharon was a wonderful experience!! Her knowledge of Italy and enthusiasm for travel adventures in Italy made our trip!! We could not have planned such a trip ourselves, her help and recommendations made this a trip of a lifetime!!

Sharon prepared us very well for our trip! We are pretty inexperienced travelers and we were able to navigate everything thanks to her preparation of us!

This was my second trip I had Sharon set me up with. The first trip was a group tour to the UK. I decided I wanted to go to Italy so I called Sharon. She set me up this time on a Trip to Rome, Florence, Pompeii, Sorento and the Amafi coast
I did this trip by myself and Sharon set up all the tranportation I needed and instruction on how to get around. Everything went smoothly with no problems. I want to go back to Italy in June and will have Sharon set me up on that trip too.

Sharon is very knowledgeable on everything Italy

Sharon was with us from the initial planning of our vacation to sharing post-adventure. She checked in with us several times during our planning to make sure everything was addressed. Sharon is very professional and personable. Her years in the travel industry are reflected in her knowledge and attention to detail. She has a passion for travel and sharing it with others.

It was great working with Sharon for our first trip to Italy, she had a vast knowledge of the area and was so helpful throughout our experience. We loved all her recommendations for places to see, eat and explore. And her tips and tricks were super helpful/handy when we needed them. We had an incredible time and are so grateful to Sharon for all her help planning our trip! We can't wait to go back to Italy!

Sharon was such an amazing resource for information. All of Sharon's suggestions were exceptional. She was also super friendly, easygoing and very responsive every time we had a question. We would never have been able to plan such an amazing vacation by ourselves. Would recommend 1000%

Sharon was a wonderful advisor as we prepared our trip to Tuscany. Her knowledge and breadth of information made the trip seamless. Terrific suggestions of what to see and the best way to see the sites.

Sharon, is very professional and has an extensive knowledge of Italy. All of the accommodations, and tours she booked for us were excellent. I will definitely be using Sharon’s services in the future.

Sharon has helped us plan several trips to Europe in the last few years. Every trip has been beyond our expectations with hotel, transportation and guides being top notch. We love using the information Sharon has to formulate an exceptional travel experience!

Sharon was very helpful in planning our trip. We began organizing this tour with Globus Tours in 2019 but had to postpone our plans due to covid. We began working again with Sharon putting a trip together in 2023. Sharon is very knowledgeable concerning Italy and the entire process went very smooth. She was always quick to respond to any questions we had. I would highly recommend Sharon's service in planning a trip to Italy.

Sharon was extremely helpful and knowledgeable in planning our trip to Italy. She helped us find some amazing hotels that we loved plus book private drivers that we needed. She’s easy to work with, knowledgeable and gave us some helpful tips and ideas of places to go.

Working with Sharon was great!! She helped from beginning to end and helped with the flight as well.

We will definitely be contacting Sharon for assistance with future trips.

Sharon was excellent to work with. Sharon’s knowledge of Italy was beyond spectacular. We followed her instructions and her recommendations. The hotel selections were fantastic. We had the most wonderful experience and vacation in Italy. I would highly recommend using Sharon for your travel needs.

Sharon always kept us updated with an changes to the trip, and also did everything possible when we had problems with our outgoing flight and luggage.

Sharon was wonderful to work with! She was always very helpful and efficient! We would highly recommend her!

As usual, a delightful experience! She was able to find a much better flight out to our cruise and made sure we had all requisite plans and documentation in hand before we departed. We were free to enjoy our vacation!

Very professional, and on top of every situation very prompt felt as you were in very good hands

Sharon Oldham is an absolutely wonderful travel agent to work with for planning your next vacation! We spoke briefly about my destinations, dates, and a few other details about what I was wanting to include in my vacation plans. Sharon went to work immediately and within 2-3 days she had an itinerary nailed down that included hotels, private drivers for pickup and drop-off in and out of airports, train stations and hotels, as well as reservations/tickets for flights and trains into other cities/countries. She has extensive knowledge of traveling to Europe and provided invaluable information to my many questions, which included everything from currency, packing, details on the train systems, tipping, and tour information. We visited 3 different countries and having Sharon plan it all took the stress off of me. We had a fabulous vacation thanks to Sharon's precision planning and attention to details. Sharon was a pleasure to work with and I look forward to working with her in the fut

Very professional

We were trying to book our trip to Florence and Rome , Italy through our AAA membership but they had no ability to meet with us as they were overbooked which was extremely frustrating. And then we found Sharon! What a blessing. Sharon was so knowledgeable of Italy, proper etiquette, tips on how to make the most of our trip etc. We gave her a list of the things we wanted to see and do and she put an amazing itinerary together for us. We did not want to stand in line for any of the tours so we bought the semi private skip the lines tickets and what a perfect way to go. All of our tours were on time, all of our transfers were prompt and polite. Everything worked like clockwork. Sharon kept in touch via email during our two weeks and followed up on everything. She also helped us with our overlays in Munich and Zurich and train tickets etc. We will definitely use Sharon again as the trip was seemless. THANK YOU SHARON!

Sharon was amazing to work with. She spent time understanding what we were looking for in our first Italy vacation as well as offered suggestions. She put together an entire two week itinerary, lined up, hotels, drivers, tours, trains, planes and a cruise. She has everything attached in an app designed especially for your travels. Every day we would open up the app and there our tickets and reservations were attached. It was so incredibly easy and organized. Sharon is very knowledgeable on Italy, she explained everything very clearly and gave us many useful tips. We had the BEST time traveling Italy. She made our family vacation worry free, we will definitely use her on our next Italy trip. I would highly recommend her to anyone that is planning a trip to Italy! Grazie Sharon

Sharon is an expert on all aspects of Italy and she speaks fluent Italian. She found us the perfect tour in the Tuscany region and had many suggestions of things we should see. She made us reservations at a great, centrally located hotel in Florence and provided advanced tickets for a two museum tour. Her knowledge of Italy is amazing and every detail of our trip was expertly handled. We could not have done it without her! Give her a call. You won't be disappointed!

Sharon was with us every step of our planning. She certainly allayed my anxiety, made extremely helpful suggestions and made the entire process pain free and easy.

Sharon helped me plan my first trip traveling solo. This was a huge deal for me and Sharon recommended the perfect tour for me (Gourmet Italy). Sharon worked with me every step on the way, from the inception to the very end (even keeping track of me when I was in Italy!) She always took the time to answer all my questions and ensured I was properly prepared. I can never thank her enough and wholeheartedly recommend her.

Sharon is knowledgeable, detail oriented and responsive. On top of that she is just a delightful person! Thank you (again) Sharon for making our vacation fun and as trouble free as it is possible to get! We went to Sandals Grande St. Lucian and the resort and staff exceeded our expectations.

Sharon has provided her travel services to us several times now. I wouldn't use anyone else. Each trip has been amazing with hotels, guides, drivers, and information. A real travel professional who knows her craft.

Sharon was amazing, patient and worked to understand our needs in a short timeframe. She provided excellent information and tips to make our trip a once in a lifetime experience. I would reach out to her again in a heartbeat!

Sharon was great to work with, always followed up to make sure there were no problems when I traveled

Sharon was very professional and knowledgeable. She fully prepared us for everything we encountered.

Wonderful experience. Sharon leaves no stone unturned and follows up throughout the travel experience. Great suggestions and recommendations.

This was out first trip consulting an advisor and we are glad it was Sharon! Her expertise and experience at our destination was extremely useful during our planning. Everything she recommended wound up being great, and what she recommended against, we wish we would have listened to her better!

I enjoyed working with Sharon! She was very knowledgeable and shared useful information and gave good recommendations for our trip.

We really enjoyed working with Sharon to plan our trip to the Panama Canal on Princess Cruise Lines. This was our first cruise and we were full of questions. Sharon took all the time we needed to answer our questions so we understood what to expect. We would highly recommend Sharon to help you plan your travels

Sharon Oldham is truly the Italy expert! She partnered with me to plan my dream trip to Italy in March-April 2022 and it was absolutely amazing! She recommended a tour group for me, based on my "wish list" and set up my flight arrangements as well. Since the industry was just re-opening in early 2022 following 2 years of COVID restrictions, she kept me up to date on any and all changes and guided me through. She also provided invaluable tips and information for me to maximize my Italy experience. If you are interested in going to Italy, I would highly recommend working with Sharon - she will not steer you wrong!

Couldn’t have had a better guide on our trip thru Tuscany region and lake como. Sharon knows Italy and the language like the back of her hand. Wonderful going to all the best spots Sharon knew. We can’t say enough about how great she made our trip.

We had two fabulous weeks because of Sharon's knowledge and guidance. Great plane seats for LONG flight, good car, suggested and scheduled a superb Wine Tour, enrolled us in an incredible Italian Cooking Class and 8 more days of trips to little Tuscan and Umbrian Towns she suggested. She gave so many details about the little towns we were able to understand why they were special and then SEE those features. Great restaurant suggestions, I mean seriously, she made this our best trip to Italy and we had been twice before. She is a gem. USE HER!!

I recently had the very good fortune to be part of a tour of Sicily organized and led by Sharon Oldham. The tour, which consisted of 10 ladies, was extremely well organized and comprehensive. We literally encircled the entire island from Palermo to Agrigento to Taormina, visiting the major UNESCO World Heritage sites along the way, as well as Mt. Etna. Sharons's expertise in the Italian language and culture was an invaluable addition to the trip. her love for Sicily and all things Italian was very much in evidence. With the constant flow of information from her, prior to the trip, I knew I was in good hands. She truly is a hands on travel agent with meticulous attention to detail. I know I will avail myself of her travel services again soon.

Sharon was integral in making our Rome Trip a blast. Even though we were first time Europe travelers with 2 small children, Sharon's expert advice and recommendations made the trip organized and easy. I would recommend her highly and will use her in the future!

Sharon has tremendous experience in Italy travel and was a tremendous help planning the details of our 5 weeks trip in Tuscany. She has knowledge and contacts and great recommendations which completed our plans and gave us experiences we would have otherwise probably missed. The provider she uses has the most flexibility and selection of any day tours you would need, and all five of our booked tours went off with little or no complications. Even her driving tips were important!

While I generally like to travel, the booking details and research to find the best - or even acceptable - deals are challenging and frustrating for me. Sharon has a knack for getting the essence of your travel objectives, conducting her own research then giving you several options from which to chose. We were so pleased with our first trip that I booked an upcoming trip to Europe with her without a second thought.

Sharon is an amazing travel planner. She is very knowledgeable and knows how to get the best value for her clients. She planned a fun and relaxing Italy/England trip last year including an ocean crossing on the Queen Mary 2. Every detail was perfectly planned. We were so pleased with her service,we are using her again this year for England/Ireland.

Sharon,
We have made it back from Italy. We had a great time and owe a lot to you for the tremendous help and tips you gave us! Having you help us plan our trip of a lifetime was one of the best decisions we made. From booking our hotels, train tickets and tours, everything went very smoothly. Loved Firenze! Between its rich culture, history and then the beautiful churches, monuments, museums, the Arno River, the panoramic views from Piazzale Michelangelo, Tuscany, all of it was breathtaking! Thank you for recommending that we stay the time we did there.Emilia Romagna region was everything we thought it would be. The food was FABULOUS! The Bologna Cooking Class was amazing! We will definitely recommend you to any of our friends going to Italy or Europe. We will be back in touch so you can help us plan our next international trip! Sharon, you were absolutely wonderful, helpful, informative, patient and available when we needed you.
Grazie Mille!
Lori & Michael

Sharon was very informative with booking our Cruise with Carnival. She gave lots of useful tips and was over all very efficient. I will be using her for future vacation planning.

We just came back from a totally fabulous 16 days in Italy thanks to Sharon. She listened intently to our input and helped us select our destinations to fit our criteria and tailored the details to fit our specific interests and special needs; had suggestions for our unscheduled time; sent links to language videos and restaurant reviews; provided tips on phones, currency exchange, electricity -- she answered questions before I knew to ask them. She is a walking encyclopedia about Italy! She responded promptly to all my questions and last-minute issues. I can't imagine taking this trip without Sharon's help, she will always stand out in my memory as all we could ever want and need from a travel agent and then some. She is the best.

Sharon found us the perfect trip that fit into our busy schedule and that visited all the cities we wanted to see. She was amazing to work with!

Sharon is exceedingly professional and very knowledgable. She is a very positive person and treats clients like they are best friends!

Everything was exactly as planned. All accommodations were wonderful and guides were very knowledgeable. Sharon did a magnificent job. Thanks

It was a pleasure being in Sicily with Sharon. She speaks italian and is very organized and had everything coordinated for us ahead of time.

Sharon has scheduled numerous trips for me and my friends. She listens closely to what kind of trip you want and puts all her experiences and insights into building that perfect travel event. I would use no other agent. Barbara Dalicandro

We met Sharon through a mutual friend whose trip to Italy Sharon organized. From March 2019 and through our departure in September and our return in October, she met with us, advised and guided us. She made all of the subsequent arrangements for the various forms of travel and accommodations. Sharon matched our travel plans to our interests perfectly. She was always at the ready for any questions that we had. We would not hesitate to recommend Sharon for anyone wanting to travel, especially to Italy given her in depth knowledge and experience.

Sharon Oldham has exceptional travel experience, knowlegeabale and greata communications and follow-up skills. She listens to what type of vacation your looking forward, works with us and listen to what we would like on a vacation. She is always timely with her recommendations for travel and emails are concise and very detailed, providing various choices which help us make our final decision on our vacations. We have used her all of our trips to Euriope - Italy, Germany, Fraance, and Austra. Helpuful and caring- While in Germany my husband John Gehring's mom passed away. She work with our bus tour guide as a team and arrange for us to return to US as soon as possible and expedited all the paperwork and made our hotel, plane changes quickly and were able to return the safest and quickest way possible. This is a difficult time to be in another country one family members pass away and she made our lives so much easier. She helped gettting the paperwork in place and so glad we had purchased travel insurance. Way to go Sharon she is a 5 Star Travel Agent for sure!

Last summer I reached out to Sharon to help me plan a 2-week solo trip to Italy. We discussed timing, my budget and what I wanted to get out of the trip. She very promptly proposed an itinerary, and I was thrilled with her recommendations. She arranged everything: flights, train ticket, hotel bookings, drivers, excursions and even printed maps which highlighted great restaurants, shops and cafes. From the moment I arrived at SFO to catch my flight, everything ran smoothly. I started in Florence where she selected a great hotel with a charming view of the city and a 5 minute walk to Il Duomo. Excellent location and no need to drive. I loved my Skip the Line tickets which saved me a lot of time at the museums. If I had tried to arrange the museum visits on my own, I would have lost precious time. My trip included a day hike through Cinque Terre (excellent!!!), a 3-day stay in a medieval town in the wine country, Radda in Chianti, a train ride into Naples, a wonderful drive and boat ride through the Amalfi Coast and a relaxing stay in beautiful Sorrento. The staff at the hotels was friendly and helpful. She provided tips about places to visit or activities that the locals engage in which allowed me to experience the authentic Italian lifestyle. Sharon would periodically check in on me to ensure that all of my needs were being met. The customer service that I received from her was simply impeccable. I work long, long hours and never would have had the time or resources to plan this type of trip. I give Sharon an A+ for setting up this vacation of my dreams. I intend to return to Italy to explore further and will not hesitate to reach out to Sharon again.

Sharon arranged and took us on a magnificent tour of Sicily. The hotels were excellent, the arranged meals delicious, and the guided tours absolutely wonderful!

Sharon planned every detail of our complex trip which included train trips, foreign airports, hotel, and all the connections, including a cruise, in between. For each aspect of the trip, she gave us specific recommendations for how to proceed, what to look for and how to get from one area to another. In addition, she suggested safety tips for certain areas such as keeping luggage in view at all times. This was such a fun and smooth trip, thanks to Sharon's expertise and thoughtfulness!

Sharon goes above and beyond when planning trips. Several trips were to a place I had been before, but I had wonderful new experiences each time. The hotels she selected were always exceptional and restaurants and tours were perfect. The people she worked with, ie tour guides, provided us with wonderful experiences and they provided so much valuable information. One thing that really stands out about Sharon is that she is so knowledgable about every place we went. I felt so comfortable everywhere because of her expertise. I have recommended Sharon to friends and family and have only heard the most wonderful responses from them. Sharon is very professional-she has information about every aspect of travel and if she doesn't know something at first, she researches it and gets back to you immediately with accurate information. I would highly recommend Sharon Oldham to anyone!

We felt we were in very good hands. Sharon attends to every detail.

I had a great experience planning my life long dream trip to Italy with Sharon. She was very responsive to every request and every change my cousin and I made along the way. We were happy with all the accommodations and the tours that she booked for us. She even translated emails between my cousin in Italy and myself. I can't wait to plan y next trip with her.

If you are looking forward to a carefree, well-planned vacation, Sharon is the person you want. Her specialty is travel in Italy and because of her own extensive travel there, she knows the country in all its beautiful turns. She also speaks the language, which is an added bonus. I have had the pleasure of experiencing several trips she has planned and, and her attention to detail from lodging, to transportation and transfers, and knowledge of the not so well traveled tourist sites is refreshing. She has a wealth of information and her number one goal is the comfort and ease of her clients.