Film & TV Locations in Sicily

Mario,

It’s hard for me to put into words the incredible trip you provided me, my sister, my brother in law and my two oldest children. I hope that I can convey it when I post your review. You and your team were truly a God send. The logistics and accommodations you provided were first class. What really truly mattered the most were the people you put us in contact with. What great, great people! They were all so, so excellent in every way. They all had great things to say about you and your team. I’m also in the customer service business and what separates us and you from the competition is our people. Relationships. It’s obvious you have built relationships with fantastic, competent people which is a reflection of you and your company’s values and character. Bravo! Once again, I thank you and your team from the bottom of my heart. Gracia and Aferisto!!

Sincerely,
Orlando

Recently we booked an Italian trip through Mario and Bellarome and to say it exceeded our expectations is an understatement.
The trip went faultlessly with all pick ups and drop offs excellent. All drivers were professional yet friendly and engaging.
We had private tours throughout the main cities and attractions, the guides were amazing!! The depth of knowledge enhanced our trip and we also enjoyed being taken to some lesser know spots that other tourists may have missed. We developed a lovely connection as they were all very likeable people.
The accommodation were all well located and very true to Italian style that we were expecting, full of charm and character.
We would definitely use Bellarome in the future and recommend to others to take the stress out of booking this type of trip. Mario thank you for a wonderful and memorable trip...

My trip could not have been better had I written the script for it myself. Mario Fortini, from Bellarome Italian Vacations, was a pleasure to work with and was extremely attentive to all of our concerns. The hotels he selected for us were all beautiful and conveniently located to area attractions. The drivers were friendly and prompt and the guides for our excursions could not have been nicer and more professional. During the trip I was required to contact his emergency number once due to a mess up in the scheduling of a tour that was out of his control. He answered my call immediately and quickly resolved the problem to our utmost satisfaction. Mario also availed himself via "WhatsApp" should we have a question for him during our trip. This was a dream vacation and I credit Mario for making it go as well as it did.

Mario plans terrific trips. He listens carefully to us and then puts together a wonderful holiday. He has planned two trips for us and both were great.

Absolutely fantastic—— everything was scheduled and proceeded like clockwork. Our agent's suggestions were perfect and my wife and I had a wonderful experience in Italy—- thanks to our agent and everyone he lined up to take care of us!!

Our tour guides were the best!!

Absolutely wonderful, from the beginning to the end. He was so generous with is time, making special requests happen, easy to get a hold of as well as he came to visit us at the end of our trip! He is amazing!

Mario put together a perfect honeymoon for us! He listened to our requests and put together a truly memorable trip that included excellent accommodation, seamless transfers, and a great balance or organized activities and leisure days. The trip planner was communicative and available when we had questions. It was a great experience and I would recommend Mario to my friends!

It was a great experience working with Mario. He did a fantastic job planning our trip, was quick to answer our emails leading up to it, and was very responsive if we needed him during our trip. It was flawlessly planned and executed by Mario. Will definitely recommend his services.

Mario you are a star, thank you so much for making our vacation so special. From first phone call, all the way through, until we arrived back home you were incredible. Your knowledge of Italy, your patience with our many requests and requirements, your flexibility, all amazing. We have never experience a travel service like this before, you're set-up is so impressive. We loved Venice, Florence and the Amalfi Coast but your home city of Rome is our favorite. We will be back! Thank you again.

Phenomenal experience with Mario Fortini. An epic adventure of Italy. The magic of Venice, the renaissance of Florence and Mario's home town of Rome were enjoyed in an authentic way! This country is amazing. Simply put and I implore everyone to visit Italy and if you do contact Mario. Turly superb!

Mario was fantastic from start to finish, trip was well planned for an Italy tour and family vacation. Mario was available for any changes or advice during travel by a simple text. Mario has a very deep knowledge of Italy and selects only the most experienced guides and he has complete trust in their abilities. Mario is the best pick for Italy!

We've used Mario at Bellarome many time and visited many places over the years . This trip we visited beautiful Sicily. We allocated 2 weeks to see as much of Sicily as possible. We visited Palermo, Marsala, Agrigento, Taormina, Mt Etna, Siracusa, Ragusa, Ortigia and Catania and more. It is a incredible island!

Mario is amazing to work with. He plans custom vacations so you can travel with friends or family and still designs your trip around your interests. He recently planned a trip to Italy and Sicily for our group of six. We had different interests, so some days we were together other times with our own personal guide and driver. Everything is first class!

We enjoyed an exceptional vacation with Bellarome Travel in September/October. We visited Rome, Tuscany, Venice, Zurich and Paris. Having a private guide for our guided tours was brilliant. All the guides were absolute experts, with history degrees, and made sure we knew what it was we were looking at and they we didn't miss anything. We are already considering a visit to the British Isles next year or 2023 with Bellarome.

We had the trip of a lifetime with thanks to the expertise and knowledge of Mario Fortini at Bellarome Travel. Mario has incredible knowledge of Europe and it was a real pleasure to have our trip organised by such an expert. For this trip we visited Italy - any future trip to Europe we will on be calling Mario!!!

We would absolutely recommend Bellarome and Mario. We had a unforgettable trip to Italy and Greece. We saw Rome, Tuscany, Venice, Athens and Santorini. So much beauty. Amazing culture, delicious food. We met wonderful people and stayed in great accommodations. We can't wait to return to Europe and will do so with Mario's services!

Mario at Bellarome did an outstanding job from planning to execution! We had a group of 13 people and gave Mario some ideas of what we wanted to do and ended up with a tailored vacation that everyone loved. We started in Rome for 3 days to see historic sites and attended an Italian Cooking Class with Chef Andrea Consoli www.cookingclassesinrome.com ... a big hit!
Next was Viareggio a beach town in Tuscany region for 2 days. Loved the boardwalk, night life and rooftop pool at Grand Hotel Principe di Piemonte. Last 2 days were spent in Florence in heart of the city and within walking distince to sites and shopping. Our last day was spent at a winery tour and tasting in Chianti.
Again, Mario and Bellarome collaborated with us from the start, listened to our input and crafted a custom tour for us that our 3 families will never forget! Great tour guides, hotels and never had to worry about transportation. Thank you for an outstanding trip!

We just returned from a two week stay in Italy using Bellarome Ltd. We could not have asked for a better experience. Mario's advice and recommendations created a travel experience that far surpassed the expectations of everyone in our group of 6 travelers. Our drivers were punctual, knowledgeable and accommodating. Our hotels were fabulously appointed and perfectly located in the heart of each of our destinations. Our tour guides were incredible resources of knowledge into the culture and history of each area we stayed. The excursions Mario recommended were marvelous introductions to Italy and it's delightful people. Mario and his staff were attentive throughout our stay with any need that arose or any question we had. We would highly recommend Bellarome Ltd. when planning to travel to Italy. We will certainly plan to connect with them again should we be so fortunate as to ever have another opportunity to return to Italy. Thank you so much Mario!

Mario and his team expertly crafted a remarkable custom itinerary for our group, ensuring every detail was tailored to our interests. We thank everyone for an incredible trip! Our stay at the Hotel Politeama with its great location across from the Teatro Massimo, provided us with an ideal base-offering easy access to shopping and excellent restaurants. Our experience was greatly enhanced by Operations Manager Federica, whose professional, personable, and enthusiastic presence added a special touch throughout the trip. She consistently went above and beyond, surprising us with unique experiences that we would not have discovered on our own. A visit to the Archives of Palermo with research requested via Bellarome Tours was incredible, verifying our ancestors’ documents was priceless. The local guides in Palermo, Cefalù, and Monreale were outstanding-delivering in-depth, knowledgeable commentary at a comfortable pace that kept the group engaged and interested. Visits to our heritage cit

Lex here from Cambridge, MA. My wife and I had a great vacation arranged a booked via Bellarome and Mario Fortini. All arrangements went without a hitch. We started in Venice and worked down through Florence and Rome to Sicily. My wife and I are open to new adventures and experiences wherever we go and we got that in abundance in Italy. We met great people along the way and consumed far to much Italian food and wine! Thanks Mario.

Mario helped us exceed our expectations for our trip to Italy. He tailored our vacation from our flights arriving in Italy all the way back home. Everything was spot on with transfers, guides and amazing hotels. He also recommended restaurants and made reservations for any location we would want to dine at that night. I highly recommend using Mario and Bellaroma for your vacation to Italy. You will not be disappointed!

Mario and his group are second to none! The proof is that we have used Mario’s company for all of our trips since 2015 and will again next year. We are ALWAYS extremely satisfied!

The trip Mario planned for us was incredible; it far exceeded our expectations. He clearly listened to us during the planning process. It was a truly custom trip rather than a boilerplate itinerary with a few modifications.
Hotels and apartments were all exactly the type of accommodations we prefer and in perfect locations.
Restaurants were wonderful and again, beyond our expectations. Most were clearly frequented by local residents and not completely focused on tourists. We would not have been able to find these restaurants on our own.

Our local guides were excellent. The drivers were prompt and helpful, the vehicles spotless and comfortable.

Constant availability of Bellaroma staff via WhatsApp was reassuring and made slight modifications easy. The logistics were impressive.

I would recommend Bellaroma without hesitation.

Amazing trip to Italy and Greece with Mario at Bellarome. We had to wait a coupe of years to take this trip because of the pandemic. Mario was informative, professional and so helpful throughout the whole process!!

I must admit that I was a little nervous about using a travel company that I found on the internet but Mario was better than Well known companies that we have used in the past. He planned a great trip The drivers and the guides were knowledgeable, on time and a pleasure to be with. Mario and his staff Roberta and Diego were VERY responsive to any questions or issues that came up . Hotels were wonderful and of course Sicily is beautiful and fascinating. We are so pleased. It was a perfect trip

He was very good to work with, prompt, and a great transportation & execution team!!!

What a great trip with the expert aid of Signor Fortini! All elements were perfectly arranged as we traveled from the US to Europe through France and Italy. I can only highly recommend the vacations by Signor Fortini.

We have booked 6 trips with Mario, and each one was perfect. Every service he has provided for us has been memorable. His staff, the private guides, the drivers have all been class acts. We keep in touch with Mario and many of the people who work with and for them as they now treat us like family. Mario and staff are always available throughout our trips to give advice, solve problems and just to check ion. This past year he made my birthday in Siracusa a day I’ll never forget!! Our accommodations are 4 star beautiful places- we would return to any of them in a heartbeat. Our most recent trip was to Sicily after traveling to many parts of Italy in past years. We fell in love with this beautiful island, the people and the food. That was all thsnks to Mario’s exquisite plans!! I would recommend Mario and his services to anyone who desires a fabulous vacation.

Good experience with Mario. Everything as planned. No complaints.

Great trip to France and Italy was fantastic. Everything was arranged perfectly. Our favorite spot was Sorrento and Positano! We even managed to visit the town where our ancestors are from - which Bellarome arranged for us.

Mario and his team are very easy to deal with, answered all our questions promptly, gave us great ideas,made changes to our itinerary several times The guides, drivers and tours he customized for us were perfect, they were so knowledgeable, kind and patient. WE had high expectations that were met and exceeded. Even after we booked and were in Italy Mario answered any questions or concerns we had. I highly recommend this agency they made our Trip of a Lifetime stress free Thank you Mario!!

Exceeded expectations! Mario is friendly, professional, knowledgeable and patient. We will refer him to all of our friends.

From the beginning, Mario was very attentive. He wanted our trip to Italy to be the best trip of our lives! He was available 24/7. He was able to make last minute changes to our itinerary to accommodate our needs. The hotels were the best, the food was phenomenal and the sites were spectacular! Our guides in Italy all spoke English and were all happy to show us their beautiful country. Wish we could have stayed longer to discover more of Italy!

Thank you to Mario Fortini for the amazing five-star trip to Sicily and Rome. Your staff throughout this experience were knowledgeable, friendly and extremely helpful. We had given you (what we thought) the impossible task of locating my husband's grandfather and any family members with very little information. Not only did you find the information we had been wanting, but you also located was his home, church, birth record, neighbors and distant relative. In addition, we found out that his birthday was May 18, not May 16 which we always celebrated, which was one of the highlights of the trip. Each day brought another incredible tour with prompt drivers, knowledgeable guides and delicious local hidden gems for lunch. Again, a very heartfelt thank you for the trip of a lifetime.

Our trip with Bellarome was spectacular! Every detail was perfectly designed - the transportation, accommodations, tours, etc. Mario & his team were very flexible to accommodate our preferences. The heritage component was so meaningful for our family. We fell in love with all of our tour guides (Helena, Marilou, Guida, Claudio), our drivers and especially Federica B! We highly recommend Bellarome Travel and will definitely use them again for future travel.

We had such an amazing trip to Italy. Everything from the airport arrival to departure was taken care of by Mario and his team at Bellarome Travel Worldwide. They were always available for any questions we had as a group. The guides and drivers for every event were punctual, professional and very knowledgeable. The accommodations were amazing. The food was incredible and the tours were amazing. We could not have managed a trip like this by ourselves. I highly recommend Mario and his team. Let them coordinate a trip of a lifetime. We look forward to our next trip.

Bellarome was absolutely the best. They were so attentive to all of our needs and had every tour set up perfectly. I couldn't ask for anything more.

Our recent trip was spectacular, thanks to Bellarome. We started with a simple wish to see major sites, and Bellarome crafted an unforgettable journey. Their tour guides were knowledgeable and engaging, the hotels were luxurious yet charming, and the chosen locations were perfect. A standout feature was the WhatsApp help desk. With multiple admins always on hand, we received prompt assistance for everything from last-minute dinner bookings to tour rescheduling, making our travel seamless and enjoyable. Bellarome has certainly won our loyalty for future European travels. Their exemplary service has set a high standard.

When we first spoke with Mario we were all impressed by his willingness to work within our budget while at the same time providing us with the best travel experience possible. Mario was friendly, courteous, responsive and extremely helpful in putting together our itinerary. Mario was always available to answer questions and to provide additional guidance and direction. Each time we made adjustments, Bellarome provided us with a new detailed  itinerary. Mario's team also reached out to us each day of our trip via WhatsApp and provided us with an outline of the next day's plans. What a great use of WhatsApp - A+ to Mario and Bellarome travel.

We all highly recommend Mario and Bellarome travel.

Mario was responsive to my questions and his team is topnotch. Guides at each stop knowledgeable and fun.

Huge thank you to @Bellarome1 for an amazing trip to Italy for my wife & my 25th anniversary.

Every facet of the trip was perfect - if you are interested in traveling to Italy or Europe, I would highly recommend Mario Fortini & the whole team at Bellarome Travel.

Was very personal and pleasure from first contact

We had the pleasure of traveling with Bellarome for a 14 day trip to Rome and Sicily in May and June of 2024. They were absolutely wonderful to work with from start to finish and made us feel like VIP clients. Every need was thought of and taken care of for us so we could enjoy and maximize our vacation in Rome and Sicily. trip to the fullest. We were treated and cared for like VIPs and maximized our time in Sicily we are very happy and pleased with Bella Rome and will use the company again for our extraordinary travel plans. I have told my family and friends they should come to Sicily and use Bellarome for an incredible time in a beautiful country.

Our trip to Italy was just wonderful. Mario and his staff planned a wonderful trip for us. Every hotel, tour, tour guide, and connecting transportation were all first rate.
If you're planning a trip to Italy. Bellarome Travel is the place to start.

Our family planned this trip to Sicily to see where our ancestors came from over 100 years ago. Everything was wonderful. The food was fantastic and the included lunches/dinners were at great restaurants. All our tour guides were both knowledgeable and a lot of fun. When we needed to make a few changes to the itinerary while we were in Sicily Bella Rome was very accommodating. Overall it was a fantastic experience and we would highly recommend Bella Rome to anyone traveling to Sicily/Italy.

It was a pleasure working with Mario. He is so nice and makes you feel so comfortable even when you are constantly making changes. I would definitely recommend Mario. He planned a wonderful trip for us and we all enjoyed every minute of it. He is very helpful and a very nice person.

Mario and his team were fantastic. They planned the perfect trip to Italy for us. We had to delay the trip due to Covid but Mario went out of his way to work with us. The guides were friendly and knowledgeable. I would absolutely book another trip with Mario and his team. Thank you for a wonderful vacation.

AMAZING...from start to finish, he was responsive to my emails, any changes that i made to the itinerary, his recommendations were amazing, i did some research and was informed, but he added places and sites that i knew nothing about. The experiences, and places, were authentic, and the guides and drivers, treated me like family.

Mario and his team responded immediately to all inquiries, large or small, from beginning to end. Mario is a great listener and helped us to craft an incredible trip. Guides and drivers were always excellent - knowledgeable, punctual, kind and enjoyable to be with. I highly recommend Mario and the Bellaroma team. Fantastic!

We had a fabulous Tuscan vacation, spent time staying in Florence and in a beautiful villa in the Tuscan countryside. We were able to see Florence, Lucca, Siena, San Gimignano, Pisa and much more. We had a delightful wine tasting experience in Chianti. We ate lots of delicious food. Italy is our favorite country to visit!

Great trip! I would happily recommenced Mario and his company to anyone visiting Italy and Greece. His knowledge and expertise is amazing!

This was our second experience with Mario. Our first was outstanding and set the bar high for the second trip. Once again, he exceeded our expectations. Every aspect of our trip ran like clockwork. There is only one word to describe the kind of service Mario provides- Perfection!

We have traveled to Europe over 20 times planning our own trips and renting a car. Following the Covid, we wanted to reduce stress by having a travel advisor. We found Bellarometravels on an internet search for luxury small group travel. At first, we were going to rent a car and have the travel agent plan the rest. Mario highly suggested that since many of the historical treasures of Sicily are in the bigger towns that we let him arrange for a driver. This was a great suggestion since the larger towns are hard to navigate and park. He asked for a daily average budget and planned an excellent, private (just us) itinerary including experienced, local guides, professional drivers in clean cars, and lunches at local restaurants. All the transfers between drives and guides were seamlessly orcherested by our point-person, Frederica, who was in contact with us daily. Having a driver and local guides took most of the stress out of our wonderful trip. Highly recommended

This was our first trip to Europe with Mario and the Bellarome Travel team made it a fantastic experience. We enjoyed being able to customize the trip to our particular needs and requirements. We got the exact type of hotels we like. Also, the excursions were ideally tailored to our interests.

We had a great vacation with Bellarome Travel and Mario. 3 couples and we thoroughly enjoyed the private and personal attention we got before during and after the trip. Mario was on hand throughout the trip on the end of the phone. We had a few questions throughout the trip ad Mario was always available with an answer. We visited Rome, Florence, Tuscany, Venice and Milan all in one trip. We will certainly be in contact with Mario and Bellarome Travel for our next European adventure.

So glad I chose to work with Mario and his team for our trip to Italy and Greece. Everything was perfectly planned we got an amazing experience. We were originally meant to travel in 2020 but couldn't because of the pandemic and Mario was so accommodating throughout the experience and re planned for us for September this year.

We had a fantastic 7 days in northern Italy organized by Mario. Stay in Milan, Lake Como and Maggiore. We only wish it was longer as we didn't want to leave on the last day! The country is so beautiful, the people kind and the food and wine wine unbeatable! Mario at Bellarome made the trip go without a hitch!

Planning was fun and very easy. We originally scheduled our trip in 2020, but that could not happen. The agency was helpful and accommodating when we were ready to reschedule. Mario was patient and helpful with all of the details. Communication with Mario was uncomplicated and easy to schedule via phone or email. Thanks for all of your help in creating a great trip for us.

Mario really was a pleasure to work with from first call to the call after we arrive back in Indiana after our epic adventure to my grandparents homeland. We saw lots of the sights of mainland Italy from Milan, to Venice, Florence, Rome and down to the Amalfi. We would like to return to see more of the south and Sicily. No where is better for food and culture and the people were great. Everything was perfectly arranged by Mario. Grazie mille Mario!

Top class experience with Mario. He is more like a hands on concierge service provider combined with a travel provider. He was always on had throughout the whole experience. We are rather demanding customers and no request or requirement was too much. And questions were clearly and knowledgeably answered. Just perfect.

Thank you so much for planning for my family and our trip to Italy. The drivers and tours guided were magnificent. You selected wonderful hotels and restaurants. They were even so kind to accommodate the small children who often decided that they hated pasta — while eating their bowls pasta.

Again, your team enabled my mom, Linda Nienstadt, to see her dream of a four generational family trip become a beautiful reality.

Mario is personable and professional, with an obvious command of what makes for a great travel experience. In our visits to Vienna and Sicily we were especially pleased with the caliber and expertise of Mario's cadre of tour guides and drivers, who often went above and beyond to be responsive to our specialized travel needs.

Mario is a wonderful, caring individually that truly wants to make your experiences the best they can be. This is our second trip with Mario assisting us, and it was really great! Took the whole family and Mario was very willing to find experiences and places that the whole family loved. While on the trip, we kept asking everyone what their best day was, and we frequently stated that the current day was the best. It just kept getting better. Wonderful memories! We will be utilizing Mario for our next trip. I think us being a repeat customer says it all.

Just got back from a tour of Sicily (12 nights) that Mario Fortini planned for us (2 couples). If I could give the trip 10 stars I would! Every step of the trip was on point and if anything changed, we were notified well in advance. Our chauffeurs and tour guides (there were several) were punctual and an encyclopedia of knowledge. The hotels chosen were beautiful and the staff could not have been more welcoming, professional and helpful. The included breakfasts in each hotel served a huge spread that could satisfy any palette. We, also, enjoyed several lunches that were part of the tour and each and every restaurant chosen offered a wonderful menu to choose from.
A special thank you to Roberta and Federica from the agency for following our itinerary and insuring our trip was enjoyable.
Truly an outstanding trip with wonderful memories to look back on.
Thank you, thank you to all involved in making our 50th wedding anniversary celebration spectacular!

Splendid experience with my now friend Mario at Bellarome. An amazing vacation to Sicily to discover the home of my Grandparents ! So emotional to walk the footsteps of my ancestors in the small town where they lived. We even managed to meet some distant relatives. I was brought to tears by the experience. It was truly once in a lifetime vacation, although we want to return again before we get too old!! Thank you Mario from arranging such an amazing trip.

We had a great vacation to London, Paris, Venice and Rome with Mario and his team at Bellarome. Started in London, and loved the city, with great day tours of the city and out to the Cotswolds and Oxford and to Dover and Canterbury. Then Paris, with a great city tour form Chris and also a trip or to see Versailles. In Venice we loved our tour with Davide and I am sure we would've missed a lot of what he helped us to see. And in Rome our time with Dino was great, he is an incredible guide! The Vatican was an emotional experience. Everything was great!

Constantly in Contact with us. Reported back right away. PErfect trip

Mario was easy to communicate with. We connected with the WhatsApp while in Italy, and he was great with recommendations, and prompt with any inquiries we had. Very friendly, and accommodating before, during, and after the trip.

Mario at Bellarome did an outstanding job from planning to execution! We had a group of 13 people and gave Mario some ideas of what we wanted to do and ended up with a tailored vacation that everyone loved. We started in Rome for 3 days to see historic sites and attended an Italian Cooking Class with Chef Andrea Consoli www.cookingclassesinrome.com ... a big hit!
Next was Viareggio a beach town in Tuscany region for 2 days. Loved the boardwalk, night life and rooftop pool at Grand Hotel Principe di Piemonte. Last 2 days were spent in Florence in heart of the city and within walking distince to sites and shopping. Our last day was spent at a winery tour and tasting in Chianti.
Again, Mario and Bellarome collaborated with us from the start, listened to our input and crafted a custom tour for us that our 3 families will never forget! Great tour guides, hotels and never had to worry about transportation. Thank you for an outstanding trip!