I took every available tour of Venice during my three days here. Rene beats all other guides here 10 to 1, he is simply the BEST story teller, accurate research, curious facts and attention to detail, very passionate about the city and loads to learn even for a book worm like me. If I could give him ten stars I would. He will definitely be my guide next time in Venice. You can miss out on all the other tours here but you will not have seen Venice if you don’t go on his tour. Thank you so much Rene for making this visit so special!

Book this experience, you’ll thank me later! Rene is a phenomenal story-teller and possesses such a wealth of knowledge on the history of Venice. If you want something more beyond the basic facts you learn on the mainstream history tours, this is the experience for you. He opened our eyes to a Venice we would have never seen otherwise and kept us engaged the entire time and even long after we finished the tour. From climate-change and political/socio-economic forces that shaped the city to ancient graffiti and chips on a blank stone that mean way more than you would think they do. This was, hands-down, one of the most valuable experiences we had as first-timers and lovers of history in Venice.

I discovered “History Walks in Venice” on Internet, made the contact only based on reviews and the general good impression the page gives. The response was immediate, René asking what our particular interests are (Byzantine and Ottoman contacts throughout the History) and giving us an appointment at the time and slot that accommodated us best. We spent 2 hours listening to the amazing adventure that created this city, learned about the history of Venice, discovered details engraved on the stone of bridges and walls, asked our questions- none left unanswered. René is extremely knowledgeable and his narrative is captivating- also for the two young adults that I had with me. Highly recommended, especially, as we did, at the start of your visit.

We really enjoyed our tour with René. What stood out most was the flexible and conversational nature of it, combined with René’s remarkable knowledge of Venice’s history. He took his time answering our many follow-up questions about the city’s past, politics, and architecture. He also showed us fascinating details and places of historical significance that we would have completely missed on our own.

We appreciated being able to ask questions that had come up during our individual museum visits, and René provided thoughtful, engaging context based on his broad archival knowledge.

This was a very different experience from a traditional walking tour. Instead of covering many parts of the city, we focused on rich details around the square where we met, while also discussing the broader history of Venice. It was both insightful and personal, and we highly recommend it!

We met with René after a morning of pouring rain in Venice. We were met just outside one of the churches and Rene explained the rise and development Venice with fantastic details and interesting facts. We had 5 adults and 3 children in the group, a difficult group to keep entertained. His broad knowledge ranging from architecture, arts, engineering to the aristocracy was a delight and a wonderful part of the day. We had a great time and would definitely recommend René for any of his tours.

We did a tour with Rene where he explained the history of Venice, how the water system worked, how ordinary people lived, the historical political hierarchy, trade, wars and many more fascinating things about Venice. It was so enlightening and fascinating that we immediately booked him again to do another tour the next day. His knowledge and ability to explain 1000+ years of history was incredible. He’s also a lovely person who is very easy to talk to and was happy to answer all of our random curious questions. If we come back to Venice, his tours will be a critical part of our holiday. This is not an ordinary tour. This is an experience with a real historian! Our time in Venice was enriched so much and then the following days we looked at things differently, noticing details and understanding some of the meanings in the buildings and design. Thank you Rene!

René is a spectacular storyteller and a true erudite — he spoke about history, geopolitical and economic influences that shaped Venice, the wider Adriatic area and the entire Italy, and shared many interesting details from the city’s past. We will definitely take another tour with René on our next trip to Venice.

René was such an engaging and passionate storyteller with an extraordinary depth of knowledge. Before the tour, we knew very little about European history, but Rene brought Venice’s past vividly to life. It was full of interesting facts and nuanced insights that you’d be hard-pressed to find on any other tour.