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.

We had a wonderful tour with René. He took us all around and shared the stories behind the beautiful places we were seeing. The pace was perfect for us as a family of 4 with two young children. We learned so much and it was truly a highlight of our time in Venice.

Rene really knows his stuff and showed us a number of interesting things, right there in one square! Quite a lot of history.

René is a Venetian by choice who has become a natural. He is extremely passionate about the history of this city and has abundance of knowledge. He showed us details that we wouldn’t have discovered otherwise.

René is really knowledgeable and has lots of stories to tell that will help you better understand the history of the city and how to see the city. I’ve really enjoyed my tour!

Excellent. Fun and content

The tour was packed with information. Rene really knew his stuff. We learned to spot ancient graffiti and identify the age of buildings by their architecture, and we kept thinking about these things throughout our Venice trip. The walking was less than we anticipated and I would have liked to walk a bit more, but I think Rene can tailor to his audience. I’d definitely book another tour with Rene for more insights next time I visit Venice.

René took us on his boat to the hospital ruins on Poveglia island, and we had a fantastic time exploring this beautiful lost place. Not only is René deeply versed in the lagoon’s history – his stories really brought the crumbling walls to life for us – but he also clearly cares about his community and preserving the Venetian style of living. If you want to visit Poveglia, René is your man. Thank you!

A fascinating, informative talk about the history of Venice – highly recommended! A knowledgable tour guide who was able to answer any questions, so this felt like a bespoke experience. Great storytelling, held my attention for the whole time, and the two hours flew by! Well worth it.

Rene was great

Rene knows everything about Venice. You should definitely do a tour with him, specially at the begging of your trip so you can play detective when you’re waking around the town by yourself. We asked a lot of questions about history, economy and contemporary daily life in Venice and he had very deep and complete answers for everything. I wanted to do a double tour to know more. Much more intimate and personalized experience than the big guided tours. And at the end he was so kind to walk us to the restaurant we had to go. Soooo much better than walking and looking google maps ❤️ Book it now!!

We thoroughly enjoyed our walking tour with Rene. Rene is a highly knowledgeable historian and an excellent storyteller. He gave an engaging and comprehensive account of the history of Venice, expertly using location to support his narrative. He expertly answered a diverse range of questions and engaged adults and children equally well. He was friendly, generous and accommodating. Easy to find the meeting place, and it was clear from the introduction that Rene was interested in what we already knew about Venice in order to adjust the narrative as needed. Honestly – we could not believe our luck to have joined this tour. Excellent value and gave a new dimension to our experience of Venice. Highly recommended.

Très bonne expérience. René est un fin connaisseur de l’histoire de la ville et sait parfaitement la faire partager en s’appuyant sur des détails architecturaux environnants. Peu de marche, accès facile.

René was an excellent and passionate story teller. Took us back in time with his stories. Goes into a great detail about the Venetian and world history. Highly recommend this experience.

We had an amazing time with René – he went into great depth, tracing the trade routes, histories and intermeshing timelines of Venice. We saw parts of Venice we would have completely missed otherwise. René answered all our questions with much enthusiasm and even dropped us off the water taxi, helping lug our child’s stroller in the rain. We loved every minute!

I was the only client, but Rene was just as enthusiastic as if he had a whole group. He’s very knowledgeable and focused on my interest in architecture. His sweet dog was a bonus.

Rene was a great tour guide. He’s tremendously knowledgeable about history. He’s also flexible and responds well to what the guest is most interested in.

This was a fantastic tour, one of our favourites with a detailed history of Venice. Rene was so well informed and responded to all of our questions. We loved it! Highly recommend!

Rene is fascinating, entertaining and very deeply knowledgeable. We have done two hours with him (the Lazzaretto Nuovo and around the Rialto market area) and strongly recommend.

Rene was very knowledgeable and passionate about the rich history of Venice and beyond. He is a great storyteller and knows how to engage with audiences by sharing interesting facts. We would have enjoyed it more if we had a chance to walk around the city. Standing two hours in the heat was challenging.

Attention, cette expérience n’est pas un tour dans Venise. C’est une conférence extrêmement recherchée, précise, fournie et très intéressante sur la grande Histoire et les petites histoires de Venise, à travers les prismes de la politique, la société, la sociologie. Nous sommes restés sur la même place et une rue à côté. Je m’attendais à une véritable balade avec anecdotes et Histoire, ce qui aurait été encore plus extraordinaire. C’était tout de même une expérience très enrichissante grâce à René qui n’a pas compté son temps et a su animer la matinée avec un système de questions réponses adaptées à son public.

René was great – clearly very knowledgable and enthusiastic. Flexible with us and some of the difficulties we experienced (completely unrelated to René or the tour). Recommend to history buffs and people with curious minds.

We can’t stop thinking about the first morning of our 11-day stay in Venice. How lucky we were to discover an introduction to this unique place – “History Walks in Venice: Hidden History in Plain Sight” with René Seindal. We did not need to walk much. A simple turn around the campo illustrated centuries of history — political, economic, architectural, religious — over two hours. If you care to understand what you are seeing and why it’s there, beyond the standard tourist experience, don’t hestitate to book some time with René. Grazie mille!

This was a lovely few hours! If you want to see the little things that make Venice fascinating and special, book this tour with René. While you don’t walk far, you journey deep into Venice’s past. I learned so much about the beginnings of Venice, it’s struggles (fires, crime, prostitution, nobility). René is a fantastic storyteller and history nerd (like me), so it was enjoyable for me. As a dog lover, he also brought along his adorable pup, which made the experience x10 better.