Active & Cultural Tours
in Southern Europe
WILD SAGE
What Makes Us Special
LOCAL EXPERT GUIDES
Our experienced guides are enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and love what they do.
HANDPICKED ADVENTURES
We research all of our tours thoroughly to assure you get the best out of every holiday.
EXCITING DESTINATIONS
From the big names to the coolest destinations you’ve never heard of, we’ve got it all!
TRAVEL WITH US
Discover Our Tours
Walking & Hiking
We can design tours for almost any walking level (depending on the terrain, of course!), and have tours that go from easy outings to the challenging Alpine hiking of the Dolomites mountains The activity level on our scheduled tours is clearly defined so you know…
Cycling & E-Biking
Some of our guides are also cyclists, and they’d be happy to show you around on two wheels. We can usually find road bikes for rent in most destinations, or try an e-bike, which allows all of the fun with a fraction of the effort (though don’t be fooled…
“Light Active” Tours
You don’t have to go on a “hike” to get your steps in, and sometimes a full day out in a city or exploring an archaeological site can be just as “active” as an organized walk. We’re also aware that we’re not as young as we once were, so we’re happy to offer tours that are…
What Our Customers Say
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Tuscany Classic Walk
While our time with Manu and Claire was part of a private departure, our travel included Florence, San Gimignano, Siena and Pienza. Traveling with Manu and Claire is, for us, traveling with trusted friends. This is our highest possible praise. Manu and Claire tend to all the details, provide the transportation, speak your language and Italian (along with other languages), share their knowledge of the places, the people, the food and the wine, expose you to new experiences, and accommodate your interests. They do all of this with efficiency and a smile. With guides like these, you are free to enjoy each moment and truly relax. The Wild Sage itineraries work perfectly for us. They include exercise, sightseeing, unique experiences, and time for relaxation and reflection. We found that every day included something memorable and special. Often these elements were part of Manu and Claire’s plan. At times they were unexpected and magical. Manu and Claire also worked with us to shape the travel itinerary we wanted for a private departure. With their help we were able to have exactly the trip we were hoping for, enhanced by their scouting, knowledge, and suggestions. We could ask for nothing more. We are already daydreaming about and planning our next adventure with Manu and Claire.
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Sicily Coast-to-Coast
Our trip to Sicily with Wild Sage in mid-October (perfect time of year) could not have been better. With Claire as our guide/interpreter and Giuseppe as our intrepid driver, we spent 10 days exploring the island from modern cities to Baroque towns to ancient temples, from the coast to the interior. All we had to do was soak in the amazing environment and enjoy ourselves – everything else was taken care of for us. The food, wine, and cannoli were delightful, the hotels and country inns lovely. We had any number of experiences (visiting a cheese maker, a cart-making shop, an ancient ritual bath deep under a church, a Roman villa with spectacular mosaics) that we undoubtedly would have missed had we not been with Claire. She not only planned a great itinerary but was also attuned to our group’s interests and differing energy levels. This was our first trip with a personal guide, and we’re sold on the concept – especially with Claire and Wild Sage.
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Athens & the Greek Islands
We just completed this amazing trip with Claire and her local tour expert in Greece and the Islands. We LOVE putting ourselves in Claire's hands because we know (having enjoyed an amazing tour in Italy with her years ago) that she scouts all the best untouristed hotels and restaurants for amazing beach locations with easy access to towns and the most amazing culinary experiences (indulging us in a dessert specialty and bakery treat every so often). Her hiking, kayaking, and sailing excursions are nothing short of spectacular fun. Claire's hunt for historical and scenic adventure (not to mention her professionalism and ongoing friendship) is what is going to set the Wild Sage experience above other travel companies. I can't wait to schedule our next trip--THANK YOU!
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Sardinia: Hiking through History
This is a great trip. We visited archeological sites of the Nuragic people, a sacred well, a burial tomb, including a tour of one of their villages. The guide explained what is currently known about the ancient civilization which was fascinating and frustrating because there is still so much about them that is unknown. We visited museums which have Nuragic bronzes and stone giants. We hiked through the countryside with panoramic views of coastlines, valleys, and mountains and sightings of a range of wildlife including the last wild horse herd in Europe. Six hundred horses in family groups of 30-40. There were so many wonderful things about this trip: the city guide who spoke a few lines of the native Sardinian language for us and answered all my questions about the language, the guide at the vineyard who was enthusiastic about his job, the park guide who showed us the wild horses, the beautiful beaches where we relaxed and all the Sardinians we met. The food, wine, and hikes were amazing. A huge grazie mille to Manu and Wild Sage for putting this trip together to this wonderful island.
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Sicily Coast-to-Coast
My wife and I took a 10 day trip to Sicily in March 2023 with Claire Duiker from Wild Sage as our guide. This was our first time in Sicily and the tour had a perfect combination of seeing much of what the large island has to offer and time to relax and enjoy our group. The itinerary combined time in the amazing coastal cities of Palermo and Siracusa and in the middle of the island near Agrigento and Vittoria. Claire organized everything very well, from hotel selections, restaurant choices, and visits to sites. With her deep knowledge of European history, she provided historical context covering the many layers of Sicily’s past as we moved around and visited sites but gave us space to explore things ourselves too. And she was extremely flexible – if our group wanted to alter the schedule some or stay a little longer (or shorter) somewhere, she was always responsive to impromptu changes. I don’t like to move from hotel to hotel so much when I’m travelling so our itinerary was great in that regard: 2 or 3 nights in each location gave us a chance to unwind and enjoy the location without always worrying about packing and getting out the next morning. Claire is fluent in Italian and English, and it probably isn’t always easy to be working around the clock, including dinners out with your “customers”, but she is fun to be with socially and made it seem easy. I enthusiastically recommend Wild Sage and Claire as a guide for this trip or others. If Sicily, make your trip as long as you can- there’s a lot to see. JAM, California, U.S.