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Tour Italy, a tour company headed by the plugged-in Bartolo Giusto, who hails from Sorrento, and the charming American-born Andrea Kuba can assist with everything from airport transfers and boat rentals to detailed tour itineraries. They’re particularly savvy when it comes to arranging historians and other specialists for guided visits. They know the coast and the islands, including Procida and Ischia, inside and out (they recently arranged a behind-the-scenes tour for Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick), and are happy to open their little black book to visitors. Here, Kuba, who moved to the Amalfi Coast region five years ago, talks about the kind of customized tours they can help arrange.

What kinds of tours and excursions do you enjoy planning for clients?

Ones with a unique twist that pull our clients out of the mass tourism and get them into intimate settings. For example, we combine a classic visit of the towns of Ravello and Amalfi, but hike down from Ravello rather than take the same well-traveled road back. We feel that this allows clients to get a true sense of local culture, as well as enjoy some particularly breathtaking and often missed views.

What about behind-the-scenes access?

In popular areas like Pompeii, we make special arrangements to visit areas of the ruins not available to the general public. Or, instead of mixing with the crowds, we explore other ruins in the area that were preserved at the same time as Pompeii. It allows our clients to explore the lives of the ancient Romans who lived in the area surrounding the Bay of Naples, and we have the areas practically to ourselves.

You also offer a tour that specializes in the region’s culinary side?

Yes, we can offer a gastronomic tour of the Bay of Naples that examines the foods of the area and how they intertwine with the culture. On this tour, we visit one of the smaller traditional pasta factories in the “pasta capital” of Gragnano. Also, we examine the fruits of the fertile soil at the foot of the volcano Vesuvius by visiting a local cantina, sampling the variety of wines accompanied by locally produced salami, prosciutto, cheeses, olive oil and breads, and enjoying a simple yet delicious lunch of spaghetti con pomodoro and the Neapolitan pastiera cake. For a more intimate experience with the locals, we can organize private cooking lessons for families and parties up to six people in the home of a local Italian family, with the help of a translator. And for families with children, we organize pizza-making lessons, as well as learning to make gelato.

What are some other great family activities in the area?

The most popular excursion for families with children is a day on a private boat, either along the Amalfi Coast with visits to secluded beaches to play a little soccer on the beach (or jump off the not-so-high cliffs into the Marmorata water falls) or to Capri to explore its many grottoes. A day on a luxurious boat, wooden or fiberglass, is the place to see and be seen, and is the best way to experience this part of Italy.