About Us
About your host
Your host for the tour is Ellie Smith, a qualified art historian and classicist, and lover of all things Italian!
​
Hungry to learn more after studying Italian art history at high school, Ellie first visited Italy as an 18-year-old before embarking on a university degree in the same subject. She fell in love with the country, its people, customs, and culture. Since then, she has also lived and worked in Venice, and continued to study Italian art history and the Italian language.
​​
Ellie is a qualified art historian and classicist, holds a Master of Arts in Museum Studies, has guided tours and lectured in art galleries and museums in both New Zealand and Italy, and has been a guest lecturer at Massey University.
​​
When in Italy, Ellie is passionate about finding hidden gems that locals love, as well as discovering the food and customs that make each region unique. Ellie can’t wait to introduce you to La Dolce Vita (the sweet life)!
About Us
Artes Tours started as tour host Ellie's dream. Having lived in Italy and studied many of the artworks, artifacts, and architecture at university, whenever she returned on holiday, she found herself giving tours of many of the sites to her family...most of the time unprompted! She has always loved sharing her knowledge of art history and deep appreciation for Italy and is now offering art history focused tours of some of her favourite cities in Italy.
​
Artes Tours aims to offer hassle-free boutique tours of Italy in small group numbers, exploring not only the art historical and architectural wonders of these amazing places, but also learning about Italian culture, customs, and of course, indulging in authentic delicious food.