Italy AMALFI COAST - APULIA - CINQUE TERRE/LIGURIA - LAZIO - PIEDMONT
High up in the hills lies a beautiful home where you will enjoy cooking lessons from a self taught Italian woman who specializes in typical regional dishes. The home in which you will stay has been recently renovated with love and each room is tastefully detailed. Take in the gorgeous view of the Amalfi Coast while you relax on the property during your free time. Choose from a three or seven night itinerary including family recipes, foodie visits with a chance to immerse yourself in this scenic area of Italy.
Learn to cook traditional and authentic dishes from southern Italy and Sorrento by participating in hands-on cooking classes in a spacious professional kitchen. You will stay in a luxurious five star boutique hotel in the Sorrento peninsula, with a gorgeous ocean view. Perfectly situated, this lovely area is 8K (5 miles) from the village of Sorrento and 10K (7 miles) from Positano, two of the most beautiful places of the Amalfi Coast. The hotel was once an ancient villa that was built in 1892 and was also the birthplace of the owner of the property. With the use of local and organic vegetables and the finest of ingredients, you will learn recipes from a talented professional chef who will help you discover this delicious Neapolitan cuisine.
Discover the amazing region of Apulia (Puglia), or what the Italians call "Little California". Enjoy a six night culinary and active escape to the "heel of the boot", a region rich in amazing fruits and vegetables, abundant extra virgin olive oil, fantastic wines and so much more. You will experience guided walks in Ostuni, Bari, Polignano a Mare, Matera and Alberobello, three cooking lessons with a local chef, accommodations in a stunning Masseria (farmhouse), wine and olive oil tastings, and a total immersion into the incredible local delicacies of Apulia!
Puglia should be on every foodie's bucket list! This is a region rich in everything from delectable wines, golden olive oil, fresh homemade pasta and gorgeous cheeses to beautiful landscapes, stunning villages and must-see sites. This ten day tour takes you to the area's magical towns including Ostuni, Alberobello, Martina Franca and the UNESCO World Heritage site of the "sassi' in Matera in the neighboring Basilicata region. Too long of a tour? We can customize to make it shorter and to fit anyone's budget.
Enjoy an amazing six night culinary holiday in the region of Lazio in the Roman countryside, an hour outside of Rome. You will stay in a completely renovated 18th century villa with beautifully decorated rooms in this lovely medieval hamlet. Through hands on cooking classes featuring a different course for each class, you will learn traditional recipes from local cooks whose recipes have been passed down from generation to generation. Depending on availability, you can choose between two different itineraries both with amazing accommodations.
Discover the secrets of Sicily with this unforgettable seven night experience. Stay in three different accommodations while immersing yourself in the tastes and flavors of this very special land. Take hands-on cooking classes with wonderful instructors, including a Duchess and the famous Eleonora Consoli's daughter, Monica, visit areas of interest including The Valley of the Temples and enjoy the culinary side of Sicily! You will be pleasantly surprised at how much Sicily has to offer.
Experience six days of magical travel through the stunning Sicilian landscape, meet and cook with a wonderful chef, Fabrizia Lanza, who follows in her famous mother Anna Tasca Lanza's footsteps. You will stay at her home, Casa Vecchie, as well as staying at two other beautiful accommodations during your stay. You will also have a market visit followed by a cooking class in Siracusa. This tour will allow you to discover the most traditional Sicilian dishes in Palermo, Agrigento, Catania, Siracusa, Taormina and the Etna Volcano area.
(Options: Cycling, Longer/Shorter Stays, Wine Tours)
This culinary program is perfect for those who are lovers of all that is Tuscan – the charming medieval towns, the centuries old traditions, the people and their culture, the art and of course, the great food and wine!! You will enjoy hands-on cooking courses learning the art of Tuscan cuisine from our wonderful chefs in an original kitchen of a 14th century villa. We also offer vegetarian, vegan, celiac and organic cooking vacations so please inquire. Interested in cycling the hills of Tuscany? We we will just adjust the itinerary for you to include this activity. Just ask about the details and see a sample itinerary below!
This culinary experience will be like no other. Stay in an abbey in the Chianti region that dates back to the 11th century and has since been turned into a spectacular wine resort. The estate became popular many years ago when the owner became a famous author and cookbook writer. Now these residential cooking courses are held by a celebrated and renowned Italian chef and are taught in English in the spring, summer and autumn. The property is also known as one of the locations where the Netflix series "Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat" was filmed! Choose from a day or evening cooking class or our three night program where you will take four cooking classes.
This Tuscan expereince will be like no other. Immerse yourself in all that makes Tuscany glorious! An in depth experience guided by Giuliano and Lael Hazan and noted wine producer Marilisa Allegrini. Building on the acclaim of their week-long courses in Valpolicella, consistently ranked in the top 10 by major publications, they have now added an equally wonderful gastronomic encounter in Bolgheri, Tuscany at Marilisa’s Poggio al Tesoro Estate. Located in the land of Supertuscans, with Sassicaia and Ornellaia as your neighbors, you will explore the wonders and delights of the Tuscan coast. The classes will feature all new menus and there will be excursions to the spectacular food producers of the area. What will not change is that by the end of the week, you will have experienced a combination of Italy’s rich history, wonderful culture, and warm hospitality, not to mention extraordinary food and wines.
Stay in a gorgeous 17th Century Relais & Chateaux property located in the quiet countryside of Tuscany, just over one mile from the beautiful walled Etruscan town of Cortona which has been written about in the very popular Frances Mayes books. Enjoy an unforgettable cooking vacation with hands-on cooking classes taught and held by owner and Michelin star chef Silvia Baracchi together with Executive Chef Richard Titi. Immerse yourself in the breathtaking panoramas of this famed area of Italy. This promises to be an incredible experience.
Whether you are a novice or experienced cook, this holiday will teach you all there is to know about Tuscan cuisine. Classes are taught by experienced and professional instructors in a beautiful state of the art, air conditioned kitchen where lessons are truly hands-on and conducted in English. Located between Viareggio and Lucca, the school lies within a beautiful 17th century old villa and all rooms have ensuite bathrooms and air conditioning. In your down time how about some bicycling, horseback or kayaking? One of our best selling cooking holidays! If you already have a place to stay, ask about joining in a day cooking class or truffle hunt followed by a truffle based lunch!
Treat yourself to a relaxing getaway in a small and elegant family-run hotel, located less than 10 minutes from the center of Florence. The relais is an excellent base for excursions in the Chianti area and has received many awards including Condé Nast Johansens Award Winner as "Most Excellent European Relais" and Karen Brown’s guide Award Winner as "Most Romantic Inn" and Trip Advisor's Award of Excellence. You can choose to have cooking lessons, learning the secrets of authentic Florentine and Tuscan cuisine.
If you want to learn how to cook true Italian food, then these cooking classes are for you! You will learn traditional family recipes from Italians who have been giving hands-on cooking lessons for over 25 years. Classes are taught in English in an authentic country home, a beautiful stone farmhouse with an organic garden. We can suggest several lovely accommodations in quaint nearby villages.
Umbria invites you to discover its history, beauty, delicious cuisine and warm people. This tour allows you to see all that this region has to offer by enjoying walking tours with a certified guide. You will be in awe of the beautiful Umbrian countryside with its vineyards and olive groves. Enjoy two hands on cooking classes at different venues so you can enjoy a couple of unique experiences with different instructors.
Learn to cook with an Italian family who will show you the secrets of Umbrian cuisine. Your hostess has been conducting cooking courses for many years and invites you into her restored nineteenth century country house for day cooking classes or residential cooking programs. You can either choose to arrive on your own so you will have your own vehicle (the non-escorted tour) or if you choose not to have a vehicle you will be picked up at the train station and be accompanied during your tours and wine tasting.
This tour is for all food and wine lovers who would like to discover traditional Umbrian recipes and great wines! Spend time taking hands-on cooking classes, sampling wine, doing some sightseeing and relaxing in a beautiful 17th century patrician villa in the Umbrian countryside. Over the years this villa has been the home of nobles and has retained its large fireplaces, frescoes, ancient cotto floors and period furnishings and is the perfect setting for your getaway. And if truffles are your thing, you can also add a truffle hunt to your stay!
Experience a culinary adventure of a lifetime! Join Giuliano Hazan and Marilisa Allegrini (one of Italy's most distinguished producers of noble red wine) for a week of total immersion in Italian food, wine, and life. You will stay at an incredible villa, Renaissance Villa della Torre, near romantic Verona, the city of Romeo and Juliet. It is here that the cooking classes take place and from where you will set off for exciting excursions, including a visit to a market, a winery, a traditional rice farm and a cheese and culatello production facility.
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THE FLAVOURS OF TUSCANY "Dear Jo-Ann - We just had the most amazing week. It was everything we could have hoped for and more. We are already planning a "make your own pasta party" at our house to introduce friends to the very unique flavours we tried and made! Jo-Ann, the others who came through Active Gourmet - Ed, Cathy and Kelly were all very complimentary about the service they had received from you, as were we. I was hugely impressed with your immediate attention to every detail and I will certainly recommend friends to your website if they are considering similar trips to ours." - Joneen and Ray S., Auckland, New Zealand |
Sant'Agata, Italy - 4 or 6 nights
(Option: Customized Itineraries)
(Option: Customized Itineraries)
Tuscany, Italy - 6 nights 
Cortona, Italy - 3, 5 or 6 nights
(Options: Day Cooking Class, Customized Itineraries, Longer Stays, Market Visits)
(Options: Customized Itineraries, Biking, Walking, Wine Tours, Shorter/Longer Stays)
Verona, Italy - 6 nights