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Culinary Tours

Taste local dishes, visit food markets, meet local producers and take part in cooking experiences that bring you closer to the culture of each destination.

Travel with an appetite for something different

Food is one of the best ways to understand a destination. A culinary tour takes you beyond restaurants and introduces you to the people, traditions and ingredients behind the local cuisine.

Depending on the destination, your journey could include cooking classes, market visits, wine or food tastings, meals in local homes, visits to farms and producers, and guided experiences in places known for their regional dishes.

I can help you find a culinary tour that matches your interests, preferred destination, travel style and budget.

Experiences

What could your culinary journey include?

Cooking classes

Prepare traditional dishes with local chefs and home cooks.

Food markets

Visit busy local markets and experience the ingredients used in regional cooking.

Food and wine tastings

Sample local dishes, wines, spirits, cheeses, olive oils and other regional products.

Local producers

Meet farmers, winemakers, bakers and food producers who keep local traditions alive.

Meals with local people

Share meals in local homes, family-run restaurants and community settings

Culture and sightseeing

Combine culinary experiences with important landmarks, neighbourhoods and cultural attractions.

Who it suits

Is a culinary tour right for you?

A culinary tour may suit you if you want your holiday to include more than sightseeing.

You enjoy trying regional food and drink
You want authentic cultural experiences
You enjoy markets, cooking or food-related activities
You want a guided itinerary with carefully selected experiences
You prefer meaningful experiences over rushing between attractions
You want help choosing the right tour and making the travel arrangements

Destinations

Featured culinary tour destinations

Culinary tours are available in destinations around the world. Here are some of the experiences I can help you arrange.

From crumbling ruins to crumbling feta, from Ouzo to olive oil, discover southern Greece on this indulgent adventure. Get a real taste for Greece as you dig into iconic eats like cheese, honey, olives, spit-roasted lamb, moussaka, mezze and lalagia.

Things you will love about this tour:

You’ll be welcomed into a countryside home and learn how to make lalagia.
Enjoy a home-cooked feast including moussaka and stuffed vegetables.
Learn to prepare a selection of traditional dishes from a local chef in Poros.
Visit a countryside pistachio farm, a family-run apiary and a family-owned distillery for a taste of the iconic Greek aperitif – ouzo.

Places you will visit:

Athens – Welcome Dinner
Aegina – Pistachio farm visit plus arm visit with cheese tasting and dessert
making
Poros – Cooking Class
Kranidi – Beekeeper farm visit with tastings
Nafplio – Ouzo Distillery Visit and Tasting
Epidaurus – Guided tour
Mycenae – Guided Tour
Argos – Winery visit and tastings
Kalamata or Nafplio – Market visit with tastings
Parapougki – Olive mill visit and tastings
Kardamyl – Lalagia or Travichti making plus a Home-cooked dinner

Enjoy food that is regional, seasonal and fresh while travelling through everybody’s favourite culinary hub.

Delight in local wine, fresh produce, homemade dinners and seasonal favourites in San Gimignano, Tuscany and Bologna – all with a local by your side – and take your tastebuds on an unforgettable adventure.

Things you will love about this tour:

Stay in a traditional Tuscan farmhouse near San Gimignano, surrounded by vineyards and olive trees.
Take a cooking class and watch a demonstration of how Bologna pasta is made, right in the heart of its culinary namesake, before sitting down to enjoy.
Swap stories with a Roman local as you feast on home-cooked seasonal dishes for dinner right in their home.
See Italy’s iconic sights, like the canals of Venice, the romantic streets of Rome and the UNESCO World Heritage site in San Gimignano.
Find foodie bliss with a food tour that lets you taste all the regional highlights like gelato, cicchetti, pasta, vinegar, cheese, seasonal fruit and vegetables,
organic meats and a glass of Aperol spritz (or two!).

Places you will visit:

Venice – Welcome Aperitivo Spritz, Cicchetti tour Spritz, Venetian Breakfast, Market Tour and Traghetto Ride
Bologna – Pasta class
Modena – Acetaia Visit, Trattoria Lunch and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese factory visit
Agriturismo – Tour with wine and olive oil tasting
San Gimignano – Orientation walk, Gelateria visit and walk a section of the Via Francigena
Rome – Orientation walk, home-cooked dinner and Pizza Romana tasting

Clear your plate for flavour-filled Morocco and follow the smell of food through mesmerising markets and master recipes taught by those who know them best.

Grab street food from a souq and share traditional meals in local homes.

Things you will love about this tour:

Get a real insight into Moroccan food with a home-cooked dinner in the ‘blue city’ of Chefchaouen. Prepared with seasonal ingredients, you’ll tuck into a dish that’s bursting with local flavour and made with love.
Enjoy hands-on cooking classes and demonstrations where you’ll learn how to make cous cous, pastilla, stuffed medfouna and local salads.
Meet local producers of goat’s cheese in Chefchaouen, follow tasting trails through Fes and Marrakech’s medinas and visit a women’s cooperative producing Argan oil.
Grab a fork and dig into Morocco’s most iconic dishes – tagine, pastilla, cous cous and camel burgers await!
Watch the sunset from the back of a camel in the Sahara, then enjoy a homecooked dinner at your desert camp staying under the North African stars.

Places you will visit:

Casablanca – Welcome Dinner
Moulay Idriss – Couscous Demonstration and Dinner
Meknes – Medina walking tour
Chefchaouen – Goat Cheese Tasting and Home-cooked Dinner
Fes – Medina Tasting Trail including Pastilla Demonstration, a guided walking tour and street food breakfast
Midelt – Supermarket stop
Merzouga – Medfouna cooking demonstration
M’goun Valley – Guided Half Day Hike
Tichka – Argan Oil Cooperative Visit
Marrakech – Tasting Trail, Spiced Sand Coffee and a cooking class

Sip, slurp and crunch your way through Vietnam, experiencing one of the freshest and most fragrant cuisines on the planet. From pho and ancient buildings in Hanoi, banh khoai and imperial citadels in Hue, banh xeo and lantern-lit streets in Hoi An and banh canh and pulsating markets in Ho Chi Minh City, experience Vietnam’s cuisine and discover its tightly woven place within this culture. Drink in cafes and beer halls that sprawl out over city streets, buy fruit from wicker baskets draped over a vendor’s shoulders and sit at market stalls as aromatic noodle soups are whipped up in front of you. Experience Vietnam’s iconic sights, spend time cooking some of the country’s top dishes and get a true taste of Vietnam on this food focused adventure.

Things you will love about this tour:

Embrace your adventurous side on a tour of Hue’s imperial monuments from the back of a motorbike. Then, be treated to lunch, specially prepared for you by a chef who is a descendant of the royal family in the garden of their family home.
Don’t just taste your way around this foodie haven, don your chef hat and learn the recipes behind these incredible eats, too. Learn the secret spices directly from local chefs (often in their own homes) and be guided to the freshest ingredients in authentic local markets.
Explore the Mekong Delta – known as ‘Vietnam’s rice bowl’ for its abundance of rice paddies, fruit and flower orchards. Cruise on a traditional sampan, then meet fresh produce vendors along the way to your veranda-wrapped homestay for the evening.
Visit the UNESCO World Heritage site of Ha Long Bay and set sail on the emerald-green waters, gliding between limestone karsts on a traditional junk boat for the evening.
Discover the real flavours of Vietnam, digging into authentic eats like pho, banh mi, bun cha, bun bo Hue and Cao Lau – a true feast for the senses.

Places you will visit:

Hanoi – Secret of Pho experience
Halong Bay – Overnight Boat Cruise
Hue – Royal tomb of Emperor Tu Duc, Highlights & back streets tour by motorbike and Thien Mu Pagoda
Hoi An – Cao Lau dinner + lantern orientation walk in Hoi An
Hue – Salt coffee and Imperial City entrance and guided visit
Hoi An – Tea Tasting in Silence, Cooking class with local chef and a Market tour
Nha Trang – Seafood dinner
Ho Chi Minh City – War Remnants Museum, City tour, Banh mi, Ben Thanh market visit and Cooking Class with local chef
Mekong Delta – Boat cruise with visits to local producers

Take your tastebuds on a culinary journey through Japan’s most delicious hotspots, relishing the flavours of ‘the Land of the Rising Sun’.

From temples to tempura, shrines to sashimi, seafood markets to sake breweries, you’ll join a local leader on a food-focused adventure that has all the best Japanese ingredients.

Things you will love about this tour:

Learn the tricks of the trade when you take part in a hands-on sushi-making class in Tokyo, pick local produce from the market for a cooking class in Kanazawa and make your own okonomiyaki in Osaka.
Meet local farmers during a daytrip from Kyoto to the Uji region – the home of green tea production. Tour the green tea and matcha farms, enjoy a hot cuppa, then walk the streets of Uji city, stopping on the way to see the Ujigami Shrine.
Wander the streets of Tokyo, stroll through Kenroku-en garden in Kanazawa, see the glowing signs of Osaka’s Dotonbori district, learn Buddhist history in Koya-san and walk through Gion – Kyoto’s geiko (geisha) district.
Feast on delicious Japanese cuisine, from street food to restaurant favourites including ekiben, sushi, matcha, takoyaki, okonomiyaki and fresh sashimi.
Sip on sake, Japan’s national drink, during a visit to a local sake brewery in Kyoto. Learn how sake is made and maybe even pick up a bottle (or two) to take home.

Places you will visit:

Tokyo – Welcome dinner, Asakusa guided walk & Sensoji Temple, Tsukiji Outer Market & Sushi Tasting as well as a Art of Sushi-making class
Kanazawa – Orientation walk, Chaya gai district walking tour, Kenroku-en Garden, Home cooking class and Omicho market tour
Kyoto – Orientation walk, Gion District walk, Nishiki Market walk
Uji – Green Tea Farm Visit with tea tasting
Kyoto – Fushimi Inari Shrine, Sake Brewery & tasting
Koya-san – Okuno-in Mausoleum
Osaka – Tour of Kuromon Market and Doguyasuji Arcade, Dotonbori Tour and Depachika visit

Uncover local delicacies and local character in Northern Spain and Portugal.

This is home to some of the world’s freshest seafood, finest wines and most flavourful local produce. Eat and drink your way through cities and towns made famous by their cuisine. Hop from taperias to wine bars, learn how to cook authentic and delicious local meals, explore ancient wine cellars and fresh food markets and wander the fields of a farm before sitting down to a home-cooked meal.

Things you will love about this tour:

Learn tried and tested techniques to make the best and most authentic Catalan and Basque cuisine from local experts.
Sample the plates that make Northern Spain a true foodie’s delight. Whether it’s tapas and paella, or regional specialty cheeses, hams and fresh seafood, your tongue and tummy will be happy you made the trip.
Explore the Coa Valley, the centre of a rewilding project, and enjoy a night in a homestay-style guesthouse where you’ll join your hosts for a dinner full of local produce.
Try the vast range of delicious drops that Spain is known for, including cava, vermouth, wine and cider. Get up close and personal with their production methods, learn the traditional ways to drink them and sit back and enjoy a sip in the Spanish sunshine.
Learn how to make the iconic Portuguese tart pastel de nata with a cooking class in the Belem area of Lisbon.
Meet local producers along the way, including winemakers in Douro Valley and an olive oil factory where you can taste-test everyone’s favourite cooking staple.

Places you will visit:

Barcelona – Welcome meeting, Market visit and tapas tour for lunch
Logrono – Orientation walk, Pintxos tour and winery visit and tasting
Basque Country – Dinner at Farmstay as well as a cooking class and visit to a fish market.
San Sebastian – Orientation walk
Basque country –
Oviedo – Orientation walk, Cider House visit in Picos de Europa including lunch
Santiago de Compostela – Stops in coast towns on the way from Oviedo, Orientation walk, Farewell Dinner, Visit to cane factory and tasting and Seafood workshop in Cambados
Porto – Francesinha dinner, Food tour including Pastel de Nata, Tasco, Cachorrinho & Mercearia
Douro valley – Guided Tour, picnic lunch & wine tasting at Quinta da Pacheca
Coa valley – homecooked dinner with locally sourced produce
Alentejo – Olive Oil farm visit with tasting & Olive tree planting
Lisbon – Ginginha Tasting, Orientation walk, Pasteis de Nata tasting and cooking class in Belem, Mercado da Ribeira Visit and Canned fish tasting
Evora – Orientation walk Leader led

Eat your way through spicy Thailand and indulge in the complex flavours, fresh aromas and heavenly spices that make Thai food so addictive. Explore bustling markets and taste tropical fruits and aromatic dishes whipped up in front of your eyes. Learn the trick behind making palm sugar, experience the thrill of cruising through Tha Kha Floating Market by paddleboat and slurp noodles alongside locals in Bangkok.

Things you will love about this tour:

Learn how to prepare and present the traditional 11-dish Northern Thai speciality khan tok and experience Thai life from a local’s perspective at a village homestay.
See dishes whipped up before your eyes, like kaeng som, spicy fish cakes at a community farm and roti sai mai at a market food stall in Ayutthaya.
Cruise Thaka Samut Songkram’s floating market on a paddleboat and sail aboard a longtail boat to an island Buddhist temple in Ayutthaya
Tuck into your favourite iconic Thai dishes and discover new ones along the way: guay-tieo-ruea (boat noodles), roti sai mai, khao soi, som tum, larb and more.
Dine on a plant-based meal at a Chiang Mai restaurant that sources organic, local vegetables for their daily array of delicious meals.

Places you will visit:

Bangkok – Welcome Dinner & Chinatown walking tour
Samut Songkram – Tha Kha Floating Market tour & Palm Sugar Demonstration
Ayutthaya – Regional Specialties Cooking Class, Homemade Dessert Making Lesson, Chao Phraya Long Tail Boat Cruise, Wat Niwet Thamma Prawat Visit, Temple Ruins with guided tour & Roti Sai Mai demonstration & tasting
Chiang Mai – Wat Chedi Luang & Old Quarter orientation walk with Coffee stop plus Doi Suthep Temple Visit
Homestay – Khan Tok Cooking Class

Fill your plate with Mexico’s rich culture and celebrated cuisine

Get an authentic taste of Mexico on a journey through some of the country’s most famous culinary regions. Meander through Oaxaca’s aromatic markets with a local chef, take to the streets of Puebla to sample some the city’s local specialties and tuck into tasty treats in Mexico City.

Things you will love about this tour:

Kick off your adventure with a local food tasting in Mexico City – your chance to try the authentic version of one of the most popular cuisines in the world.
Get hands-on with a market visit and cooking class with a local chef in Oaxaca and learn about a signature Mexican drink at a mezcal tasting session.
Visit the community of San Pedro Tlahuac, where Nahuatl descendants preserve traditions from pre-Columbian times, including chinampa farming, fiestas and ceremonies from ancient days.
Dig into the culture and history of Mexico during a walking tour of Mexico City’s historical centre and a visit to the ancient Mitla ruins.
Get to the source of some of the nation’s most iconic foods, including churros, barbacoa, tamales, tortillas, elotes and mole.

Places you will visit:

Mexico City – Local Food Tasting, Centro Historico food tour and lunch, Breakfast at a Bakery
San Pedro Tlahuac – Community Visit & Lunch
Puebla City – Street Food Tour
Oaxaca – Mercado 20 de Noviembre, Barrio Jalatlaco walk with coffee, Mezcaleria visit, Tlacolula Market & Cooking class with lunch
Mitla Arqueological Site – visit with a local guide

Also Available

Sri Lanka

Cambodia

India

South Korea

Portugal

Northern Spain

Vietnam & Cambodia

China

Croatia & Slovenia

The Balkans

Singapore & Malaysia

Georgia

* Enquire for more information.

Personal Service

Personal help planning your culinary holiday

Choosing the right culinary tour involves more than selecting a destination. The itinerary, pace, group size, accommodation and types of food experiences all affect the trip.

I have worked in the travel industry since 1991 and can help you compare the available options, choose a suitable tour and arrange the supporting travel services you need.