Find your trip

Food Holidays In Italy Never Go Out Of Style

If you think about destinations where you could take a delicious food holiday, Italy is bound to be one of the first places that springs to mind. However, just because it's incredibly popular doesn't mean it's tired. There is simply so much to eat, learn and discover here – a lifetime simply doesn't seem long enough to fit it all in. 

Each region has its own quirks, its own delicacies or traditional dishes, and a history that has helped define and shape its cuisine over the centuries. Take Sicily, for example. Here, echoes of Greek, Phoenician, Roman, Carthaginian, Moorish, Norman, Spanish and Italian conquerors can be found not only in its architecture and culture, but in the ingredients and flavours that make up its dishes – and even this changes from the east to the west of the island. 

This is why we've created five individual itineraries in different parts of Italy that showcase the heritage, culture and approach to food that can be found there. Let's take a look at where we've chosen...

Bologna, Italy

If you're a fan of egg pasta, heady truffles plucked straight from the earth and brandy, this is the tour for you. Bologna's gastronomic heritage is incredible and as home to treats that include tortellini, mortadella and ragù, a food tour here is always going to feel a little over-indulgent.

Here, the sauces are rich, the fats are full and the flavours are explosive. From the surprising strength of a 24-month-old freshly opened wheel of Parmigiano-Reggiano to the syrupy, almost prune-like sweetness of expertly produced aged balsamic, let the tastes of Bologna enchant you in 2020. 

Click here to view the full four-day itinerary. 

Parma

Located in Emilia Romagna, one of Italy's most celebrated food regions, Parma is a bucket-list destination for any budding gourmand. Here, in the Apennine woods, you can seek out the most earthy porcini mushrooms. You can pay a visit to a prosciutto di Parma ham producer and learn how this delicacy is hung and dried. You can discover how protected wheels of Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese are produced and find out why they need their own passports. 

The specialties of Parma are truly delicious and we explore them all on our four-day tour – there's even a hands-on cookery class at the renowned Commanderia del Gusto. 

View our full Parma itinerary by clicking here. 

Tuscany

Gorgeous rolling hills, to-die-for vineyards that produce sumptuous wines and the dream of delicious pasta dishes can all be experienced in Tuscany. Who would have thought that in a region as well-known and beloved as this, there could be an area almost entirely unfamiliar to international visitors, yet beautifully scenic, dotted with medieval towns and home to unique, rustic ingredients and culinary traditions little changed in centuries. 

If you're a fan of bread, this tour is ideal as it includes a visit to a bakery where you'll watch chestnut and panigaccio breads being prepared. There is also a tour of an olive grove complete with tasting, a chance to sample Lardo di Colonnata and time spent with a shepherdess as she herds her prized flock.

Click here to view our Tuscany food holiday. 

Palermo

Treat yourself to a Sicilian foodie adventure in 2020. This crossroads of the Middle Sea, Sicily has been occupied by most of the Mediterranean's great powers in its long history. The cuisine here is distinctive and clearly influenced by the island's interesting history. From humble street food and bustling produce markets, to vibrantly coloured marzipan fruits made by monks and the freshest mozzarella you're likely to ever taste, this tour is a treat for the senses. 

On our five-day tour, you'll sample olive oil so clean it can be tasted like wine. You'll experience a mouthful of the most delicate mozzarella and there will be a refreshing limoncello workshop.

Click here to browse the full itinerary.

Catania

If you have a sweet tooth, this tour will be right up your street. Situated on the eastern side of Sicily - the complete opposite to Palermo - Catania's melting-pot culture is reflected in its flavours and it is home to some tasty treats that will be familiar to many. Here, you'll learn how to make cream-filled cannoli at a special workshop. There will also be a visit to a chocolatier in Modica, which makes its chocolate according to centuries-old Aztec methods that existed from the time of the Spanish occupation. 

Elsewhere, you're in for a treat as we'll take you to experience the celebrated pistachios of Bronte. Walk among the orchards and see how these nuts are transformed into their various products. 

Browse our Catania food holiday itinerary by clicking here. 

View our entire range of food holidays here

Previous story Next story

Food Holidays In Italy Never Go Out Of Style was published on 15 November 2019