Top Italy Holidays - page 8

Eat your way through Rome—and discover sights and bites you wouldn't otherwise encounter—on this small-group sightseeing and culinary tour. Follow your guide to the city's history-saturated Jewish Ghetto, Campo Marzio, and Campo de' Fiori, spotting major landmarks as you go. Along the way, taste a range of Roman specialties, such as Jewish-style fried artichokes, Roman pizza, cured meats, gelato, and espresso.

Finding a genuinely local dining experience near major landmarks can be challenging in central Rome. This guided dinner pairs a multi-course meal at a family-run restaurant with insight from a food specialist and sommelier. Enjoy regional dishes, from fresh pasta to traditional desserts, each matched with a complementary wine. After your meal, step outside to see the Pantheon illuminated at night.

If you’re short on time but want to make the most of your visit to Italy, experience the famous Tuscan countryside with this full-day tour from Rome. Travel by air-conditioned minivan to a landscape of rolling hills, olive groves and vineyards, stopping to stroll through the UNESCO-listed hilltop village of San Gimignano. Visit a winery in the famed Chianti region for a tour and tasting with appetizers, and explore the well-preserved medieval city of Siena.

Mt. Etna is the largest active volcano in Europe and home to fertile vineyards and farms. With this tour, avoid the stress of navigating the winding roads on the mountain on your own and instead visit the dramatic Silvestri Craters and a farm on the slopes of Mt. Etna with a driver. End your experience with a tasting and lunch at a local winery at the foot of the mountain.

Immerse yourself in the beauty of the Tuscan countryside and sample a range of local wines and delicacies on this group farm and winery visit. Enjoy a light lunch featuring homemade pasta, cantuccini, vinsanto, and grappa, with convenient hotel pickup from your accommodation. Upon arrival, meet your host, enjoy aperitivo snacks with a range of local wines, and then dig into plates of pasta and other Tuscan specialties.

There's no better souvenir to bring home from your travels than the gift of authentic Italian cuisine. Learn how to make fresh egg pasta the Italian way with a local chef in his home in a historic palazzo and master the art of fresh pesto, too. Numbers are capped at just six travelers, ensuring an intimate experience and likely the chance to make friends over lunch.

Taste and experience the authentic Tuscan countryside in Fucecchio, without the hassle of arranging different activities, on this hands-on tour from Florence. Walk among olive trees and vineyards, visit the wine cellar to taste five organic Tuscan wines and olive oil, then learn fresh pasta making with professional chefs before enjoying a meal featuring your creations.

Visit one of the Bolgheri region’s most charming wineries when you book a tour at the Terre del Marchesato. Founded in the 1950s, the winery is a regional highlight. Choose from several daily tour times, and make your own way to the vineyards. Fo for a tour of the grounds, visit the cellars, and enjoy a tutored tasting of various wines, plus light snacks.

Spend an evening in a real Italian home with Enza and her family in the countryside in Corigliano d'Otranto near Lecce. We begin with a traditional Italian aperitif, sharing homemade appetizers and prosecco while everyone gets to know each other. Then each guest prepares their own fresh pasta by hand using local ingredients and family recipes. Once the pasta is ready, we cook everything and sit around the table together to enjoy dinner with local wine, music and conversation. The evening ends with homemade dessert, our family limoncello, and a small memory of the experience.

Learn to cook authentic Italian recipes firsthand with this interactive, hands-on cooking class in Florence, set in a traditional restaurant a few minutes from the Duomo. Your professional chef guide will teach you how to make fresh pasta, ravioli, and tiramisu from scratch, sharing the rich cultural stories behind each dish. Enjoy a full meal with accompanying wine and take home recipe packs to recreate the experience at home.

Explore Taormina’s coastal highlights with ease by going on this small-group boat tour. A perfect shortcut to finding beautiful bays, caves, and snorkeling spots—a scenic route is planned out for you with a swimming and snorkeling stops along the way. Best of all, while on the boat, you can take a journey through Sicilian wine, as a tasting session is included with red wine, white wine, and prosecco.

Traveling in Rome when you follow a gluten-free diet can be a challenge, especially if you aren’t fluent in Italian. Make things easier on yourself by touring with a private guide who can help avoid accidentally eating hidden gluten. Visit family-run businesses, some of which have been around for centuries, to taste treats and sip wines, all without worry.

Foodies, wine lovers, or anyone looking for a fun night out will enjoy this evening walking tour through Rome’s Jewish Quarter and beyond. Admire the architecture as you eat your way through the neighborhood. Your guide will direct you to the best eateries in the city, many of which are family-run. Enhance the experience with wine tastings, too. This is a small-group tour so you can make new friends.

Optimize your time in Florence and experience the city’s cuisine and culture in just a few hours with this street food and sightseeing tour. Join a foodie guide for a stroll through the San Lorenzo Market and Central Market to browse everything from leather to truffles, then set off through the city. Admire top sights from the Duomo to the Ponte Vecchio, stopping along the way to sample savory and sweet street foods.

Drinking Chianti in a restaurant gives no insight into how it's made or where it comes from—a winery visit is the only way to understand the production process from vineyard to glass. This small-group half-day tour from Florence takes you directly to a Chianti winery's vineyards and cellars, with tastings of several Chianti wines and a traditional Tuscan lunch included.

Combine your San Gimignano sightseeing with a taste of the local terroir on this organic winery visit. Go behind-the-scenes at the family-run farm and vineyard, tour the facilities, and then indulge in a generous wine tasting. You’ll also sample locally made olive oils and balsamic vinegars, and enjoy a classic Tuscan feast of bruschetta, pasta, and more.

Depart from Sorrento for a small-group tour to top destinations on the Amalfi Coast. Take in the colorful houses and shops of Positano, see the Amalfi Cathedral, and have lunch with wine in Ravello. Hear live commentary as you travel with a small group limited to eight people for a more personalized experience—and even choose to upgrade to include a coastal mini-cruise.

If there's one thing better than exploring the beautiful city of Florence, it's exploring it while sampling its finest food and wine. This tour helps you discover the city's best trattorias without spending hours researching. Feast on cheese, wine, prosciutto, truffles, fresh pasta, a 4-course dinner, gelato, and cannoli. Learn about the city and its cuisine from your guide as you go, so you leave feeling like a gourmet expert.

Step into the heart of Valpolicella, one of Italy’s most famous wine regions, on this half-day tour from Verona. Visit two authentic wineries and discover the passion and tradition behind some of Italy’s finest wines. Enjoy guided tastings of six exceptional wines, including the renowned Amarone, Valpolicella Classico, and Valpolicella Ripasso. Each tasting is accompanied by traditional specialties such as local salumi and cheeses, perfectly complementing the wines and enhancing your experience. Between wineries, take in the breathtaking scenery of rolling hills, sun-drenched vineyards, and charming landscapes. Learn about the delicate balance of tradition and innovation that makes Valpolicella wines unique. This tour is ideal for wine lovers and curious travelers alike, offering a full sensory experience of Italian wine culture in just half a day.

Foodies will love the chance to learn to make some favorite Italian dishes, including pasta from scratch, ravioli, and tiramisu. Immerse yourself in Italian culture through its food, and learn more than you would just by eating these dishes at a restaurant. The group class takes place at a local restaurant, so you can get a behind-the-scenes look at how Italian restaurants run. Every participant gets their own workstation and will sit down at the communal table to eat their delicious creations afterward.

Learn to make pasta by hand with a professional chef-instructor for a truly memorable experience in Rome. Your small-group cooking class takes place in a private location in a traditional Roman neighborhood and covers the basics of creating incredible Italian pasta. Nibble on light appetizers and sip on prosecco as you begin to prepare the pasta meal. Or, opt for the pizza-making class to prepare your own pie.

Take advantage of your time in Rome and go a step beyond simply eating pizza and gelato by taking a cooking class. Whether you’re confident in the kitchen or consider yourself a beginner, improve your skills with insights from a professional chef. Get access to premium toppings during this hands-on workshop.

Learning how to prepare handcrafted pasta in Italy is a quintessential travel experience—but for travelers who are gluten-sensitive or gluten-intolerant, culinary workshops are usually off limits. During this special pasta-making class in Florence, get hands-on instruction in making three types of traditional pasta shapes, all using gluten-free flour. Then, sit down to enjoy your freshly prepared meal paired with unlimited Tuscan wine.

The Tuscan countryside is a gourmet paradise, but few transportation options keep many travelers limited to Florence. Explore Siena, home to a magnificent cathedral and the famous Palio horse race, and the storybook village of San Gimignano (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) during this small-group tour. A seasonal lunch and Chianti wine tasting at a family-run vineyard are included.