Cooking Vacations
Hidden Gems
Way back in 1994 we knew the idea of food and travel went together, and that’s when The International Kitchen started offering some of the very first cooking vacations and culinary tours. At the time we offered culinary vacations on in Europe – Italy and France to be specific – but since then we’ve grown to offer culinary vacations throughout Europe, as well as in Asia, North and South America, and Africa. We have explored destination after destination and have enjoyed meal after meal in researching where we want to send our culinary travelers.
Over the years we have come to realize that what makes a great trip is more than just the destination of your cooking vacation, more than just the good food and wine, and more than just the people you meet along the way. It is a combination of all these things that make for the best cooking vacations, and for what we consider our “hidden gems” culinary tours. Come explore these unique trips with us on the culinary vacation of a lifetime.
What is a Hidden Gem Culinary Vacation?
How do we definite a hidden gem? To us at The International Kitchen, a hidden gem cooking vacation is unexpected in some way. It is not necessarily “hidden” in the sense that it is in a remote area, those are what we call off the beaten path culinary tour. But it can be hidden in plain sight, something different and unexpected, and we think precious, even in the heart of our most popular cooking vacation destinations. For instance, a food tour in Florence that is utterly a unique travel destination, or a wine tour in Burgundy that goes beyond the normal wine tastings in some way.
Our hidden gem cooking vacations are also, as we mentioned, precious in some way. They might quite simply be stunningly deluxe, or they might offer the value of authenticity, but in some way they rise above other culinary tours to offer something, we at The International Kitchen hold dear.
Of course, our hidden gem cooking vacations also offer everything you would expect of a culinary tour with The international Kitchen. There are wonderful boutique accommodations, hands-on cooking classes featuring local and regional dishes, both traditional and innovative gastronomy, fabulous food and wines, and excursions to local sites. These excursions could be to a museum or monument, or to foodie sites to see cheese producers, olive oil mills, butchers, bakers, and more.
At heart, we consider all of our cooking vacations and foodie tours hidden gems, or we wouldn’t be offering them to our culinary travelers. But we have pinpointed a handful that to us stand out in some way, including the following culinary tours.
This is Tuscany like you’ve never experienced it, the real Tuscany of your dreams. Enjoy a 6-night cooking vacation in Tuscany with a passionate local chef at his converted farmhouse B&B and dive into Tuscan cuisine and Tuscan life.
Another Tuscan gem, this cooking vacation and Tuscany wine tour takes place on Tuscany’s less-explored coast. Cook with a well-known local chef and enjoy Tuscany wine tours on this unique Tuscany culinary tour.
Head to Mexico to explore all that is Yucatecan cuisine on this hidden gem cooking vacation. Discover the authentic, timeless ingredients of the cuisine of the Yucatan through market visits, meeting local producers, and hands-on cooking classes.