Sapori d'Abruzzo: Best Abruzzo Cooking Tour and Vacation in Italy 2023

Discover our day-by-day itinerary, during which you can experience one of the most authentic cooking vacations in Italy during our Abruzzo culinary tours. Please note that some weeks may take advantage of local festivals or the weather and the itinerary may be modified accordingly. 

Day One

• Meet the arrivals transfer at 1:00 pm at the Rome airport, then head across the beautiful Central Apennine mountains directly to the Palazzo in Abruzzo where you will be staying. The drive is about 3 1/2 hours.
• In the evening you will attend a multi-course welcome dinner to help you get acquainted and settled in.

Day Two

• Your morning will start with a delicious Italian breakfast.
• Next, head out for a visit to an award-winning olive farm and sample a variety of olive oils. You will walk through the olive grove, learn how the olives are harvested, and see how they are processed into extra virgin cold pressed olive oil. You will also have the opportunity to purchasen some of this amazing olive oil to take home.
• Return to the Palazzo for a short break, then start your first hands-on cooking class to explore the basic ingredients of Abruzzo cuisine. You will create one of the scrumptious appetizers known in the region, a main course based on vegetables, and a delightful dessert. The theme for this class is quick and healthy homemade meals, recipes, and techniques, which you will be able to reproduce at home. Afterward, dine on these tasty creations in traditional Italian style, slowly and in good company!

Day Three

• Breakfast at the Palazzo.
• This morning’s class will focus on how much fun making pasta at home can be, in a variety of colors and shapes. Experienced chefs will teach you all their pasta-making tricks so that your pasta turns out great every time, with the pasta of choice in the area being cavatelli.
• After lunching on your creations and taking an afternoon break, it is time for a wine pairing class with Massimo, owner of the Palazzo and a certified sommelier. You will be sampling a few great Abruzzo wines, then learn how to pair them with food and wine.
• The evening will be filled with another extraordinary multi-course dinner.
• Dinner at the palazzo and overnight.

Day Four

• After breakfast, head to the Adriatic Coast. You will enjoy a guided tour of Vasto and its historical center, and you will then have some free time to do some shopping or stop by a bar for a cappuccino.
• Depending on the season, you may have a short sightseeing tour of the coast’s unique “Trabocco” fishing houses, which very old fishing huts perched in the middle of the sea. If the weather and the season permit it, you may have a fishing experience at the Trabocco – a very special treat.
• Shoe shopping is very popular in Italy, and you will find a huge selection in the local boutiques and outlets, along with lingerie, jewelry, and more. You will then relax at the best restaurant in town, where you will enjoy a seafood sampling feast.

Day Five

• Breakfast at the palazzo.
• Today you will learn some recipes of the old world, known locally as “peasant food.” While it used to be the food of the poveri, it is now considered some of the most authentic regional food. For dessert, learn to make the best almond biscotti, with an Abruzzo twist.
• In the afternoon you are free to walk around town savoring the peaceful environment in the small village of Carunchio, or you may enjoy a hike on a trail close by. For an additional fee, you may instead choose to arrange to have a massage in the spa treatment room, or enjoy a short ride to a local winery for a tour and tasting. If in season, truffle hunting may also be an offered option (May 20th to September 20th, if weather permits).
• Dinner at the palazzo and overnight.

Day Six

• Breakfast.
• Next, get ready for another unique excursion – a tour to Agnone in the region of Molise, where you can watch old-world production of different cheeses like mozzarella, ricotta, and caciocavallo, a gourmet version of provolone. After the tour of the cheese company, you will have the opportunity to purchase some of this extraordinary cheese to bring back to your home.
• Next, visit a historic artisan bell foundry to learn about each phase of manufacturing these unique bells, which are still created for Vatican City.
• Lunch will be gourmet street food, a local sandwich paired with a fine Italian beer.
• After arriving back at the Palazzo, you will learn how to make pizza with a variety of vegetables, meats, and cheeses – in the Abruzzo way. Create the pizza dough, top it with many fresh ingredients, and carefully place it into an artisan wood-fired oven; the result is a crunchy, thin-crusted pizza. Taste and discover how these ingredients are a big part of the Abruzzese cuisine.

Day Seven

• Following an early breakfast, finish any last minute shopping in the town and return transfer to the Rome airport.