Culinary Tour to Puglia, Italy
November 6–November 16, 2012
Join us in November 2012 as we tour Puglia, in the “heel of the boot.” It is a beautiful area surrounded on three sides by the Adriatic, the Ionian and the Mediterranean Seas!
Originally colonized by the Greeks in the 5th century B.C., Puglia's towns and outlying areas are rich with archaeological sites including Greek and Roman ruins.
In Puglia, and no where else, you will also find a very peculiar type of building - the trullo - a beehive-shaped, whitewashed, mortarless structure made of stone, usually used as barns in farming areas within the Val d'Itria, but also used as housing in communities like Alberobello, where over 1000 Trulli are situated on terraces. The original Trulli date back hundreds, if not thousands of years.
Apart from mountainous areas in the north and north west, Puglia is mostly a plain where farmers produce olives (and olive oil), grapes (and wine), grains, almonds, figs, citrus and livestock. It is reliably said that Puglia produces 10% of all the wine consumed in Europe and two-thirds of all the olive oil produced in Italy. Not surprisingly, fishing is another main support of the regional economy
Our tour includes private bus transportation, luxury 4-star hotel stays, tours of Puglia, gourmet meals and the chance to experience the cuisine of this unique Italian region and go behind the scenes to see and taste the foods of Puglia at the source.
Tour Highlights:
- Guided tours of Gallipoli, Lecce, Otranto, Ostuni, Alberobello and Martina Franca
- Tour an historic olive grove and enjoy an olive oil tasting
- Tour and tasting at a local winery
- A day at the local market choosing ingredients for our cooking class
- Visit the studios of local artists
- Enjoy Puglian cuisine with five lunches and eight dinners in the finest local restaurants
- Guided tours of architecture, ancient historic villages, local markets
- Four-star accomodations in three cities
- Private bus transfers and bilingual tour guides
- Breakfast every morning
- Free times for exploring, shopping and, most importantly, eating!
Price is $5100 and space is limited to 15, so make your reservation soon to be included in this fabulous trip.
