Tour Overview
Building their characteristic dishes on a savvy interplay of vegetables, beans, saltless bread, and fruity olive oil, Tuscans are masters at the art of understatement. Sharp sheep's milk cheese lends saltiness and pungency to pastas, savory pies, and salads, and robust grains like farro (emmer wheat) add bulk to soups. Tuscans cook risotto as often as polenta, and fresh pastas like pici, ravioli, and tortelli often grace the Tuscan table. Along the coast, fish and seafood are cooked into thick stews and soups. Inland, a special breed of cattle known as Chianina provides meat for the grill, and the wild boar that roams the Tuscan woods is transformed into sweet-and-sour stews and rich, rosy hams. Desserts include a dome-shaped cake called zuccotto, crisp almond biscotti (the famous cantuccini of Prato), and a flatbread studded with grapes, baked since the days of the Etruscans.
Nicknamed "The Green Heart of Italy," Umbria is nestled next to Tuscany in central Italy. Landlocked, it relies on pork for most of its classic preparations, and its pork butchers (norcini, from the Umbrian town of Norcia) are said to be the best in Italy: every scrap of the pig is put to good use, and specialties like guanciale (the salted and cured meat from the pig's cheek) are tossed into pasta sauces and pots of fava beans or peas. And the region's aromatic black truffles scent many dishes, from delicate polentas to savory cheese breads.
The Marches are one of Italy's most idyllic regions, with rolling hills and lush green landscapes recalling those of far more famous Tuscany. Dino's father was born in Ascoli Piceno, so we've have always had a soft spot for the cuisine of the area. There are addictive stuffed olives, thick, chunky seafood soups along the Adriatic Coast, and succulent grilled meats imbued with wood smoke and aromatic herbs in the verdant countryside. Sheep's milk cheeses aged in caves (locally known as formaggio di fossa) lend a unique flavor to favorite dishes, and griddle-cooked flatbreads like crescia accompany most meals.
All three regions produce extraordinary olive oil, but Tuscany's is perhaps the most prized in Italy. Panzanella, a simple Tuscan bread and tomato salad, owes its rich flavor to olive oil, as you can see in this recipe from our video membership site.You can find the printable PDF version of the recipe here 
This recipe is from our video membership site. View 3 more recipes by visiting each of our other 3 culinary tour pages; each tour page has a video recipe from that region. Bonus: Sign up for a culinary tour and get a FREE one-year video site membership. Here are the links to each page:
The villa is located on the grounds of a large estate in Tuscany. The decor is rustic, with stone walls and wood beams on ceilings.
Our group will occupy a single countryhouse on the estate, ensuring privacy and quiet. The pool is for our group's use exclusively. (Bonus: The villa has a huge woodburning oven and outdoor grill; we'll bring our sourdough starter along and teach you the art of sourdough baking if you're so inclined!)
Getting to the Villa & Planning Your Itinerary
The majority of people who take tours with us spend a couple of days in their city of arrival in Italy - whether Rome, Milan, Florence, Venice or other - and then join us when the tour starts. This is a good way to plan your trip, since it will give you a day or two to beat the jet lag (depending on what time zone you are coming from). Some folks will be driving, others flying in to nearby airports,
others taking the train.
Keep in mind that the villa is far from the beaten path: the closest major train station is in Arezzo, about a 45-minute car ride from our villa. We can help you get to and from the villa by booking a car service that will pick you up or drop you off from your hotel in your city of arrival, or from a train station or nearby airport of your choice. We can also help you determine the best pre- and post-tour itinerary; we have many wonderful ideas for places to visit and we are happy to share our knowledge of Italy with you.
Check in is at 3 pm on the first day of the tour, and after you settle into your private room, we'll start off with a welcome reception: a little wine,
some finger foods to nibble on, and the opportunity to meet your fellow travelers; this will be followed by a wonderful
dinner at the villa.
The next morning, we'll enjoy our first hands-on cooking lesson in the villa's kitchen, followed by lunch, an afternoon
of sightseeing and culinary discovery, and dinner in a nearby town.
This will be the pace of our week together: cooking in the mornings, lunching together, and discovering Tuscany, Umbria, The Marches,
and Emilia-Romagna by private bus in the afternoons.
We'll include wine tastings, olive oil tastings, encounters with local food artisans, even a gelato class and chocolate tasting on our daily itineraries,
so every day will bring a new adventure.
Since we'll be exploring small medieval towns, there will be some walking involved,
including some stairs or moderate hills; we suggest comfortable walking shoes.
Italian food is extremely varied and deeply regional. From making fresh pasta by
hand to kneading focaccia dough, roasting and braising meats, poaching fish, whipping up amazing desserts, and more,
each class at the villa will focus on key Italian culinary techniques and will culminate in a full Italian meal.
Our hands-on cooking lessons will be led by tour hosts Micol and Dino, and will touch
on every aspect of Italian cuisine: antipasti, fresh pasta (gnocchi, tagliatelle, and more), risotto, fish and meat, vegetables, handmade
bread and focaccia, sourdough baking, and classic desserts. By week's end, you'll
have perfected many essential culinary skills and learned dozens of Italian dishes. We'll even bring our sourdough starter along and teach you to bake crusty bread and focaccia in the villa's woodburning oven!
We have selected restaurants in nearby medieval towns where you can enjoy a taste of the local cuisine. Some restaurants will be elegant, some may even have a Michelin star, others will be family-run and cozy, but all will provide us with a memorable gastronomic experience. The only prerequisite is to bring your appetite (and perhaps pants with an elastic waistband, according to a past tour participant!), because the meals will be generous and wine is always included!
Cost
January 3, 2024 As many of you already know, we moved to Liguria, Italy in April 2023, after nearly 30 years of living in the US and operating our business from NYC. As full time residents of Italy, we have to operate the tour business as an Italian company. Therefore, our tour pricing has been updated to be in Euro. We have kept the same exact price in USD and used today's (01/03/2024) rate of 0.92 Euro for 1 USD as a conversion. This will leave the cost in Euro constant, but the cost in USD will vary slightly depending on the exchange rate. In the table below, we have left the dollar amount prior to the Euro conversion as a reference.
- Quoted cost is per person based on double occupancy in standard rooms. A very limited number of single occupancy supplements is available for an additional fee; please inquire upon booking. NOTE: Since many of the rooms have two separate beds, friends traveling together can comfortably
share a room and book as double occupancy.
| Date |
Duration |
Cost pp based on Double Occupancy |
|
Euro |
approximate USD |
| May 11-17, 2025 |
7 days/6 nights |
4,850 Euro |
$5,200 |
Upgraded accommodations available on a first-come, first-serve basis:
On this tour, we have a total of 12 rooms, each with a private bathroom, available for our group.
- There are 5 standard rooms; the pricing quoted is per person based on double occupancy
- There are 2 larger rooms available for an additional 650 Euro per room (325 Euro per person based on double occupancy)
- There are 4 suites with
living room and kitchenette available for an additional 750 Euro per room (375 Euro per person based on double
occupancy)
- There is 1 double apartment with two bedrooms, 1 bathroom, living room and
kitchenette available for an additional 920 Euro (460 Euro per person double based on double
occupancy)
What's Included
Hassle-free, all-inclusive travel! All activities, meals with wine, and cooking classes are included as part of the tour cost once you arrive at the villa. Our philosophy is that once you arrive, everything is included:
every meal with wine, transportation to and from the various sites, tastings, and all activities we'll be enjoying as a group:
all breakfasts, all lunches, all dinners
6 nights stay at the villa
private room with en-suite bathroom
5 hands-on cooking classes at the villa
wine with all lunches and dinners
wine tasting at an award-winning Tuscan estate
olive oil tasting and visit of olive mill
private gelato class with a master gelataio
all organized group activities
transportation with our private bus within the tour to medieval towns such as Gubbio, Frontino, Arezzo, Montepulciano, Spello, and more
recipes
Rustico Cooking apron
One-year Rustico Cooking Video Membership (a value of $120)
What's Excluded
Cost excludes airfare and ground transportation for your arrival at the villa on the first day of the tour,
and transportation from the villa to your next destination at the end of the tour. We are happy to suggest a car service
that can arrange for pick up and drop off as requested (the closest train station is in Arezzo, about 45 minutes away).
We strongly encourage trip insurance.
Deposit & Final Payment:
A deposit of 1,575 Euro per person is required to reserve. Final payment is due 3 months prior to the start date of the tour. Deposits and final payments are non-refundable.
Price is subject to change as a result of international currency fluctuations that may
affect the cost of air/land/sea transportation, hotels, or other related services.
Refunds & Cancellation Policy:
In the event that we cancel a trip, you will be given a full refund of all deposits and payments unless the reason for cancellation is due to circumstances outside our control (such as a pandemic, act of God, war, etc.). In the case of cancellations due to circumstances outside our control, you will not be refunded but you will be able to apply your payment to another tour within the following 2 years. We do not give refunds on deposits or final payments
for tours that commence as scheduled, including for unused portions of the tour. We do give credit for cancellations as noted below.
Cancellation Credit:
In the event you cancel your tour for any reason, we allow credit for final payments (but not deposits) in the following way:
- 100% credit for future tours given with 90 days notice.
- 60% credit for future tours given with notice of 60 to 89 days.
- 30% credit for future tours given with notice of 30 to 59 days.
- No credit given for cancellation less than 30 days prior to start date of the tour.
- No credit for the reservation deposit.
- All cancellation credits are good for two years from the start date of the originally scheduled tour.
Payment Options:
There are two ways to pay for our tours: You can pay by credit card (please contact us by email
for details, and note that
there is a 3.5% surcharge if you choose this
option to cover for credit card fees); or you can pay by wire transfer (if you choose this option
please contact us by email
and we will provide you the wire transfer details).
Follow us on 
twitter
and 
facebook
for news, special offers and promotions...
Beautiful locations...
Beautiful locations...
Beautiful locations...
Medieval hill towns
Medieval hill towns
Medieval hill towns
Medieval hill towns
Our villa
Our villa
Our villa
Our villa
Our villa
Our villa
Our villa
Our villa
View from our villa
View from our villa
Tuscan vineyard
Dinner on a historic piazza
Wine tastings
Insider's look
Cooking indoors
Cooking outdoors
Cooking outdoors
Cooking outdoors
Cooking classes
Cooking classes
Cooking classes
Cooking classes
Cooking classes
Cooking classes
Cooking classes
Sumptuous meals
Sumptuous meals
Sumptuous meals
Sumptuous meals
