TUSCANY CULINARY TOUR VACATION
We have created a single villa-based vacation to experience both luxurious comfort and convenience. This is a foodie’s dream vacation which combines food, cooking, culture, wine tastings, touring, shopping, picturesque excursions and adventure into an experience of a lifetime! Whether your cooking interests are hands-on with a Michelin Star Chef, observing and learning to make pasta with a local nonna, or simply enjoying delicious Italian food and great wines, we have created an exceptional experience you will love.
All Inclusive (except air) Vacation Itinerary – 8 days/7 nights including lodging in an exclusive and luxurious Tuscan villa, food, wine, excursions, tours, guides, cooking lessons and demonstrations, plus ground transfers. La Cucina Sabina combines food, culture and fun into an experience of a lifetime!
SATURDAY – Arrivals, Relax and Welcome Dinner
Late afternoon arrivals at the beautiful Villa Rocchi in Torrita di Siena. We’ll handle your transfers from hotels or train stations in Florence, or the Florence airport. Torrita di Siena is a lovely and quintessential Tuscan town just 45 minutes from Siena. Check in to your rooms, relax, enjoy a swim in the pool (weather permitting), a pre-arranged massage, stroll through the town just outside the villa’s gates. Join us for our Welcome Dinner at Villa Rocchi’s Grand Dining Room in the early evening.
SUNDAY – Cheese Making Lesson, Visit Pienza, Dinner at Farmhouse Restaurant
A day isn’t complete without the food culture of the area, so we have a fun and very interesting hands-on cheese making lesson with lunch at an artisanal cheese dairy. After lunch, we depart for one of the most beautiful hilltop towns in Italy, Pienza. It is perched on a high hilltop allowing unsurpassed views over the Tuscan countryside. We’ll have time for touring, exploration and shopping at the local artisanal shops or wine bars. To complete the Tuscan countryside experience, we’ll head to the hills surrounding Pienza for a local farm for a truly local’s Tuscan experience, a dinner in a farmhouse overlooking the beautiful Tuscan hills.
MONDAY – Bistecca Fiorentina Tour & Tasting, Truffle Hunt and Pici Pasta Making
Tuscany is world famous for their Bistecca (Beef) Fiorentina steaks. We visit one of their best butchers where we learn about the Chianina Beef and what makes it so special, then enjoy a lunch featuring a taste of the succulent Chianina steak and other meats. This is a Farm to Fork Experience! What could be a better pairing than a Truffle Hunt with a local truffle hunter and his dog and a Pici pasta making class in the evening with a local nonna cook at Villa Rocchi?
TUESDAY – Siena Tour, Pastry Tasting, Open Lunch + Free Time
Enjoy a half-day guided tour of Siena, likely Italy’s loveliest medieval city, where you experience the glory of the Romanesque-Gothic architecture without the crowds of Florence. Along the tour you will see Il Campo, where they run the Palio, the famous horse race through the center of town, along with many of Siena’s other gems. We’ll also stop for a tasting of their renowned pastries. Because of the excellent and abundant ceramic, leather and other artisanal shops, we give you extra time for exploration and lunch on your own. Dinner will be back in Torrita di Siena, at villa Rocchi.
WEDNESDAY – Brunello Winery Tour in Montalcino, Organic Honey Tasting, Plus Pizza Making
When you say Tuscany, one of your first thoughts is fine Tuscan wines such as Brunello, so we start our tour visiting the family-owned organic Brunello winery I Cipressi, near Montalcino, with tastings (also an organic honey tasting). We then visit the small town of Montalcino for lunch and some free time for shopping and exploration. In the evening, we enjoy a Pizza Making experience at a local restaurant, Ristorante Piccolo, a short walk from the villa.
THURSDAY – Michelin Star Chef Cooking Lesson, Open Time in Cortona
What better place to learn authentic Tuscan cooking than in a hands-on lesson with Michelin-Star Chef Silvia Baracchi, at her renowned Il Falconiere restaurant and resort in Cortona. After the lunch lesson, we head to lovely Cortona’s center, the famous “Under The Tuscan Sun” town, for a visit. There’s a bit of open time for strolling the town before heading back to the Villa. Dinner will be at Villa Rocchi.
FRIDAY – Montepulciano Tour and Gelato Making, Arrivederci Dinner at Antinori Winery
We start the day heading to Montepulciano, one of Tuscany’s most famous wine making areas for a tour of the town first created by the Etruscans 3000 years ago. We’ll enjoy lunch in town as well as an artisanal gelato making lesson. We have time for exploring or shopping before heading back to Villa Rocchi for relaxation and packing before dinner. We have a special Arrivederci dinner planned at the famous Antinori winery and Estate.
SATURDAY – Departures and Transfers
After breakfast, Checkout early to mid morning and transfers provided to local airports, hotels or train stations in Florence.
Saturday – Saturday Single Villa Vacation
October 19th – 26th
Download a sample itinerary HERE.