Culinary holiday ideas

I have a poster on my kitchen wall that proclaims Eat Well, Travel Often. Food and travel – definitely two of life’s greatest pleasures, and, thankfully, not mutually exclusive.

If you’re thinking, ‘I want to go on holiday to relax, not spend time in the kitchen’ don’t worry – a cooking holiday is a holiday

Experiencing new food is often high on the list for many travellers; some because they want to treat themselves to dinner at an exclusive Michelin-starred restaurant, others because they want to sample the traditional cuisine of the place. Either way, it’s often a highlight of any holiday.

However, food isn’t always about the eating; sometimes it’s about the preparing. Learning about the ingredients grown on that land which yield a particularly fine produce, such as the olive oil in Sicily, is a culinary adventure for many, so much so that cooking holidays are becoming increasingly popular for young and old alike, whether travelling solo, as a couple or with a group of friends.

There are cooking holidays to suit all types, and all cuisines, whether you’re already an established hand in the kitchen, or even someone whose best friend is the microwave (but who is eager to learn and expand their gastronomy knowledge).

As Francis Meyes said in Under the Tuscan Sun, “there is no technique, there is just the way to do it. Now, are we going to measure or are we going to cook?”

So where would one go to experience a cooking holiday? Europe definitely has some of the finer gastronomic delights, with Italian, French and Spanish cuisine all hitting a sweet spot on the palate.

If you love Italian food and want to improve your pasta dishes, try new sauces and learn the secret to the perfect pizza base, there are plenty of culinary holiday packages available in various Italian towns and counties.

You can opt for a Roman holiday, where you will learn traditional recipes that have been handed down over the generations, or if you’d rather move away from the busy capital, there’s always beautiful Tuscany to offer you exquisite food and spectacular scenery. In this regard, Tuscany has marked its place on the agro-tourism map, so you’ll be spoilt for choice when searching for a culinary school that offers the package best suited to your needs and wants.

“How can you govern a country which has 246 varieties of cheese?” asked Charles de Gaulle about France. While the intention here is not to govern the country, you might want to take on the challenge of sampling 246 varieties of cheese!

French cuisine is rich in flavour and texture and not kind to those on a diet, but for everyone seeking an explosion of aromatic taste, it’s just perfect.

Whether you decide to head to the French Riviera and cook typical Provençal cuisine or the Loire Valley famous for its wine as well as its food, a culinary holiday in France will surely enrich your cooking skills making your kitchen a firm favourite among your friends.

While every country has its own famed dishes, every region would also have its own typical dish, so a cooking holiday in any country will present different dishes depending on which region you visit, meaning that you can visit the country several times and always learn new recipes from different districts.

If you prefer to venture out of this continent, then not too far away lies the eclectic land of Morocco with its hundreds of spices that each add that extra something special to the food.

With influences from Spain, Turkey and the Middle East, Morocco displays its rich history in its cuisine.

And if you want to be even more adventurous with both your cuisine and your destination, there are cooking holidays available from China to Peru – so choose your cuisine and get packing!

If the idea of a cooking holiday has piqued your interest but you’re thinking, ‘I want to go on holiday to relax, not spend time in the kitchen’ don’t worry – a cooking holiday is a holiday.

You won’t be spending all your time picking ingredients and tasting sauces; each package holiday encompasses a variety of places to see and you’ll have plenty of time to explore your surroundings.

Culinary holidays are typically offered by experienced chefs (sometimes celebrities with their own TV cooking programme) and run during select months of the year, depending on the seasonality of the produce, although there are some places that offer year-round classes.

Prices vary according to the country and length of stay. However, all quotes usually include the classes, accommodation and excursions, so when comparing cooking schools, see what’s included in each package.

And remember, if you tell people that you’re going on a cooking holiday, you might need to promise them a great meal on your return.