The Tuscan Countryside™

Tie on your aprons in Tuscany where acres of vineyards and olive orchards grow endlessly in a tapestry of green. Check in and relax.  During your week, you will enjoy hands-on cooking classes, a Tuscan wine tour and tasting, an artisan cheese tour and tasting and a full day to Siena with our driver.  This Tuscan experience set on a beautiful property where gardens and trails set the mood highlighted with a hot air balloon ride over Chianti.

Tuscany is the beating heart of Italy where culture, cuisine, and countryside blend into a timeless escape. From the rolling hills of Chianti to the Renaissance pedestrian paths of Florence and Siena, Tuscany welcomes travelers to slow down, sip a glass of wine, and savor the rhythms of rural life. This Tuscan land, rich with Medieval hill towns and sun-drenched vineyards, is as much a feast for the soul as it is for the palate.

Tuscany takes you beyond the postcard scenery and into the kitchens of local mammas, chefs, and vintners who have preserved the region’s culinary traditions for generations. Here, food is heritage. You’ll knead fresh pasta under the wooden beams of a countryside villa, press fragrant olive oil from ancient groves, and explore bustling markets where Tuscan pecorino, wild boar salumi, and heirloom tomatoes await.

Tuscany’s history is written in its recipes and architecture. Once home to the Etruscans and later a cradle of the Renaissance, the region is filled with artistic treasures and storied estates. Vineyards stretch across land that has been cultivated since Roman times. Towns like Cortona, Montepulciano, and San Gimignano rise like sentinels above the valleys, their stone walls and bell towers echoing the past.

But it’s around the table that Tuscany truly reveals itself. Lunches and dinners are slow, generous, and celebratory, built on seasonal ingredients and local pride. Whether you’re learning to make pici pasta with a local nonna or pairing wines with truffle-stuffed meat, every bite tells a story.

Siena

Siena, the Crown Jewel of Medieval Tuscany, invites you to wander through its winding cobblestone streets and discover a city where history, art, and tradition are savored like a well-aged wine. Known for its striking Gothic architecture and the famed Piazza del Campo, home to the legendary Palio horse race, Siena offers a deep sense of time preserved. The city’s red-brick buildings and soaring cathedral, adorned with black-and-white marble, speak to a golden era when Siena rivaled Florence in wealth and influence. Beyond the historic facades, Siena pulses with local life: outdoor markets brim with seasonal produce, trattorias fill with the aroma of wild boar ragù and pici pasta, and each contrada celebrates a unique identity with pride. Surrounded by vineyards and olive groves, Siena is a cultural feast in the heart of Tuscany, where every step is steeped in story and every meal tells one, too.

Tuscan Cuisine

Tuscan cuisine is all about simplicity, quality, and tradition. Rooted in the rhythms of the land, it celebrates fresh, local ingredients like olive oil from hillside groves, tomatoes ripened under the sun, wild herbs picked from the garden, and crusty country bread baked fresh each morning. Recipes are passed down through generations, each one a story told through flavor.

You’ll learn to prepare dishes that are both rustic and refined like handmade pici pasta with garlic and breadcrumbs, pappa al pomodoro, hearty ribollita, and slow-cooked meats flavored with Chianti wine. Meals are often enjoyed al fresco, surrounded by vineyards or under the shade of olive trees, paired with a glass of full-bodied Tuscan red.

In Tuscany, food is more than nourishment, it’s a way of life. It brings families together, marks the seasons, and honors the land. Join us in the kitchen and discover the joy of Tuscan cooking, where every dish is made with heart, history, and a drizzle of golden olive oil.

Tuscan Cooking Classes

Tie on your aprons and step into the heart of Tuscan culinary tradition with hands-on cooking classes that bring the culture alive. In Tuscany, cooking is more than a skill—it’s a celebration of family, history, and the land. Led by local chefs and home cooks, our classes take place in rustic farmhouses, elegant villas, and countryside kitchens, where you’ll prepare regional favorites using fresh, seasonal ingredients.

From rolling pasta by hand to crafting classic sauces, each lesson offers an authentic taste of Tuscan life. Between bites and sips of local wine, you’ll learn time-honored techniques and discover the stories behind every dish. Whether you’re making bruschetta with sun-ripened tomatoes or a rich ragu simmered with Chianti wine, every moment in the kitchen is filled with warmth, laughter, and the true flavors of Tuscany.

Tuscan Accommodations

Tucked into the hills of the Chianti countryside, this enchanting agriturismo offers a peaceful and authentic Tuscan escape. Surrounded by olive groves, vineyards, and golden fields, the property blends seamlessly into the natural landscape, offering breathtaking views from every corner. Cypress-lined paths lead to beautifully restored stone farmhouses, where the warmth of tradition meets quiet country elegance.

Inside, the accommodations are simple yet refined with arched ceilings, terracotta floors, and hand-carved wooden beams reflecting classic Tuscan architecture. The rooms are dressed in soft, high-quality linens, with windows that open to sweeping vistas and fresh hillside breezes. Every detail from the rustic farmhouse kitchens to the lavender-scented gardens invites you to slow down and savor the moment.  Comfortable beds are dressed in Italian linens.  Each accommodation has an ensuite private bath.

Whether you’re relaxing by the pool, strolling through the vineyards, or enjoying a quiet evening under the stars, your stay here offers a true taste of Tuscan life beautiful, serene, and filled with charm.

Dreamy Tuscan Hot Air Balloon Ride

Float above the golden hills of Tuscany on a dreamy hot air balloon ride, where the world below unfolds like a Renaissance painting. As you rise gently into the serene sky, the patchwork of vineyards, olive groves, and cypress-lined lanes stretches out in every direction, kissed by the warmth of the setting sun. After drifting over rolling hills and ancient stone farmhouses, you’ll touch down to a classic Tuscan picnic complete with artisan cheeses, rustic bread and wine from the property set in the heart of the countryside. It’s a moment to savor the flavors and views of Tuscany, from both above and below.

 

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Itinerary – 6 Days, 5 Nights

Day 1 – Benvenuto and Check In

• Pick up and transfer from Airport or Train Station to the property
• Check in and relax. Enjoy your Cooking Vacations Welcome Bag with Prosecco
• In the evening, enjoy a traditional Tuscan Welcome Dinner including a Chef’s full course tasting menu.

Day 2 – Cooking Class 1, Wine Tour and Tasting, and Artisan Cheese Tour and Tasting

• Breakfast is served.
• Tie on your aprons for cooking class 1. Learn how to prepare a full course menu under the guide of your chef featuring farm-to-table ingredients. Following the class, everyone enjoys the foods that were prepared in class with a toast of local red or white wine.
• Proceeding the class, follow an English-Speaking guide on a tour to the property’s cellar and dairy that concludes with a cheese, wine, and olive oil tasting. Embrace the history and aromas that this place has to offer.
• Dinner is on your own with suggestions provided.

Day 3 – Siena Full Day Excursion  

• Breakfast is served.
• Following breakfast, meet your driver for an excursion to Siena, a city that feels like a living painting with its warm terracotta rooftops, winding medieval streets, and grand piazzas steeped in centuries of tradition. This is Tuscany at its most elegant and enchanting.
• Enjoy lunch at local, rustic trattoria and enjoy endless views, not included and with suggestions provided.
• Return back to the property and relax.
• Dinner is on your own with suggestions provided.

Day 4 – Hot Air Balloon Ride and Tuscan Picnic

• Breakfast is served
• Meet your driver for a dreamy hot air balloon ride where you will float miles up into the sky and peer over the beautiful, rolling hills Tuscany has to offer. Once landed, enjoy a Tuscan style picnic with wines and cheeses straight from Tuscany itself.
• Return to the property and enjoy some free time where you can relax by the pool or stroll along the property’s beautiful garden.
• Dinner is on your own with suggestions provided.

Day 5 – Cooking Class 2 & Spa Treatment or E-bike Guide Tour  

• Breakfast is served.
• Tie on your aprons for cooking class 2. Learn how to prepare a full course menu under the guide of your chef featuring farm-to-table ingredients. Following the class, everyone enjoys the foods that were prepared in class with a toast of local red or white wine.
• Following the class, add on a relax spa treatment with full body massages or an e-bike tour through stunning trails.
• Dinner is on your own with suggestions provided.

Day 6 – Check Out and Departure

• Breakfast is served.
• Check out and departure with transfers to the Airport or Train Station
• Arrivederci!