Whether it’s feasting on fresh Alaskan salmon prepared by a sushi master, cycling between olive groves to sit down to a plate of fresh orecchiette in Puglia, or cruising through French wine country, these tours and cruises will send you home with a bellyful of memories.
In January 2024, Cunard is bringing one of the true maestros of modern Italo-Australian cooking, Karen Martini, on board the Queen Elizabeth for a seriously delicious seven-night voyage, departing from and docking in Melbourne. Martini will create unique menus, host panels and demonstrations and lead food-centric shore excursions in Tasmania and Adelaide.
Departing May and September, UTracks’ 15-day journeys take walkers along the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail, stopping for elaborate dinners at Michelin-starred restaurants, tastings at wineries, and trying local specialities such as wood-fired Asturian empanadas and Galician liqueurs. You won’t miss any of the walk’s historical landmarks either – your guide will also lead you to monasteries, cathedrals and ancient villages.
Tamales, chalupas, churros and intense, multi-layered moles – and a splash of mescal, of course – are just a few of the regional specialties you’ll discover on Intrepid Travel’s Mexico Real Food Adventure, a nine-day culinary journey from Mexico City to Huatulco in the southern state of Oaxaca. Produce market visits and cooking classes ensure you’ll come away with a deep understanding of this complex cuisine.
Chefs always work hard to make their diners happy, but it’s rare they work this hard. In June, the Tasmanian Walking Co’s Restaurant at the Edge of the World experience invites guest chef Luke Burgess (formerly of Hobart’s Garagistes) to cook on its Three Capes Lodge Walk. And he’ll carry everything he needs – from ingredients to grill – for the full 26km round=trip himself. After each day’s hike, guests will try the results of his labours, matched with Tasmanian wines.
The best restaurant on a Holland America Line ship? Our pick is the California-style Japanese Nami Sushi. Its most spectacular destination? It would have to be the wilds of Alaska. In May, the maestro behind Nami, chef Andy Matsuda, will join a 14-day Alaskan Explorer itinerary on the Nieuw Amsterdam where he’ll host cooking demonstrations and an exclusive dinner for guests. It’s worth noting that Holland America is the first cruise line to use sustainably caught Alaskan salmon on all their Alaskan sailings. Sushi prepared in the home of salmon? That’s what food dreams are made of.
From the chutneys of Chennai to the curries of Cochin, Wild Voyager’s 15-day South India Food Tour takes you into the colourful, seafood-packed belly of southern India. Highlights include a cooking class with chef Nimmy Paul, a visit to one of the largest spice markets in the country and accommodation surrounded by vanilla, coffee and cocoa plantations.
Drink in the wine regions of Burgundy and Provence by boat with Avalon Waterways’ eight-day vinous cruise along the Saône and Rhône rivers through Beaujolais, Lyon and Avignon. A master of wine will guide you through chardonnay tastings, a trip through beautiful Beaujolais, and on a tour to the region’s prince of grenache, the legendary Chateauneuf-du-Pape of the Rhône region on the Burgundy and Provence (Wine Appreciation) cruise.
Japan is both a simple and difficult country to navigate, which is why a self-guided tour – where accommodation, transport and itinerary suggestions are taken care of, but you’re free to explore on your own – is the sweet-spot compromise. Inside Japan’s 14-day gastronomic gallop begins with a group meal at a Tokyo izakaya (informal bar) to get acquainted with Japanese dining customs. Then you set off to explore Kyoto, Osaka and several stops in between at your leisure. Learn to make soba noodles in Matsumoto, try tender Hida beef and experience the generosity of a multi-course ryokan dinner.
A private, chauffeured Mercedes is your chariot on a bespoke Fish Lovers Tour of Ireland that can be customised to your tastes. Kick things off with dinner in Dublin, then cruise into the countryside to try fly fishing at Delphi Lodge. Sample mussels and oysters in Connemara and smoked salmon and gravlax at a sensational smokehouse in Cork, or board a boat for a spot of ocean-wreck fishing. At least two Michelin-starred dining experiences can be included and you might even work in some marine-based spa treatments at the five-star Cliff House in the fishing village of Ardmore in Waterford.
Puglia is a champion of the slow-food approach to cooking, so it makes sense to meander it by pedal power on this seven-night bike tour beginning from the fishing village of Polignano a Mare and finishing among the conical trulli dwellings of Alberobello. Your host and guide is American chef Mary Sue Milliken. She’s been leading bike tours through Italy since 2017, and will introduce you to the simple, flavour-packed cuisine of the region, including fresh bruschetta and pasta, gelato and freshly caught seafood feasts.
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