Culinary & Wine Tours> Italy> Cooking and Gastronomy in Sorrento

Italy: Cooking and Gastronomy in Sorrento
(Options: Day Cooking Classes, Additional Cooking Lessons, Longer Stays, Italian Lessons)
Sorrento, Italy - 3 or 6 nights


Choose from a three or six night culinary itinerary in magical Sorrento. Experience the Neapolitan foods and wines of this region while learning how to cook classic dishes from an Italian chef. Visit an olive oil mill, explore Sorrento or Herculaneum and Mount Vesuvius and the surrounding villages and indulge yourself in fine wines and delectable cuisine.

Discover the secrets of healthy Italian cuisine with chef Biagio and his use of fresh grown ingredients for creating the simple local Mediterranean dishes. For the six night itinerary you have the option of staying at either the family run bed and breakfast or a four star hotel. In either case, you will experience the beauty and warmth of this coastal region of Italy, the Amalfi Coast.

Three Night Itinerary

Day One

Arriving at the International Airport in Naples (Capodichino), you will be greeted by an English speaking local guide. A car or bus will then take you directly to your welcoming bed and breakfast in Sorrento.

If it's early enough, you may take a leisurely walk to downtown Sorrento and enjoy the ocean breeze. For those who arrive late or prefer to rest, stay relaxed where friendly family members will make you feel at home.

Day Two

A visit to the oldest olive oil manufacturers in Sorrento which is renowned for the best olive oil in the area, in fact the quality has been certified from the EU Agricultural department, of the quality control origin “DOC”.

Following a great wine tasting expedition to learn about the DOC Campania wine. On'Aniello, an old farmer, will welcome us to his vineyard. We will tour his characteristic garden that reflects the typical vegetation of the area. We will then be provided with samples of his wines and explanations of the origins and differences of quality wines in the Campania region. We then return at the bed and breakfast, where our chef Biagio will prepare a light lunch with all the freshness and rich flavours of natural and seasonal ingredients. After lunch, discover Sorrento in a nice walk of the streets of the historical centre to hear the Neapolitan sounds and the aroma of cappuccino.

Return for a cooking class to taste the traditional meal of an Italian family. The chefs will explain to you the simplicity of the Neapolitan cuisine while you prepare a delicious menu including fresh pasta, chicken cacciatore, and a delicate lemon tart.

Day Three

After breakfast, your hostess will reveal to you some of her secrets in preparing famous courses. The whole day will be spent in the kitchens of the local farm where you will learn how to prepare the dough to make genuine Neapolitan Pizza. For this occasion you are requested to invite all your friends to pay us a visit, as we will arrange a real "all you can eat pizza party" that will be accompanied by the traditional "caponata salad" and "mussels impepata soup," boiled with black pepper and covered with fresh-squeezed lemon juice. For the finale you will make a dessert, based on fruit, such as a fruit tart, fruit mousse, or Baba with fresh fruit

Day Four

Checkout time noon. Private transfer to the Naples airport. Time to say Arriverderci and Buon Viaggio!

Six Night Itinerary

Day One

You will be met by an English speaking driver at Naples airport and brought to Sorrento, where you will enjoy a typical gelato affogato in the original Neapolitan bar in Sorrento main square.

Settle into your comfortable room at the bed and breakfast farm house. Join the family for welcome drinks on the patio. Then enjoy a traditional Neapolitan dinner.

Day Two

Your cooking course will take place in the kitchen of your hostess where you will become expert at making genuine Neapolitan home made "house bread" with a local pasta dish using seasonal fresh vegetables and fresh fish. You will also make a dessert based on fruit such as a fruit tart, fruit mouse, or rum Baba with seasonal fresh fruit.

Day Three

After breakfast your guide will take you to a famous wine cellar to have a tasting of the four best Campania brands wine. The afternoon will be spent at your leisure.

In the evening, enjoy a light dinner at the farm house where your hostess prepares fresh ravioli and a local pollo paesano sul girrarosto (chicken roasted on a spit).

Day Four

A visit to the oldest olive oil manufacturers in Sorrento which is renowned for the best olive oil in the area, since the olives here have been nominated from the EU Agricultural department, of the quality control origin "DOC".

After you will see the methods used for production, the old olive oil presses used in the past and the modern process which are used now for the manufacture of the olive oil. You will have the chance to taste the different grades of oil and learn to distinguish the main characteristics of first class olive oil.

Returning to the culinary cooking school you will learn how to prepare preserved foods and liquors such as vegetables in olive oil and limoncello. This evening you will assist in preparing a quick and easy Neapolitan dinner.

Day Five

Board the hydrofoil at Marina Piccola to journey to Napoli. A whole day escorted tour. Visiting the National Museum, Maschio Angioino Castle, Monastero di Santa Chiara, and many other attractions in the historical city of Southern Italy, which together with Palermo, was one of the two capitals of the kingdom of Sicily. Return to Sorrento for a taste of the real Neapolitan Pizza.

Day Six

Visit the ruins of Herculaneum and Mount Vesuvius on a half-day escorted tour. Then on your return for a culinary cooking class and dinner.

Day Seven

You will be presented with a small gift and graduation certificate. You can enjoy a farewell party prior to your private transfer to the Naples airport. Time to say Ciao! To Sorrento. Checkout time noon.

*Minimum 1 person up to maximum 12 persons