10 Days in Italy - Food and Wine Tour

Arrival — Campo de' Fiori & Trastevere Land at Fiumicino, transfer to your hotel in the historic center. Afternoon stroll to the Pantheon (a 2,000-year-old architectural marvel and UNESCO site) and Piazza Navona. At dusk, You guide meets you for a gentle introduction to Roman aperitivo culture — prosecco, bruschetta, and the first story about why Roman food is unlike any other cuisine on earth. Dinner in Trastevere.

Vatican & Private Castelli Romani Wine Excursion Morning at the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's with your expert guide and priority access. In the afternoon, your guide escorts you by private car to the Castelli Romani wine country southeast of Rome — the volcanic hillside source of Rome's beloved house wines. Visit a family-run cantina producing Frascati Superiore DOCG, taste alongside seasonal Roman antipasti, and return to the city in time for an unhurried dinner in the Parioli neighborhood.

Colosseum, Borghese Gallery & Farewell Roman Feast Begin at the Colosseum with arena-floor access and continue through Palatine Hill and the Forum with your expert guides commentary. Midday: a private visit to the Borghese Gallery — one of the world's finest collections of Baroque sculpture, requiring advance reservation. An elegant farewell dinner at a celebrated Prati restaurant near the Vatican: tasting menu, Roman wine pairings, and the lingering sense that you've only begun to understand this city.

Florence Arrival & Olive Oil / Wine Tour Morning train to Florence (1h 30m). Afternoon with Grape Tours' Olive Oil & Wine Tour: a countryside journey combining a working olive oil mill (where you'll press, taste, and understand the difference between truly fresh olio and supermarket oil) with a visit to a Chianti Classico estate for a seated tasting of three wines in a historic winery on a picturesque Tuscan estate.

Uffizi, Accademia & Florentine Steak Night A full day in Florence's UNESCO-listed historic center. Morning at the Uffizi Gallery (Botticelli's Birth of Venus, Raphael, Caravaggio). After lunch, walk to the Accademia to stand before Michelangelo's David, one of Western art's supreme achievements. Late afternoon aperitivo at Formaggioteca Terroir, a wine bar in Oltrarno. End the day with the quintessential Florentine dinner: a kilo of bistecca alla Fiorentina, Chianti Classico Riserva, and ribollita to start.

Super Chianti — Dario Cecchini & Biodynamic Estates Enjoy a super Chianti day: deep into the rolling hills of Chianti Classico, beginning at an ancient Tuscan farmhouse with a guided grape-to-bottle experience and four wines paired with estate olive oil and artisanal sheep's milk cheeses. Lunch at Dario Cecchini's restaurant in Panzano — Tuscany's most famous butcher serves an extraordinary rustic feast that has drawn food writers from every continent. Return to Florence as the light turns gold over the hills.

San Gimignano, Vernaccia & Overnight in the Towers Private Grape Tours day to San Gimignano — the medieval "Manhattan of Tuscany" and a UNESCO World Heritage site of extraordinary beauty. Visit a producer of Vernaccia di San Gimignano DOCG (Tuscany's most important white wine), tour the vineyards on the hillsides below the town's famous towers, and enjoy a long lunch paired with Vernaccia and local saffron-scented dishes. Spend the night in San Gimignano itself — at dusk and dawn, when the tour groups have gone, this is one of the most beautiful places in Italy.

Montalcino & Brunello — King of Italian Reds Return from San Gimignano toward Florence, with a detour south to Montalcino. A private excursion visits two Brunello estates: one a celebrated historic producer, the other a smaller artisan winery with an extraordinary approach to native Sangiovese Grosso. Three-course winery lunch with a panoramic view across the Val d'Orcia UNESCO landscape. Return to Florence for a final quiet evening in the city.

Train to Milan — The Last Supper & Navigli Morning train to Milan. Immediately visit Leonardo's The Last Supper at Santa Maria delle Grazie — timed-entry only, 25 guests maximum, 15 minutes of hushed reverence before one of the world's greatest paintings. Afternoon exploring the Castello Sforzesco and its museums, then the Brera district for aperitivo and contemporary art. Dinner in the Brera at an intimate Milanese restaurant for risotto alla Milanese and a Barolo from a great Langhe producer.

Northern Italian Cooking Class & Farewell Lunch A morning cooking class with a Milanese chef: learning to make risotto from scratch (the mantecare technique that separates amateur from professional), fresh pasta for the north, and a proper cotoletta alla Milanese — Italy's answer to a Wiener schnitzel, done correctly. The class becomes lunch, paired with a selection of Franciacorta and Barolo. Afternoon transfers to Malpensa for your departure flight — a suitcase full of wine notes and a head full of recipes.