European Tour 2012

Italy – Verona and Florence

DREAM CLINIC’s SPA-CULINARY TOUR

Host: Chris Wesche

11 Days/9 nights

General Itinerary. Days may rotate. Final 45 days out.

May 11 Departure from SeaTac airport.

May 12 Arrival Bologna or Florence airport. Transfer to Tuscany just west of Florence and your hotel in Montecatini Terme for the welcome dinner.

May 13 Morning visit to Pisa to view its famed tower, then to Lucca with open lunch. Lucca is home to opera’s renowned Puccini. His home has a tower from which you get amazing views of this city. Your afternoon will be spent with chef-instructor, Gian Lucca Pardini, who will detail a four or five course dinner, then get you into a hands-on prep and cooking schedule for several hours. You will be making fresh semolina pasta, working with seasonal produce that dictates the menus, and learning regional techniques that make Tuscany one of the world’s most renowned cuisines. As with all cooking classes, you end in a family meal celebration literally eating the fruits of our labor.

May 14 Professionally guided morning walking tour of Florence including the Duomo and Ponte Vecchio plus a “food in art” walk and market tour. Free afternoon and open dinner in Florence. Remember that Florence has incredible museums: l’Accademia with its David and the Uffizi with a huge collection of paintings and sculpture. You will also find the famous leather market and the Ponte Vecchio with its dozens of gold merchants.

May 15 Tour to the famed hilltop village of San Gimignano known for its many towers. A stop at a local Tuscan winery will be included. Then back Montecatini Terme for a tour of the Borghese spa. This region is famed for its “healing waters”. People for centuries have come here to “take the waters”, soak in spas, and cleanse their bodies both internally and externally.

May 16 Free Day. Relax at the hotel and stroll around Montecatini Terme. Perhaps take in a spa treatment, or catch the train back to Florence for the day. Dinner on own.

May 17 Morning departure for Verona-area with stops near Modena for professional tours and tastings of balsamic vinegar at a country villa and parmigiano reggiano at a nearby diary. Afternoon arrival at hotel and dinner.

May 18 Tour of olive oil museum in nearby Cisano and professional tasting, followed by a visit to nearby Bardolino on beautiful Lake Garda. Then afternoon cooking class focusing on the regional specialties of Valpolicella and the Veneto. As with Chef Gian Lucca, your class will begin with an overview of the menu that is dictated by what ingredients are fresh and available. You may even be picking some of these ingredients from organic farms. Menus in all cooking classes are coordinated to avoid duplications. Printed recipes will be provided to add to your portfolio. You end your day with a group dinner enjoying the rewards of your day’s culinary lessons.

May 19 Guided morning tour of magical Venice with its fairytale buildings and winding canals. You will have an option of a Venetian charcoal sketching class by famous artist Silvio Cannizzo, then a free afternoon to roam Venice and make your own memorable discoveries. Don’t miss the talented artists making gilded “carnivale masks”, Murano glass or Burano lace.

May 20 A morning tour of diverse Verona. Discover the 2,000 year old Roman arena or the hillside theater, the Casa di Guilietta where Shakespeare got set his famed “Romeo and Juliet”, or just enjoy one of the open markets. In the afternoon you will have a tour of a local spa and hear the history of natural healing in this area. Then a farewell dinner after an amazing trip.

May 20 Transfer to Milan or Venice airport. Return flight

Participant Prices from $3,700.00 bases on 25 paid travelers

We also offer a “Booster” price at - $50.00 for those who don’t attend the cooking classes. There is usually a limit of about 20 persons who can attend a cooking class.

The Tour Prices quoted above include:

• Accommodations and 2 meals a day.
• All mentioned transfers by bus. During your entire stay a private bus will be available exclusively for your group.
• Costs for arranging the culinary program with 2 cooking classes.
• Costs for arranging the 2 spa tours. Note these do not include treatments.
• Product focus tours and professional tastings including balsamic vinegar, olive oil, wine, chocolate and local cheese.
• Throughout the tour, a tour escort will provide you with any assistance when necessary, and help plan or amend your daily schedule as needed.
• A supplemental tour health insurance policy (not to be confused with Trip Insurance)
• Round trip air fare as well as airport taxes as noted.