Italy's Irresistible Food Tours That Will Make You Want To Pack Your Bags And Leave

The food tour will also take you through the bustling Trionfale market. Among the many delis and cafes you'll be visiting, a few stops will be made along the way at Pizzarium, that according to Parla sells the world's best pizza by the slice, La Tradizione, that stocks nearly 400 varieties of cheese and Gelateria dei Gracchi, where the nocciola, or hazelnut gelato is an absolute must-have. This tour will give you a glimpse into how native Romans cook and like their food.

2. Cycle through the rolling hills of Piedmont and hunt for truffles

This 10-day jaunt is where food and adventure unites at Italy’s pilgrimage sites for foodies. So while you cycle through hilly hamlets and roads fringed with vineyards, you will also tour distilleries, and learn about grape production in both wine and grappa. Apart from getting a little tipsy on the Barbera, Dolcetto, or the Nebbiolo wines, you will come back heady with the taste of the Grissini bread sticks and heavenly chocolates.

With VBT, you'll also tour the medieval streets of Barolo, learn to make your very own wood-fired pizza, spot cascina farmhouses and visit Canelli’s UNESCO-listed Spumante cellars. On the day you visit Langhe, the region where the slow food movement originated (the movement was an initiative to bring about an alternative to fast food, aiming to preserve traditional and regional cuisine, so as to encourage farming of plants, seeds, and livestock belonging to the local ecosystem), you will get to meet winemakers, working farmers and the adorable sharp-nosed, four-legged truffle hunters. At the end of every night, you'll retire to country hotels and feast on rustic local fare such as tajarin, a regional egg-yolk-based ribbon pasta.

3. A bread, bean and biscotti feast in Florence

Every turn in Florence will greet you with people feasting on bread and bean soup, and the mandatory Chianti wine.

Eating Italy's food tour starts from Oltrarno, Italy's answer to Paris' Left Bank. Take delight in the region's Bohemian vibe, abuzz with students and artists in hipster cafes and an all-round vibrant culture. The tour is bound to give away a number of local food and restaurant secrets. Among the multitude of food and wine tastings, you'll also learn to make Italian cantucci (biscotti), sample locally made fennel salami or Finocchiona, Tuscan cheeses and crostinis, and stop at an authentic Italian trattoria (restaurant) for steaming hot soups. Don't leave before having Florence’s famous steak, Bistecca alla Fiorentina, and of course, end the tour with gelato.

4. A gastronomical explosion on a gondola ride through Venice

Walk of Italy's tour spanning two sides of the Grand Canal, clamber aboard a gondola to experience the gastronomical explosion of cicchetti, wine, fritti and pasta.

A Venetian local will meet you at the Rialto Bridge with your first stop being the Rialto Fish Market. Almost every restaurant with a seafood menu purchases their fish from here. You will stop for food at a bacaro (Venetian gastropub) for the delicious cicchetti (appetisers) and a glass of spritz, wine or Prosecco. Another dish to try out here is the baccalà, a salted cod dish, that is accompanied by freshly baked bread. Tips shall also be given to avoid the same old touristy restaurants.

5. A walk through Sorrento's citrusy farms

This food tour will take through the charming streets of southern Italy. A few of the many dishes you'll be tasting on this tour are gnocchi, paninis with buffalo mozzarella, cured meats, pastries and gelato. You'll make stops at a pizzeria, a cheese factory, and a family-run farm. You can also get your hands on some family recipes and make a Neapolitan-style pizza at the historic centre of Schiazzano.

Guided by a local, your first stop will be at a local farm, Limoneto Storico, dating back to 1894. You can also walk through olive groves and sample fresh olive oil, or the abundant citrus trees and taste orange oil on artisanal bread. Your next stop will be at a cheese factory, where you can try the recommended pairing of fresh provolone cheese with salami and wine. Top it all off with coffee or a mean limoncello digestivo (Italian liqueur).

6. A walk through the land that created Parmesan

The tour starts early in the morning, the first stop being at a cheese factory in the Emilia-Romagna countryside that will educate you on the production of Parmesan or Parmigiano Reggiano, the world's most famous cheese. Right from the milk being curdled to the final ageing, the complete process is shown in detail. This visit ends with a huge breakfast of Parmesan cheese sampling and dry Lambrusco wine.

Next up is the Acetaia, where you delve into the secrets of the illustrious 12-year old balsamic vinegar or Aceto Balsamico Tradizionale di Modena produced by a solitary family. Starting from ageing grapes in oak barrels, the entire process behind producing the vinegar is shown in detail. You will also be fed ricotta, balsamic jelly and ice cream, all cooked using a 6-year old balsamic condiment. Then comes Prosciutto and its manufacturing. Here you get to see the careful craft that goes into creating one of the world's finest pork products.

7. A seaside stroll as you hunt for food through Naples

The tour starts at Castel Nuovo, technically a fort and the former home of the Neapolitan monarchy. Apart from the food, this tour will leave you with immense knowledge of the culture and history behind Italy's seaside city. Your first stop for food will be at the 19th century Galleria Umberto I, where you'll be subjected to the sheer delight that is the warm pastry, sfogliatella.

The walk continues through colourful markets dotted with local vendors, and their stalls and shelves decked with classic Neapolitan street food. A speciality here is the seasonal 'o pére e ‘o musso (cold meat with salt and lemon) and the small pizzas or pizzettes.