“Today’s travelers are experiential,” says Erik Wolf, executive director of the World Food Travel Association, a nonprofit educational organization whose community of food-focused travel professionals numbers 48,000, according to Wolf — up from 18,000 in 2013. “People want to get out of the bus or the car and actively participate and learn and do.”
Epitourean, a Colorado-based tour company, offers more than 120 different food-focused travel packages — called Edible Destinations — a year. It sent more than 5,000 foodies to Italy in 2016, and this year is on track to send a few thousand more. Other popular destinations include California’s Napa Valley; Charleston, S.C.; and Savannah, Ga., where Low Country cuisine is the draw. David Loy, the company’s president, says that at least three-quarters of Epitourean’s customers are older than 50, and many of them splurge on a culinary vacation as a special way to celebrate a milestone birthday or anniversary.
Cooking trips, Loy says, are “on people’s bucket lists.”
Price
The cost of these trips can vary widely. Many U.S. bed-and-breakfasts offer two- or three-day culinary getaways for less than $1,000. The Blair House Inn in Wimberley, Texas, has a variety of three-day cooking classes, including “BBQ Camp.” For about $390 per person (not including a room for two nights at the inn, which will cost around $160 to $305 a night plus tax), you can learn to cook Hill Country goodies such as Texas brisket or baby back ribs with Cherry Coke glaze.
On the other hand, spending a week in a gorgeous riverside French chateau in the Loire Valley while learning how to make chocolate soufflé or tasting fine wine and artisanal cheese is not going to be cheap. Plan for around $3,000, not including your flight, for that sort of high-end experience.
You can find deals, however: While Epitourean’s listed price for, say, a culinary excursion in the Tuscany region of Italy sells for $3,898 per person, double occupancy, the company also has offered subscriber promotions for as low as $1,799 for the exact same package. Sometimes their partners want to increase occupancy for a certain time of year, or they want to draw new customers. So consider waiting for the right trip to go on sale.
Source: AARP Travel
