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Florence Cooking Class and Lunch at a Farmhouse in Tuscany with Local Market Tour

2325 Reviews
If you’re looking for cooking classes in Tuscany, you’ve come to the right place. This full day, hands-on lesson is set in the stunning Tuscan countryside, and includes a food tour led by a culinary expert through Florence’s historic central market.

Highlights

A breath-taking setting in a state-of-the-art kitchen on a Tuscan estate.

A guided tour of the Mercato Centrale (Florence’s biggest food market) complete with tastings

A hands-on experience learning to make a four-course lunch

Enjoying your freshly-cooked meal with wine after the class

Voted #1 Experience in the World
2018 Tripadvisor Travelers' Choice

Full Itinerary

Shop at Florence’s Historical Market

Our tour stands out from other cooking classes in Tuscany as it enables you to create your meal from start to finish – and that includes buying the ingredients. We will meet at the front of Santa Maria Novella train station and take you to Florence's historical market where the locals do their daily shopping. You will have the chance to meet the bakers, the butchers and the farmers who are selling vegetables from their fields. Their stalls are full of items such as fresh fruit, veg, cheeses, cured meats, balsamic vinegar, sun-dried tomatoes, olives and many other Italian specialities. As you shop for the ingredients you will be using later on that day, you will also learn how to choose the best seasonal products (and, of course, have a taste or two).

When the market is closed on Sundays and public holidays, in season you can instead pick the fresh ingredients from the vegetable garden at our country estate

Prepare Your Meal

Once we’ve finished shopping we will head to the Walkabout Florence kitchen, located amidst the rolling hills of the Tuscan countryside on a private estate, to begin the lesson. This isn't just a demonstration – we believe cooking classes in Tuscany aren’t complete unless you roll up your sleeves and become an active participant. With some help from our chef, you will actually take part in creating a full traditional Tuscan meal. You will learn to make real Italian fresh pasta by hand (with ingredients such as freshly-laid eggs), a meat sauce using vegetables from right outside the door and a bruschetta with fresh bread, home-grown tomatoes and the farmhouse's own extra virgin olive oil. After this, it’s time to take a break as you enjoy the bruschetta with a glass of Chianti wine.

Learn Tuscan Traditions

Next you will learn how to prepare traditional Tuscan roast pork and potatoes using fresh herbs collected from around the farmhouse. As a final treat, you will learn to create the creamy, coffee-flavoured dessert that is a favourite among so many cooking classes in Tuscany: Tiramisu.

Sit Down and Eat

It’s now time to taste the fruits of your labours as you and the rest of the group sit down to enjoy the wonderful meal you created together. The lunch will be accompanied with a wine from the region to compliment the flavours of the food you have prepared. At the end of your dinner, a driver will be waiting for you to take you back to Florence. You’ll leave with a belly full of food and a head full of memories that will last a lifetime.

At the end of the meal it is possible to buy cookery accessories, cook books, balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and the Chianti Classico wine used during the class!

MEETING POINT

The meeting point is in Piazza Stazione. Your guide holding a WALKABOUT sign, right by the taxi stand at Santa Maria Novella train station across from the outside McDonald's

Departure Time: 9:00am

Departure from: Florence

Frequently Asked Questions

We will provide you with all the ingredients and cooking materials you will need, including aprons and cookery utensils so just bring yourselves!

We run our tours with any number of people, rain or shine as we don't want a little bit of rain to ruin the chance for you to experience the beautiful places we take you to. If in extreme circumstances we have to cancel a tour, we will refund the price paid for the tour.

We regret that vegetarian or other alternative dietary requirements cannot be catered for.

We do not organise hotel pick-ups for difficulties with parking and scheduling, but our meeting point at Florence's main train station is very central and should be easy to get to. Many hotels are located within easy walking distance of the train station, otherwise a taxi (you could ask your hotel to book it for you) would be the fastest option, dropping you off right at our meeting point.

We always love to hear feedback about the tour! You can leave us a message on our Facebook page wall (find us at Walkabout Florence) or find us on TripAdvisor by searching for the Walkabout Florence Tours.

Please dress seasonally in comfortable casual to dressy-casual clothing and shoes.

It is always a good idea to book in advance in order to avoid the disappointment of the tour being fully booked.

The tour is open to all ages from the age of 8.

Yes, the class is hands-on. You will be taught how to make the food you will then enjoy eating at lunchtime including bruschetta, home-made pasta, roast pork with potatoes and tiramisù.

Once you have made your reservation and made the payment by credit card through our secure website, you will be able to print the information or save it to your mobile device to bring with you to the check-in.

We welcome everyone to enjoy our cooking class whether you are a beginner or a pro in the kitchen!

If you would like to change the day of your tour, you may do so (depending on availability) up to 24 hours before the start of the tour with no extra fees.

A Florence market visit, transportation to the farm and back, the cooking class and lunch with wine, an Italian cooking diploma and recipes – so you can recreate this meal at home for your family and friends!

Not only will you learn about Tuscan food and its importance in Italian history and Culture but you will have hands on experience in learning to make bruschetta, home-made pasta, Tuscan roast pork with potatoes and Tiramisù.

We offer a full refund to any cancellation up to 24 hours before the departure time of the tour.

WHY BOOK DIRECT WITH US?

Walkabout Florence is a small, independent business. We are passionate about the tours we have carefully handcrafted and the customers who book them. Whether you’re interested in cooking classes in Tuscany or fun things to do in Florence, we’re here to help you make your next Italian holiday the one you’ve always wanted.

Easy instant secure booking

Free cancellation up to 24 hours in advance

Mobile ticket accepted

WHAT'S INCLUDED?


A guided tour of a traditional food market


Transportation from Florence to the country estate and back


A cooking lesson


Lunch, complete with wine


Recipes


An Italian cooking diploma for your hard work!

THINGS TO NOTE

  • Due to uneven and steep surfaces, we are unable to accept anyone with walking difficulties or wheelchair users
  • We regret that vegetarian or other alternative dietary requirements cannot be catered for

PRIVATE TOURS

We can offer our Cooking Class as a private class in a small farmhouse and you can choose which typical Italian dishes to cook.

To find out more about possible combinations and prices please call us on
+39 055 2645746

or if you prefer you can email us at
info@walkaboutflorence.com

or just fill the contact form below

TALK TO US

If you've got a question, we're happy to help. Just fill in the contact form below.

*All data are mandatory

Reviews of this experience from Tripadvisor

Great tour
Great tour
Rina_Brit
I had wonderful day out on this trip. You visit three beautiful towns n local vineyard n farm in Chanti. You nice lunch in chanti with a panoramic view of San Gimignano. Friendly n Infortive guide Elisa who led the group well. Good value for money Highly recommended.
I did my best cooking ever! amazing teachers & experience & setting
I did my best cooking ever! amazing teachers & experience & setting
kix2mix2
It was our pleasure to spend the day with Martina & Carmella! I don't want to praise my own cooking skills, but I think the meal we actually cooked with the wonderful help of these two women was one of the best we had in Italy. I'm impressed with myself haha. My partner loved the market tour, and it was lovely to see Martina greet the people in the market like old friends. She gave us amazing tips not only on cooking, but on how to buy ingredients! Honestly, this is a great tour with very friendly people. and omg, the setting is truly paradise, the kitchen is top! P.S. Book that tour now! Go now, there are fewer people than usual so you will enjoy a much more private experience than in mainstream times!
Cinque Terre with Alberto
Cinque Terre with Alberto
Jules M
Fabulous trip Alberto the guide was very good and funny. Lots of local information. Though getting up the 400 steps in the heat but worth it for the views highly recommended
Highlight of our trip
Highlight of our trip
NavD14
This was absolutely one of the best decisions we made about our trip! Over the course of quite a long day starting at 7.30am, we visited all 5 villages. The tour operator had arranged all transport (minibus to and from La Spezia, train tickets around the villages, a boat ride too). Our guide, Alberto, was excellent - he was very knowledgable and entertaining. There were 10 of us in total and 6 of is decided to brave the hike. I fell behind a number of times (I blame the many steps and my short legs!) but Alberto made sure he stopped at a good point to wait for us to catch up, and kept us going. Having done this tour a number of times, Alberto knew exactly where all the best views would be. My only comment (and we had expected this) is that whilst we had some time to explore each village, this ended up being about 30-45 minutes in most cases (certainly if you choose to do the hike), so you won’t have time for a full Instagram photoshoot :D they villages werent overly busy, I can imagine that will only improve too.
THANK YOU GABRIEL!!
THANK YOU GABRIEL!!
annarjnsn
Gabriel you were amazing - friendly, open and impressively knowledgeable. We couldn’t have asked for a better tour guide, and it’s thanks to you that I’ve had the best day of my trip so far! The villages were stunning, the hike was really really fun, as was the swim in the beautiful blue sea at the end! Unrivalled gelato too. Would highly highly recommend this to absolutely anyone - I’m a solo traveller and had a blast, but there were also families, couples and friends in my group. Top tip: bring a hat and good shoes! And definitely go for the optional lunch, it was INCREDIBLE!!
A day in Cinque Terre
A day in Cinque Terre
26dhiah
We had a great day in cinque terre thanks to the professionalisme, warmth and excellent communication skills of our guide Alberto. We got to see the five villages very effectively in just one day and enjoy each one of them. Alberto gave us also recommandations for places for lunch, snacks (fried calamrs) and lemon juice during the hiking part. The hiking tour was very nice, dazzling scenery, moderately hard path and very nice panoramic views from the top of the mountain. Special thanks to our driver Emilio as well for getting us safely from florence to cinque terre and back as well. The only little disappointment was that we didn't get to do the boat ride due to weather conditions (wind) and it's not refundable. Otherwise i totally recommend!
5 Star
5 Star
joekag
Carmela & Cris are Fantastic. This was the best part of our Tuscany vacation. 5 Star service, highly recommended. I would attended another class sponsored by them! We attended prior to Covid, in Dec 2019. But the sanitation of the equipment was excellent. Great experience.
Once in a lifetime experience
Once in a lifetime experience
safaalkubaisi
This tour was truely a memorable one! The places you visit and the landscapes and views you see from every angle are breathtaking. It’s a great change from the usual things you see on holidays this is an experience you do not want to miss out on! The tour guide Alessandro was hilarious. super friendly, and helpful, you can see how passionate he is about what he is doing and it’s made the trip even better. I would rate this tour 5 stars however I didn’t particularly like the boat ride, it was overcrowded and had no social distancing regulations whatsoever, it was also a super long ride which went for about 50mins to an hour, I would have much preferred to use that time to swim at the beach longer because you have about 45mins to an hour to do that. Overall great experience and I highly recommend you take this tour ! My only regret is that I didn’t book more tours with this company Earlier when I had the chance before it was all sold out.
Really well organised day
Really well organised day
Lisa T
We attended the tour with Walkabout on the 14th August. It was a full on but brilliant day. The hiking was great (if not a little sweaty) and our host Allessandro has amazing knowledge and was really open to answering all questions. The slushy at the top of the hike was definitely needed.
Hiking in Cinque Terre
Hiking in Cinque Terre
MVA167
This was a really good time! We had a small group of 7 people, which was really nice. Gabriel was our guide, and he was great, knowledgeable, and friendly. The lunch was super delicious ( try the pesto pasta), the hike was a lot of climbing up, mostly steps, dusty and rocky so be ready! My husband wore hiking boots, and I wore hiking shoes that totally saved our feet. Definitely glad we went! We had approximately 45-1 hour to swim in the last town before we got on the boat or you can walk around the town. Once on the boat you go to the last town before you get on the train to leave, you can do more shopping there too.
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