Taste and Experience Italy Tours is a personalized tour company featuring 7 – 12 day trips to Italy, with particular attention and time spent in the Apulian region (also known as Puglia, the Southeast coastal region or “Heel of the Boot”). Visits to any major city may also be included, the customer decides what he will see. Since our tours are limited to 15 people there is ample time to see and do
more, thus offering greater freedom to each participant
Our overall goal is excellent gastronomical experience combined with relaxation. You get a “hands on” view of what has been affectionately been called the “Old Country” lived out today in the modern world. Our guests will taste and enjoy old world recipes including the finest in Italian cooking with a variation of excellent Italian wines. Cooking classes can be included in any trip. "Experience by Design" . . . . .
. . is our motto, so we want you to experience the smells, tastes, and sights of this wonderful area! What you might experience, see, and taste:
(depending on time of year, season)
Olives being crushed into olive oil
Fresh Mozzarella cheese being made by hand
Grapes being harvested or crushed for wine
Italian bread being made the old fashioned way and baked in wood fired ovens
Trips are planned in advance and include light sightseeing trips that do not drag out all day. Also included are wine tasting tours, cooking classes taught by proficient Italian chefs, shopping, and opportunities to visit sights often overlooked by larger style bus tours. These sights would include castles, villas, old Bari and other old port cities, an Italian farmhouse (where lunch or dinner would be included) among many other items. A town which is unique not only to Italy, but the world, is a town by the name of Alberobello. (See the website reference below). The visit to this old world town will be unlike any other. You may want to Google this along with other the Cities listed here. Other experiences may include watching Taralli being made or even having the chance to make them yourself! Visits to local pastry shops for treats and gelato will be a daily occurrence. The daily coffee break always includes Espresso or Capuccino, or if one prefers a cold Italian beer. All accommodations will be in 4 star hotels or bed and breakfasts. Utmost care is given to ensure that only the finest facilities are chosen. Some stays can even be arranged in modernized farm houses or even such facilities known here as “trulli”. A “trullo” is a round stone building with a cone shaped cone roof. They typically dot the Apulian countryside especially in the Alberobello area. Renovated, they are completely modern and comfortable to 20th century standards. Your hosts, Mark and Denise Stevanus has lived here in Italy for over 25 years and will do their best to assure that your vacation experience is the finest that you can ask for. You will never be without an English/Italian speaking guide. This of course helps to insure that in any and every situation you will be able to communicate your requests or necessities. Principal Cities and areas visited:
Alberobello
Bari and Old Bari (Bari Vecchia)
Castellana Grotte
Castel Del Monte
Monopoli
Polignano a Mare
Ruvo di Puglia
Valle D'Itria
Suggested Websites: (More will be added later)
http://www.helloapulia.com
