 
On a Food & Wine vacation, you’ll enjoy plenty of hands-on experiences. Take a cooking lesson that reveals the secrets of Italy’s timehonored dishes. Learn about the climate, soils, and grape varieties in France’s celebrated Bordeaux region. Indulge your senses at the Biarritz Museum of Chocolate, tour a maple sugarworks in Vermont, or find out what makes California’s sparkling wines bubble— and that’s just the beginning!
Europe Food & Wine Vacations
FLAVORS OF ITALY
Vacation Overview
During this 11-day vacation, discover Italia at its delicious best! Begin in Rome with guided sightseeing, a Roman dinner party, and a hands-on Italian cooking lesson. Next, travel through the beautiful Apennines to Tuscany, with a stop in Pienza to sample its famed pecorino cheese, and in the Montalcino wine area for a winery tour, lunch, and to learn about the process involved with producing Brunello di Montalcino. See the sights in renaissance Florence and pause for an evening of dinner and regional wines at a local Tuscan restaurant. An excursion to Verrazzano Castle includes wine tasting and the chance to learn about the creation of the acclaimed Chianti Classico. On to Modena for a special balsamic vinegar tasting and enjoy an introduction to one of Italy’s best-known cheeses when you visit a parmesan factory. Conclude your vacation in breathtaking Venice with guided sightseeing of the highlights and a farewell dinner.
BORDEAUX WINE COUNTRY, LOURDES & PROVENCE
Vacation Overview
Your 12-day culinary adventure begins in Paris, the “City of Light.” Here you’ll enjoy a welcome dinner with wine, guided sightseeing, and a visit to the Le Cordon Bleu Cooking School for a cooking demonstration and a tasting of the expertly created dishes. Next, travel via high-speed TGV train to the famous Bordeaux wine region. Enjoy lunch and a wine tasting in St. Emilion, and a visit to the Bordeaux Wine School. Next, head south to Biarritz for a decadent tasting and visit at the Museum of Chocolate. Spend two nights in Lourdes of pilgrimage fame, stop for lunch and a pâté tasting in the medieval walled city of Carcassonne, and dinner at a local restaurant in Nîmes. An included excursion takes you to Pont du Gard, to Tavel for a tasting of its celebrated rosé wines, and to Avignon. Stops in Aix-en-Provence and Cannes before arriving in Monte Carlo in the Principality of Monaco for two overnights. Transfer to Nice for the conclusion of your delicious vacation.
IMPERIAL DELIGHTS: MUNICH, SALZBURG & VIENNA
Vacation Overview
Indulge yourself on this scrumptious 9-day getaway. Begin in Munich with guided sightseeing and a special dinner at a local beer garden. Next up: the Bavarian Alps and King Ludwig’s magnificent Neuschwanstein Castle, then Innsbruck in the Tyrolean Mountains, Sound of Music Salzburg, and a stop at the Dallman Confectionery Shop to help prepare the perfect apple strudel. In Vienna, see the sights and ride the giant Ferris wheel while savoring coffee and Sachertorte. Continue to Krems for a scenic Danube cruise and a stop in Melk before returning to Munich for the conclusion of your exciting vacation.
North America Food & Wine Vacations
CULINARY NEW ENGLAND
Vacation Overview
Your 8-day culinary exploration begins in “Bean Town” with dinner at the country’s oldest restaurant, guided sightseeing, and a North End Market tour to sample local foods. An excursion to Gloucester features a dramatic harbor cruise and an authentic eat-in-the-rough lobster bake. Enjoy dinner at a local restaurant in Newport, and stop at the Smith Appleby House for a traditional Rhode Island May Breakfast. In Stockbridge, visit the Norman Rockwell Studio & Museum, then it’s into the heart of the Berkshires. Here you’ll take in remarkable scenery at the Apple Barn & Country Bake Shop, and pay visits to the Shelburne Heritage Park, New England Culinary Institute, and Morse Farm Maple Sugarworks. Via Montpelier, travel to Cabot for a factory tour and tasting at Cabot Creamery, and take a gondola ride up beautiful Wildcat Mountain. Next up: a farewell dinner in Portland and an overnight in Kennebunkport. A picturesque coastal drive takes you back to Boston for the conclusion of your vacation.
SAN FRANCISCO & CALIFORNIA WINE COUNTRY
Vacation Overview
Spend eight days discovering the best foods and wines in California! Begin in San Francisco with a succulent Dungeness crab dinner, a visit to the Boudin Bakery to discover the secrets behind San Francisco’s famous sourdough bread, and sightseeing of the city’s highlights. Then, eat your way through Chinatown with a traditional Chinese breakfast, tea at one of Chinatown’s top tea shops, and dim sum at a Chinatown “hole-in-the-wall.” Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge, visit Sausalito, the Roche Winery for a vineyard tour and wine tasting, and the Viansa Winery & Italian Marketplace for a picnic-style lunch. Excursions to Sonoma, Rutherford, and Calistoga and St. Helena feature a wine blending seminar where you can craft your own vintage, a wine and cheese pairing at V. Sattui Winery, a visit to the Solano de San Francisco Mission, and wine tastings at Buena Vista Winery, Mumm Napa, and Sterling Vineyards. You’ll also visit COPIA: The American Center for Wine, Food & the Arts; tour Round Pond Olive Oil Estate; and enjoy a farewell dinner at Wine Spectator’s Greystone Restaurant. Return to San Francisco for the conclusion of your California vacation.
Europe River Cruises
2008 Exclusive Wine Cruises
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 Your onboard crew will pamper you as a distinguished wine authority offers instruction on how to differentiate between a truly great, an average, and an everyday “table wine,” and also describes how various grape varieties are cultivated. Learn the differences between a Hungarian Tokai and an Austrian Grüner Veltliner…or between a French Sauvignon Blanc and German Riesling Spätlese. Special wine tastings will show you what to look for in a good wine—from color and bouquet to legs and finish. Visit a small wine village and taste the wines to test your new-found talent. An adventure Bacchus himself would enjoy!
Departures:
Flavors of Burgundy & Provence, Paris to Nice, November 2, 2008.
Burgundy and Provence—synonymous with beautiful scenery and fine wines. And on this special departure of our Flavors of Burgundy & Provence vacation we’ve added many extra elements to delight the wine lover! While your onboard crew pampers you, a distinguished wine authority will offer instruction on how to differentiate between a truly great, an average, and an everyday “table wine” and also will describe how various grape varieties are cultivated. Special wine tastings will show you what to look for in a good wine—from color and bouquet to “legs” and finish. Visit the Chardonnay area, home to the popular varietal of the same name and learn about the strict tradition of the Beaujolais Nouveau. A special French dinner, for which each wine has been carefully chosen to complement the dish, will teach you the rules of food and wine pairing, and for the chocolate lover, how about a wine and chocolate pairing experience? An adventure Bacchus himself would enjoy!
The Blue Danube Discovery, Budapest to Prague, November 7, 2008.
Wine lovers—this special departure of our popular Danube cruise is for you! Not only will you gaze in wonder at some of Europe’s most famous historic buildings, strolling through smaller towns and villages along the way, but this unique cruise offers you the chance to learn about and savor some of Europe’s most famous wines. Your cruise is accompanied by a distinguished wine authority who will enhance your vacation experience by introducing you to the wines of Europe and, in particular, to the wines of the region. Your stay in Budapest would not be complete without the chance to learn about Hungary’s famous Tokai wines. Cruise upriver to Austria, where so many of Europe’s delectable wines are produced. Learn about the famous Eis Wein, a sweet dessert wine which gets its name because the grapes are not picked until after the first frost. Sail through the tranquil Wachau Valley, where vineyards cling to the slopes. A visit to a local wine cellar introduces you to the wines of the area. A special dinner is offered one evening, where each dish has been carefully paired with “its” wine. What are the rules of food and wine pairing? Our expert will enlighten you and ask you to join in a lively discussion at the close of the meal. Germany’s famous Riesling wines will be more closely scrutinized—and tasted, of course—so that by the end of this memorable cruise, we hope you’ll return home with happy memories of the sights and sounds and an enriched knowledge of some of Europe’s famous wines.
The Legendary Danube, Prague to Budapest, November 13, 2008.
This special departure of our popular itinerary is a must for wine lovers! The Danube River down to Budapest is one of the most scenic in Europe and winds its way through one of Austria’s most important wine-growing regions. While still offering you all the important sights and highlights we have outlined in this vacation, we have also added a number of wine-related features, giving you the opportunity to learn more and become better acquainted with some of Europe’s best wines. Some are popular all over the world, some you may never have heard of. From Prague to Budapest, you’ll be accompanied by a distinguished wine authority who will enhance your vacation, introducing you to the wines of Europe and, specifically, to the wines of the region. Lectures will provide insight into local wine production and the correct art of wine tasting—how do you recognize the difference between a good and a great wine? Try a variety of Riesling wines in Germany, sail through the beautiful Wachau Valley in Austria where vineyards cling to the slopes, and pay a visit a local wine cellar. Our expert will introduce you to the basic rules of food and wine pairing, before you sit down to a special dinner for which the wines have been chosen with care to complement the dishes. Afterward, there’s time for a lively discussion. From Riesling in Germany and Grüner Veltliner in Austria to Tokai in Hungary, each port of call will bring memorable sights with wines that will awaken your senses.
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