Spanish Culinary, Wine & Cultural Tours
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Luxury Celebrations
Women Only
Itinerary | Features | Prices | Travel Options
Highlights of your unforgettable visit include:
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Accommodations in a 5-star charming and luxurious villa in the countryside
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Gourmet cooking lessons with a Spanish chef to include 3-course meals paired with wine
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Guided visits to a medieval village, a charming seaside village, the old town of Gerona and ancient Greek ruins
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Optional activities include learning and practicing photography, an outdoor painting lesson of the Mediterranean terrain and learning tai-chi on the beachside
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Opportunities to do yoga, go shopping, have massages, enjoy beauty treatments and sunny seaside walks
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Fine dining for both lunch and dinner consisting of local products paired with extraordinary wines
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You will start your vacation with airport pickup and chauffeured transport to a charming 18th century Spanish villa picturesquely situated in the countryside. The villa is complete with outdoor and indoor swimming pools, sauna, hammam, jacuzzi, beauty therapy treatment and massage rooms. In addition to the basket of fruit and chocolate waiting in your room to welcome you to Spain, you will receive a special travel journal to record your experiences. Aperitifs on the terrace this evening will be the scene for introductions and conversation with your guide, who will explain the program schedule and provide you with a map and itinerary. After introductions, your photographer instructor, a talented artist and friend of ours, will demonstrate and explain how to capture the Mediterranean light to take the best pictures possible, so you can perfectly capture the sights of this trip! Dinner tonight will be served at the villa.
This morning you will wake up with the first rays of the sun and go to the beach for a peaceful class of tai-chi by the seaside. Then, if the weather is nice, why not a morning swim in the Mediterranean? Back at the villa, you will enjoy a traditional country breakfast.
Once rejuvenated by tai-chi and replenished by breakfast, you will escape to one of the prettiest towns on the coast, Cadaqués a favorite of famous Spanish artist Salvador Dali. His summer beach house is hidden here on a precious secluded beach where you will visit his picturesque and theatrical home. Afterwards, aperitifs await you on a sunny terrace frequented by painters and bohemians in the area.
Your tour will cross the natural park that has a strikingly lunar-like appearance, where we will arrive to Cap de Creus, a beautiful cliff area that juts into the Mediterranean affording scenic views. Here you will visit a lighthouse restaurant on the edge of the cliff for a lunch of fresh fish and other delicatessens. After lunch you will be able to practice your photography in the exceptional scenery, with the abrupt Mediterranean cliffs and seaside as the backdrop, or you can simply enjoy the scenery and walkways.
The return to the villa this afternoon brings the opportunity to take a swim in one of the pools or perhaps to take advantage of the complimentary entrance and circuit at the luxurious spa. After a relaxing afternoon, the showcased event for tonight is a private gourmet cooking lesson with the villa's head chef. Whatever local specialty tempts you most fideuá, seafood paella, suquet. Catalan creme will make up your meal. Enjoy his demonstrations with a glass of wine, or help him with preparations as he teaches you about the gastronomy of the Emporda Region.
The morning begins with developing your artistic creativity in an open-air painting class with our resident artist. The precious surroundings of San Sebastian's lighthouse, the sea, the boats and seagulls provide the perfect scenery for your class! If painting is not your forte, you may prefer to go shopping at a chic town nearby, with selective boutiques, bohemian shops and luxury outlets where you can look for great deals. For lunch, a seafood paella with cava awaits you at a restaurant alongside the seaside.
After your activity of choice in the morning, we will go for a visit to the best preserved medieval village in all of Spain, Pals. You will enjoy the tranquility of this ancient town, its flowered balconies, stone homes, scenic countryside and Mediterranean views. Visit the round tower fortress and walk along ancient walls from 300 AD, which once defended against pirates and invaders, surrounding the village. After a tour of the village, we will take afternoon coffee and pastires in one of the shops along the narrow cobblestone streets.
This evening is free for you to enjoy on your own. But we have many suggestions: Return to have dinner in Pals and see the medieval village by night, spend a relaxing evening at the villa, enjoy the garden or go for a night swim.
Today you will visit Empuries, home of the picturesque ruins of a once great Greek town in a very privileged location on the coast. The agreeable walkways take you by sand dunes, palm trees and small coved beaches. After working up an appetite from your stroll, lunch will be at the former villa of Catalan author Caterina Albert, who wrote under the male pseudonym "Victor Catalá." Because she was an exceptional cook, her generations-old hand-written recipes are used in the villa’s kitchen for authentic and delicious Spanish dishes of days gone by.
The afternoon will be spent in the picturesque capital of the Costa Brava Girona. There you can explore Arab baths, pass through the narrow stone streets of the Jewish Quarter and discover tucked away homes. Gerona is also famous for its shopping if you choose to stroll into the boutiques. There are always options, however, if you would rather return to the villa and enjoy the spa circuit or rest up for this evening!
Tonight you will have a farewell gourmet cooking lesson with the villa's head chef. He will teach you how to prepare typical Spanish favorites ranging from seafood paella to lobster and using techniques in Spanish cooking from mastering the sofregit, a base of onions and tomatoes, to using the ¨xup xup¨ (pronounced chup chup) in your cooking. You will have the opportunity to participate in the chef´s preparations or, if you prefer, you can sit back with a glass of wine and enjoy his cooking from appetizer to dessert!
After dinner, the night is young! If you choose, a local jazz club offers excellent cocktails and there is a popular terrace bar alongside the sea for an encounter with Spain’s night life!
Your tour concludes with a lovely breakfast at the villa, followed by a transfer to Barcelona for your departure.
We hope you join us for this unforgettable experience!
Your Women Only includes:top
- English speaking expert culinary guide/chauffeur at your entire disposal
- All transfers
- Accommodation for 4 nights in a luxurious charming seaside hotel (double occupancy)
- 5 full breakfasts
- All the culinary and cultural visits indicated in the itinerary
- 1 class of tai-chi, 1 class of yoga, 1 outdoor painting lesson
- 2 private cooking classes followed by meals (lunch or dinner)
- 3 lunches including wine in local restaurants
- Online Personal Travel Webpage including daily itinerary, general local information, details of places of interest, suggestions for restaurant reservations, and your free time, etc.
- Customized Travel Journal, including the information from your Personal Travel Webpage, which you can take with you to use as a reference throughout your tour
- Travel Insurance
Your Women Only does not include:
- Flights
- Meals and Drinks not Specified
- Personal Expenses such as Telephone, Minibar, etc
- Tips and Gratuities (Restaurants, etc)
- Cancellation Insurance
Women Only dates:
Available upon request all year round.
Women Only Prices:
The tour price varies depending on the Travel Option you choose. Please click on the option which suits you best in order to request a quotation.
In order to find out more about Gourmand Breaks' Travel Options, please Click Here
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