Great Hikes and Chefs of Northern Italy's Gourmet Trail

Northern Italy is renowned for its exquisite scenery and culinary delights. It’s the perfect place for our award-winning journey combining lovely day hikes and elegant meals created by some of Italy’s most legendary chefs, including Gualtiero Marchesi, the father of modern Italian cuisine. We travel from Torino, nestled against the Alps, and through Piemonte, with its patchwork-quilt of vineyards, to Lombardia, with its dazzling lakes set beneath the mountains. Our grand finale is in the Veneto, recognized for its towns filled with fine art and architecture. Complementing our superb hikes are regional wine and cheese tastings, an entertaining cooking class, and overnights in hotels of charm and elegance, including a wonderful stay at the Locanda del Re Guerriero in San Pietro in Cerro. Buon appetito!

Itinerary at a Glance

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Days 1-3
Torino / Ivrea / Orta San Giulio

We explore Torino’s 17th century Reggia di Venaria Reale, a lavishly decorated Baroque-style royal palace, then begin our culinary discoveries at an elegant Michelin-starred restaurant owned by Torino-based chef Alfredo Russo. Heading to the Italian Lakes District, we hike from the hilltop sanctuary of Sacro Monte d’Orta into enchanting Orta San Giulio on Lake Orta. With Piemonte on one side and the mountains of Switzerland on the other, our next hike offers marvelous panoramas and ends with a descent to Lake Maggiore and lunch at the respected Guffanti cheese grottos.

Days 4-5
Monferrato / Parma

Skirting vineyards, we hike across the rolling hills of Piemonte’s Monferrato, then head to Parma, renowned for its prosciutto. After a hike along the Po River, we enjoy a cooking lesson at Antica Corte Pallavicna, visit its cellar where prosciutto is aged, and dine at its Michelin-starred restaurant. Our base is the Locanda del Re Guerriero, set on the park-like grounds of a medieval castle.

Days 6-7
Franciacorta / Lake Iseo

In Lombardia, we hike among the woodlands of Franciacorta, known for its fine sparkling wines, and ferry out to Monte Isola, a serene island in Lake Iseo, to follow lakeshore paths. We also dine at Ristoranti de L’Albereta, where Gualtiero Marchesi, the first Italian chef to win three Michelin stars, serves up a dizzying array of culinary masterpieces.

Days 8-9
Lake Garda / Verona

Our explorations in the Veneto include a visit to Padenghe sul Garda, a village with ancient crenellated stone walls nestled in the green hills above Lake Garda, and a hike along Lake Garda to a Roman villa set on the Sirmione Peninsula, whose thermal springs have made it a spa destination since Roman times. Beloved by artists and poets through the ages, the peninsula has been called “a corner of paradise on earth.” After exploring Verona, the fabled home of Romeo and Juliet, we depart on Day 9.

For a more complete description, Download Full Detailed Itinerary

What the Trip is Like

This trip is Level 2+, Moderate, according to our trip grading system. Besides our culinary forays, we enjoy day walks and hikes of 2-4 hours over variable hill and mountain trails, with occasional short, steep sections. We will carry just a daypack with trailside essentials such as jacket, water bottle, and camera.

All meals are included on this trip, as well as wine at meals, and will be taken at the hotels where we are staying or at restaurants in nearby towns. Please note that some of our meals may take up to three hours and will be 8-9 courses, and that the dinner hour in Europe is considerably later than what it is in the US. We do our best to secure early reservations for our groups, but most often the evening meal will be at 7:30 pm. Our comfortable hotels are in exquisite settings.

Explanation of Trip Levels