Wine trips
The best wine tasting happens where the wine is made, with views over the vineyards and a bed a few steps away. Here is Picolo’s guide to wine tasting holidays in Europe, with eight wine regions and a wine hotel in each.
PicoloDo you travel to eat and drink well? Here are Picolo’s guides to the best food cities in Europe, wine holidays in the great wine regions and the restaurants we recommend city by city, with hotels that make it easy.
Food & Wine
Piedmont means Barolo and Barbaresco, white truffles from Alba and hills of vineyards as far as the eye can see. Here is our guide to a Piedmont wine trip, with the hotels we would stay in.
Food & Wine
Champagne is just a short train ride from Paris but feels like another world: chalk cellars underground, vineyards above the Marne and small growers who open their doors. Here is our guide to a wine trip in Champagne, with the hotels we would stay in.
Food & Wine
Bordeaux is the name of both a city and the world’s most famous wine region. Here is our guide to a Bordeaux wine trip, from the châteaux of the Médoc to the medieval town of Saint-Émilion, with the wine hotels we would stay in.
Harvest season
The Douro Valley is terraces of vines climbing up from the river, quintas pouring tastings and a train ride you will not forget. Here is Picolo’s guide to a wine trip in the Douro Valley, with hotels right among the vineyards.
Food & Wine
Rioja is Spain’s most famous wine region, with hilltop wine villages, bodegas in every style and the tapas street Calle Laurel in Logroño. Here is our guide to a wine trip in Rioja, with the hotels we would stay in.
Food & Wine
The Mosel means steep slate slopes, Riesling in every style and small half-timbered towns along the river. Here is our guide to a Mosel wine trip, with the hotels we would stay in.
Experiences
Season 2 of Drops of God is here, and the hunt for the world’s greatest wine now leads all the way to Georgia. Here are the places from the series you can visit in real life, and the hotels where you can stay in the footsteps of the wine.
Food cities
Some cities you visit for the museums. These you visit to eat. Here is Picolo’s list of the best food cities in Europe, from pintxos in San Sebastián to ragù in Bologna and pastéis de nata in Lisbon, with a hotel in each city.
Photo: Picolo
Food & Wine
Italian food is not one cuisine but twenty. Here is Picolo’s guide to the best food in Italy region by region, from ragù in Bologna and carbonara in Rome to cicchetti in Venice and arancini in Palermo, with a hotel in each region.
Food & Wine
Naples is the home of pizza, and it tastes different here than anywhere else. Here is our guide to the best pizza in Naples, the street food you have to try, and hotels on the bay where you can sleep it off.
Food & wine
Soft corn tortillas, salsa made from scratch and meat that has marinated for hours. Chef José Standal Ambriz from Colima has eaten tacos on three continents. These are the places he goes back to.
Tables worth the flight
Picolo has been lucky enough to talk to six amazing chefs, each brilliant at what they do.
Travel you can taste
A great meal is often what you remember best from a trip.
Some people travel for beaches, others for museums. We often travel for a seat at a pintxos bar in San Sebastián, a wood-fired pizza in Naples or a glass of Barolo in a Piedmont village. Food and wine say more about a place than most sights, and the best memories of a trip are often about a meal.
Here we gather everything Picolo has written about food and wine travel: food cities, wine trips, restaurant guides and portraits of chefs. Most guides also include hotels well placed for eating.
The best food cities in Europe: eight places to travel to for the food.
Best pizza in Naples: the pizzerias, the street food and hotels on the bay.
Best food in Italy: region by region: from ragù in Bologna to arancini in Palermo.
The best wine tasting happens where the wine is made. Start with our overview of wine tasting holidays in Europe, or go straight to the region you dream of:
Bordeaux: the châteaux of the Médoc and medieval Saint-Émilion.
Champagne: the chalk cellars of Reims and the Avenue de Champagne in Épernay.
Piedmont: Barolo, Barbaresco and truffles from Alba.
Rioja: the bodegas, Calle Laurel and Gehry’s wine hotel.
The Douro Valley: the home of port and the train from Porto.
The Mosel: Riesling, castles and river towns.
Love wine on screen too? Read about the wines from Drops of God and where the series was filmed.
A wine trip to Champagne
The vineyards above the Marne valley, a short train ride from Paris.
San Sebastián, Bologna, Lyon and Naples are often at the top. San Sebastián is known for pintxos and many starred restaurants, Bologna for pasta, Lyon for bouchons and Naples for pizza.
Bordeaux, Champagne, Tuscany, Piedmont, Rioja and the Douro are the best known wine regions. The Mosel and Wachau are great alternatives if you love fresh white wines.
Yes, most wineries require booking ahead for tours and tastings, especially at weekends and during the harvest.
Spring and autumn are best for most food cities and wine regions, with good produce, the harvest and comfortable temperatures. In August many restaurants in Italy and France close for holidays.
Allowances depend on where you are travelling from and can change. Check the current UK government guidance on alcohol allowances before you buy.
