Avanti Destinations is meeting independent travelers’ insatiable appetite for food- and cooking-related experiences by introducing a dozen new food-themed tours and activities in France and Spain this year. The FIT specialist, selling exclusively through travel agents, recently analyzed trends to identify the best sellers for travel agents to recommend to foodie travelers and found that Barcelona, Madrid and Paris are the most popular destinations for food experiences with different demographics preferring specific types of food or activities. Many of these, such as all tapas tours, a Barcelona Walking Food Tour, and Private Taverns & Markets tours in Barcelona and Madrid, are selling strongly across all age categories.
Avanti’s three new customizable food-focused FIT itineraries in France and Spain include the 11-day Gastronomic Wonders of France & Spain tour in Paris, Bordeaux, San Sebastian and Madrid, starting at $2,995 pp dbl with daily breakfast and First Class rail transfers between cities. In Paris, guests will experience a city tour with a wine and cheese tasting, a Paris cooking class and market visit, and a private tour of Bordeaux and Saint-Emilion with wine tastings. In Spain, the focus shifts to a private San Sebastian tapas tour, a Madrid taverns and markets tour and a paella cooking class with lunch.
In addition, Avanti’s finding also revealed that travel agents book more Avanti food and cooking activities for Boomer travelers (age 53-69) than for any other age group, although Millennials (18-35) are a close second and Gen Xers (36-52) third. Favorites among Boomers and seniors (70+) are a St Germain Walking Tour with Champagne Tasting Lunch itinerary in Paris; among Millennials, the best-sellers are the Paris Cooking Class & Market Visit and several tapas-focused tours in Barcelona, Madrid, Bilbao, Grenada, San Sebastian, and Seville; Gen Xers favor the St Germain Pastry & Chocolate tour in Paris. Both Millennials and Gen X frequently book a Paella Cooking Class with Lunch in Barcelona. For more information, call (800) 422-5053 or visit avantidestinations.com.
