Tour Northern Italy with Luke Piccolo and Outback Beds Tours
July 3rd – 16th 2025
This small group tour will take place from July 3rd – 16th 2025, taking guests on a culinary journey through the regions of Emilia Romagna, Cortina d’Amprezzo, and Lake Garda.
Guests will be treated to an itinerary of food and cooking experiences including group cooking sessions with Luke, and a dining experience with Luke’s former employer and mentor Graziano Prest at Michelin-rated restaurant Tivoli in Cortina d’Amprezzo. The itinerary has been carefully curated by Luke and Bill Balding of Outback Beds Tours, and features some of what Luke names as the best dining experiences in Northern Italy.
Region 1
The tour starts in Bologna in the Emilia Romagna region (the food bowl of Italy). We will base ourselves at the one villa and stay 5 nights.
Region 2
The group will head north to the Alps in the South Tyrol or just over in the upper Veneto, staying around Cortina d’Amprezzo (an alpine village and location of one of the Michelin restaurants where Luke worked). Again, we will base ourselves in the one hotel for 3 nights and do excursions from our accommodation.
Region 3
The final location is around Lake Garda (and where Luke’s extended family are based). Lake Garda is bordered by the regions of Lombardy, Trentino and the Veneto. We will base ourselves in the Lake Garda region for 5 nights.
The tour ends at Lake Garda. We will transfer you to Bologna airport for your ongoing travel.
As a rule of thumb in each of the 3 locations there will be:
– A food based tour day.
– A group cooking day with Luke at the Villa. On cooking days Luke will sit down with the group and decide the menu based on the specialities of the region. As a group you will shop and prepare the food under Luke’s tutelage. Luke will also be incorporating cooking lessons on some Italian staples.
– A destination dining day (away from the Villa) + incidental sightseeing as per the area.
– A free day to explore the city/village where we are situated (or rest day).
For more information about this tour, contact Bill at info@outbackbedstours.com.au
