The Most Delicious Sweet Treats To Try On A Culture Trip

Have you got a sweet tooth? Indulge your cheekiest instincts on these small-group Culture Trip adventures, taking you to some of the tastiest destinations in order to sample some of the finest cakes, pastries and puddings in the world.

Winter Sale

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Egg-based delights on Complete Portugal by Train

Pastries are as important to Portuguese culture as anything. Just visit any city in Portugal and you can expect countless tiny patisserie shop-windows lined with the most tempting array of sweet treats you ever strolled past. Needless to say, pastel de nata will feature regularly throughout the trip. These iconic egg custard tarts are super addictive, and best sampled in Lisbon, where you’ll taste some of the finest the city has to offer on a guided Lisbon delicacies tour. Don’t worry though, a pastel a day is far from unusual in Portugal. The egg-based delights don’t stop there, either, as you’ll discover in the magical lagoon city of Aveiro. This place might be most notable for Venice-like canals and colourful boats, but you’ll also notice ovos moles being sold from wooden barrels across the city. This tasty, sugary egg treat is wrapped in a light, crusty wafer and, when bitten into, resembles a soft-boiled egg. Luckily, the taste is much sweeter, and much more delicious.

From US$2029

Next available from 13th Apr 2024

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Trip highlights and details

STARTS AT

Porto, Portugal

ENDS AT

Lisbon, Portugal

DURATION

8

GROUP SIZE

16

PHYSICAL RATING

Light

STYLE

Discovery

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Syrup-soaked treats in Majestic Turkey

Turkey takes the idea of a sweet treat and triples down on the sweet. While Turkish delights are most closely associated to the country, in Istanbul you can’t walk for a minute without having your eyes pulled towards huge trays of baklava. These intricate, multi-layered filo pastry delicacies are filled with nutty fillings and soaked in either syrup or honey. Our 12-day Turkey trip starts in Istanbul, where you’ll have plenty of time to gorge on both of the city’s most famous sweet treats. After a guided tour of the Grand Bazaar, it would be rude not to catch your breath in one of the market’s many cafes for a traditional tea and a plate of baklava. You’ll also be treated to a food tour of Kadıköy, a neighbourhood on the city’s Asian side, which involves deliciously moreish baklava along with a range of savoury delicacies.

From US$2699

Next available from 12th Apr 2024

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Trip highlights and details

STARTS AT

Istanbul, Turkey

ENDS AT

Antalya, Turkey

DURATION

12

GROUP SIZE

18

PHYSICAL RATING

Moderate

STYLE

Discovery

View Trip

Winter Sale

Churchkhela. Georgian traditional desert. Street market.

Traditional nutty candy in Georgia and the Caucasus

Head to the mountainous borders of Europe and Asia and you’ll discover the intoxicating country of Georgia. This place, on top of being ridiculously beautiful, is home to one of the world’s oldest cultures. This can be explore via the country’s ancient winemaking techniques and baking traditions, but those with a sweet tooth will be more interested in churchkhela. This odd-looking delicacy might look more like a sausage, or even a candle, but its actually the nation’s favourite candy, which can be found hanging in markets and shops all over the place. It’s made with grapes, fruit juice, nuts and flour, and sometimes flavoured with chocolate, raisins or more nuts. It is said that Georgian warriors used to take churchkhelas with them everywhere, due to their high calorie, energy-producing qualities. Luckily, there’s plenty of outdoor adventure on our nine-day Georgia trip, so you can burn off the calories after an afternoon spent gorging on home-baked bread and churchkhela with a local family.

From US$1199

Next available from 18th May 2024

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Trip highlights and details

STARTS AT

Tbilisi, Georgia

ENDS AT

Tbilisi, Georgia

DURATION

9

GROUP SIZE

16

PHYSICAL RATING

Moderate

STYLE

Discovery

View Trip

Winter Sale

Flaky pastries in Seductive Southern Italy

We obviously couldn’t leave Italy off this list. Any trip to this food-obsessed nation is bound to feature plenty of gelato, perhaps a tiramisu or two, and certainly the odd bag of cannoli. You’ll certainly be able to sample all of the above on our 10-day tour of Italy’s most beautiful stretches of coastline, both east and west. Wherever you go in Italy will be heaven for your tastebuds, but we may admittedly peak early on this trip, since we start in Naples, arguably the best foodie city in the country. You’ll get a guided street food tour of the city on day two which, as well as obviously featuring pizza, explores the city’s long-term romance with pastries. You’ll have to sample the most famous, most beloved of them all, sfogliatella, a crunchy multi-layered puff pastry delight filled with sweet concoctions and dusted with a generous serving of icing sugar. Delicious.

From US$2789

Next available from 27th Apr 2024

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Trip highlights and details

STARTS AT

Naples, Italy

ENDS AT

Lecce, Italy

DURATION

10

GROUP SIZE

14

PHYSICAL RATING

Easy

STYLE

Discovery

View Trip

landscape with balloons floating in the air

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