15 Market Tours That End in a Cooking Class

1.Bologna Food & Market Tour with 6 Tastings, Pasta, Wines & More

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,328 reviews · 3 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $118Our pick

Spend about 3½ hours tasting Bologna with a guide such as Claire, Federica, Caterina, or Mattia. Visit the Quadrilatero market, watch pasta made by hand, compare aged Parmigiano and Modena balsamic, sample local meats, wine, gelato, and a secret dish. The tour ends near Piazza Santo Stefano.

“Gabrielle was an excellent guide in Bologna! He took great care of us, taking us to multiple food spots with incredible food— including the rare culatello from this region! You will not come away hungry! Bologna truly is the food capital of Italy!!”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

2.Pasta and Tiramisu Cooking Class with optional Local Market Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 515 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $83

At Cucineria La Mattonaia in central Florence, you’ll make tagliatelle, ricotta ravioli, sauces, and tiramisu with a local chef such as Giulia, David, Gui, or Alain. Morning sessions add Sant’Ambrogio Market and tastings, while afternoon classes last three hours without the market visit. Lunch or dinner and wine are included.

“This was an amazing experience cooking pasta and Tiramisu with Guy . His cooking skills kept us involved in the process and the food was delicious !”

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3.Pasta Cooking Class with Market Visit and Wine

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 277 reviews · 4 hours · from $103

Meet chef Marco near Via Palestro for a four-hour Roman food lesson. Walk to Nomentano Market, choose seasonal ingredients, then return to the Kitchen of Mamma to make several pasta shapes, fillings, and sauces. Eat your work with Italian wine, coffee, and limoncello. No cooking experience is needed.

“Amazing cooking class with Marco. He is clearly a highly skilled chef and so kind, generous, and entertaining to learn from. I highly recommend this class, you’ll make an amazing amount and variety of food, generous portions of wine, and all around a fun time. It’s great to make so many things other than spaghetti carbonara. The market tour was also a great perk, amazing value for money.”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

4.Kitchen of Mamma: Pasta Cooking Class with market visit in Rome

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 140 reviews · 6 hours (approx.) · from $151

Join chef Marco at 11:00 for a six-hour Roman food experience. Walk through Nomentano Market, learn to make several pasta shapes and sauces at YellowSquare, then eat your work with Italian wine, coffee, and limoncello. The class is in English, capped at 14 people, and suits cooks age 8 and up.

“From start to finish Marco was helpful, informative and had everyone laughing, he took the time to get to know everyone in the group and shared valuable tips to enhance our session, we would fully recommend this”

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5.Farmers’ Market Shopping with Cooking Class and Pasta Making

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 91 reviews · 4 to 5 hours (approx.) · from $217

Meet your chef at Campo de’ Fiori, choose fresh produce, cheese, and meats, then cook a flexible Italian menu in a historic palazzo on Corso del Rinascimento. Depending on your group and the market, you may make pasta, ravioli, artichokes, lamb, chicken, panna cotta, or tiramisu, with wine and recipes to take home.

“Absolutely unreal experience Roberto the chef was a very knowledgeable funny and Interesting man which made the experience unforgettable”

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6.Testaccio Food & Market Tour with Pasta & Wine

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 38 reviews · 3.5 hours · from $79Best value

Start with coffee and pastries, then follow an English-speaking food guide through Testaccio Market for pizza, cheese, cured meat, vegetables, and a famous sandwich. Finish with pasta, red wine, and gelato. Guides have included Aurelio, Silvia, Chiara, Mattia, Manuela, and Fernanda.

“I highly recommend this tour. Manuela (Manu) the guide was knowledgeable and fun. She gave historical information about Testaccio which was relevant to the food tour. Expect lots and I mean lots of eating delicious food.”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

7.MaMa Florence Guided Market Tour and 4 Course-Pasta Cooking Class

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 15 reviews · 4 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $263

Start with guide Lavinia or Lisa at San Lorenzo Market, tasting local olive oil, vinegar, produce, and other specialties. Then walk to MaMa Florence in San Frediano for a hands-on class with chefs such as Matteo, Sarah, or Alessandro. Make pasta, sauces, a starter, and dessert, then sit down with Prosecco and Italian wine.

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

8.Farmer’s Market and Pasta Making with Italian Wine

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 15 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $150

Meet your chef at Campo de’ Fiori, shop for bread, meat, cheese, and vegetables, then walk to a kitchen near Piazza Mattei. Learn to make fresh pasta, ravioli, and a traditional dessert before sitting down to eat with Italian wine. Groups are capped at 12, and chefs such as Alessandro and Max have led past classes.

“If I could give this experience 100 out of 5 stars, I would! Alessandro was the perfect guide & chef >> passionate, welcoming, knowledgeable, funny and warm. He made everyone feel right at home from the start. What really set this apart was beginning the day at the local market: grabbing breakfast at the bakery, getting our cut of meat from the butcher, hand-picking vegetables & selecting cheeses. It felt like I was truly living a day in the life of a Roman chef/local. Then there was the kitchen which absolutely is stunning! We cooked a feast: fresh pasta, veal cotoletta, salad and tiramisu with plenty of prosciutto, cheeses, cookies…”

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9.Private Florence Market Tour and Pasta Making Class with Cinzia

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 8 reviews · 6 hours (approx.) · from $225

Spend six hours with Cinzia shopping for Florentine ingredients, then cook in her home kitchen. Make three pastas, or pasta plus a Tuscan main, and finish with wine, dessert, and recipes to use at home.

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

10.Pasta & Tiramisu Cooking Class + Italian Market Tour in Florence

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 4 hours 30 minutes (approx.) · from $207

Spend about 4.5 hours at Cucineria La Mattonaia, 15 minutes from Florence’s Duomo. In the 9 AM session, shop at Sant’Ambrogio Market before learning tagliatelle, ravioli, sauces, and tiramisu with a chef. The class serves your finished meal with wine and includes a recipe booklet and certificate.

“It was fun, educational, all hands on, felt very comfortable with our group who we met there, the chef was very informative, funny and encouraging.”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

11.Trionfale Market Tour and Gnocchi Cooking Class with a Masterchef

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $165

Meet at 10:00 am near the Vatican for a market-to-table class with a masterchef. Shop Mercato Trionfale’s 270 stalls, then walk to a modern cooking school to make Roman gnocchi, eat with wine, and finish with cantucci and vin santo. Andrea is one guide associated with the experience.

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

12.Discover the old market and make fresh pasta

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 4 reviews

Meet the chef at Villafranca’s Scaliger Castle, shop for ingredients at the Wednesday market or local shops, then learn to make tortellini Nodo d’amore, pappardelle, seasonal tortelli and tiramisu. The four-hour class is taught in Italian and English for groups of up to 10, with wine served alongside the meal.

“Esperienza consigliata! È stato interessante ricevere nozioni di cucina e di utilizzo degli alimenti a disposizione in varie modalità. Lo chef una persona preparata e professionale, sempre pronta a spiegare i concetti e consigliare. Se si desidera apprendere piccoli consigli utili e migliorare nella preparazione dei piatti, questa è l'attività giusta. Enjoy!”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

13.Dolce Vita by Day Market Tour & Pasta Making Class

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4 reviews · from $149

Meet Ileana in Florence’s Sant’Ambrogio district for a five-hour food experience. Visit market butchers, cheese and salumi vendors, and a local bakery, then return to a Florentine apartment to make two fresh pastas, two sauces, and tiramisu with wine pairings.

“She was so helpful explaining food cultures and ideas. Wonderful cook!! Friendly and enjoyed our time!”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

14.Small-Group Pasta Cooking Class and Market Tour in Florence

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · 4 hours (approx.) · from $181

Meet at Sant’Ambrogio Market at 9 a.m. for a four-hour Florence food experience. Chefs such as Andrea, Davide, and Simone guide you through market shopping, tastings, handmade pasta, and sauces. You get an apron, recipes, wine, and a small-group lesson capped at six people.

Seats and dates →The whole write-up

15.Dolce Vita by Day Market Tour & Pasta Making Class

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 2 reviews · from $130

Meet Ileana near Pasticceria Nencioni for a five-hour food day in Sant’Ambrogio. You’ll visit the market, sample cheese, salumi, bread, and wine, then make two pastas, two sauces, and tiramisu in her Florence apartment. The group is limited to four, with Layla the shih tzu serving as host.

“What a wonderful experience from start to finish. Ileana took us to the outdoor market to show us the in season produce as well as the meat, cheese and fish vendors in the covered market where we sampled cheeses, bread and wine. Next to her lovely home where we learned to make tiramisu, handmade pasta dough from which we made ricotta and lemon filled ravioli which we paired with a fresh tomato sauce and tagliatelle noodles. with eggplant sauce. The food was delicious, her knowledge of Florence and food exceptional and we came away with new skills, full stomachs and helpful recommendations for places to eat in Florence and things…”

Seats and dates →The whole write-up