Join chocolate expert Martin Christy on a quest to seek out the finest chocolate in Europe and South America.
We’ve partnered with established specialist UK travel company Arena Travel and have created a range of chocolate and cacao tours exploring some of the finest producers and locations in the world.
For our 2012 programme, we visit Lyon, the heart of French chocolate making, explore the Tuscan Chocolate Valley and journey to the Upper Amazon source of cacao in Ecuador.
Chocolate Masters of the Lower Rhône
With Eurostar/TGV: Twin Share £1,395; Single £1,695
For those who wish to make their own travel arrangements: Twin Share £1,195; Single £1,495
France is the home of tradition and of innovation in fine chocolate, leading the world in the origin chocolate revolution. The region around Lyon is a centre of excellence for chocolate produced directly from cacao, now a rare craft. Here we explore some of the great and famous names of fine chocolate, both chocolate makers and chocolatiers.
Includes factory visits to Bonnat, Pralus and Morin.
Chocolatiers of Florence & Tuscany
With flights: Twin Share £1,495; Single £1,795
For those who wish to make their own travel arrangements: Twin Share £1,195; Single £1,495
Luca Mannori
The ‘Tuscan chocolate valley’ is famous for the number and quality of its fine craft chocolatiers, with a chocolate maker or two thrown in for good measure.
We’ve chosen the very best Tuscany has to offer, based around the region’s historical heart, Florence, with the unique combination of chocolate, local cuisine, history and scenery making for an unforgettable experience.
With visits to famous chocolatiers Luca Mannori and Andrea Bianchani.
Ecuadorian Chocolate Odyssey
With flights: Twin Share £3,595; Single £4,495
For those who wish to make their own travel arrangements: Twin Share £2,695; Single £3,595
Bagging dried cacao, Ecuador
When the Spanish arrived in Ecuador, they discovered a ‘sea’ of wild ancient cacao. This was Nacional, Ecuador’s heritage variety.
Now the largest producer of fine cacao in the world, Ecuador is a land of beauty and contrasts, which we explore from its coastal cacao heartland to the original source of cacao in the Upper Amazon.
Taking in Ecuador’s emerging chocolate producers along the way, this is a truly authentic trip that goes right to the heart of the chocolate experience.
