ToursByLocals BlogPosts
The Delicious Dozen: 12 of the World’s Best Food Tours
Oct 16 2023
Eating out while on the road is one of the great joys of travel. These days many people have access to excellent Thai, Greek, Italian, Vietnamese, Filipino – you name it! – restaurants in their own cities, but while the food is frequently superb, there’s no substitute to enjoying it at its full strength, with fresh local ingredients, at its place of origin.
Our guides recognize that people love to eat! And with their local knowledge, they can direct travellers to try dishes they may not have known existed at restaurants, markets and food stalls you won’t find necessarily listed on TripAdvisor.
Below we’ve put together a sampling of some of our favourite culinary tours on six different continents. Almost everywhere you travel with ToursByLocals, you’ll find guides offering delicious foodie-themed itineraries. Don’t miss making these experiences a part of your next trip!
Local guide Agung offers you a delicious opportunity to learn the secrets of fresh and flavourful Balinese Cuisine inside a serene and traditional Balinese family compound. Satays, spicy sambal sauces and dips, fresh fruits and salads…yes, please!
You can’t go to the Big Easy without doing some big eating. Gumbos, Po’ Boys, Beans and Rice, Crab Cakes, Pralines… the Cajun and Creole cuisine will have your mouth watering. Your guide Leanne is ready to take you to her favourite local haunts for traditional and modern takes on Louisiana’s famous dishes.
“Let them eat Macarons!” That will be the order of the day as you traipse around the heart of Paris with your guide David, sampling the best of the city’s most artfully presented dessert treat. Lavender, Salted Caramel, Pistachio...which one will win your heart?
Any reformed chocolate-addicts should stop reading now. Because how can anyone with a sweet tooth resist the thought of wandering through “chocolate square” in Brussels? You’ll learn about the almost fanatical devotion Belgian chocolatiers employ every day with their old world chocolate-making techniques and premium ingredients. These are not your everyday chocolate bars! Your guide Anneke will also take you to sample from some of Brussels best-selling chocolate boutiques on this mouth-watering tour.
“Eating is one of the biggest blessings in life,” says Mexico City guide Enrique. And there’s certainly food in abundance in the streets of his home town. From the neighbourhoods of Coyoacan to Condesa and Roma, Enrique will share his favourite markets and restaurants; you’ll leave the tour having eaten some of the best tacos of your life.
“I'd like to invite you to enjoy the experience ofir de tapas, as Granainos do”, says Granada guide Gabriela. The small southern Spanish city boasts over 2000 bars and restaurants, and Gabriela is eager to help you sample its many flavours on her Tapas and Drinks tour. With Gabriela as your host, you'll meet the locals and the bar owners as you eat and drink your way around vibrant local neighbourhoods.
Your guide Aaron throws open the doors to his mother Danmar’s house, and invites you inside to learn the secrets of a traditionally prepared Peruvian meal. Start with a visit to the local market to see the ingredients first hand, then watch (and help if you wish!) while Danmar prepares dishes like ceviche, arroz con pollo, and a mouth-watering pisco sour. And if you’re not traveling to Peru anytime soon, this tour can also be enjoyed virtually! Check out Aaron’s virtual Peruvian cooking class and cook with him from your own kitchen.
It’s not everyday you get the opportunity to visit a working farm in Morocco. With your guide Hatim, you’ll get to experience Moroccan cuisine from the ground up, seeing how staple ingredients are harvested and prepared. Not only that: you can help pick the ingredients for dinner, then learn to make traditional Berber bread hands-on, along with a full lunch. A wonderful chance to gain insight into the provenance of the delicious Moroccan food you’ll enjoy all over the country.
Looking for an insider tour of some of New Zealand’s most delectable locally produced food and drinks? Your guide Louise, a long-time Auckand local, will spend a day with you exploring Auckland’s renowned Cafe culture in one of the city’s most well-known foodie neighbourhoods. Try a flat white, matcha latte or an L&P, seasonal fruits, pastries, cakes, cocolato, poplato and kombucha…all before lunch.
Bring your appetite for this 4-hour food tour of Delhi! You’ll be sampling many different foods, snacks, desserts and drinks from a range of food vendors, while walking around the heart of Old Delhi. As your guide and local chef Dhruv explains: “Being born and brought up in this part of the city I enjoy sharing my Old Delhi with guests and introducing them to its rich heritage, culture and food.” No Delhi-Belly here! The food shops you’ll visit have been in business for multiple generations and the food is carefully selected to ensure safety.
Two of Montreal’s most iconic food delights are rooted in Jewish culture: bagels and smoked meat. The city has an abundance of both, and many rivals competing to create the best. Your guide Melissa will make sure you sample and compare while exploring the city’s delightful neighbourhood of Outrement. “This tour is a mix of nostalgic eateries, fresh trendy new spots, and walking in picturesque neighbourhoods with historic visuals all around,” says Melissa, who designed the city’s first Jewish food tour. And check out what travel journalist Jordan Parker Erb had to say about her time with Melissa:
Insider Heads to Montreal.
This walking food tour not only includes lots of yummy tastings of traditional Dutch dishes, but you will also meet the people who make Amsterdam’s delicious food, at a local market. Your guide, Dina, is a professional chef, who knows the culinary scene inside and out. Local cheese, herring, chocolate, baked goods – you won’t go hungry on this tour!
12 Amazing Food Tours in 12 Countries
1. Take a Balinese Cooking Class in Ubud
Local guide Agung offers you a delicious opportunity to learn the secrets of fresh and flavourful Balinese Cuisine inside a serene and traditional Balinese family compound. Satays, spicy sambal sauces and dips, fresh fruits and salads…yes, please!
2. Savour the Flavours of New Orleans
You can’t go to the Big Easy without doing some big eating. Gumbos, Po’ Boys, Beans and Rice, Crab Cakes, Pralines… the Cajun and Creole cuisine will have your mouth watering. Your guide Leanne is ready to take you to her favourite local haunts for traditional and modern takes on Louisiana’s famous dishes.
3. Taste Paris’ Best Macarons
“Let them eat Macarons!” That will be the order of the day as you traipse around the heart of Paris with your guide David, sampling the best of the city’s most artfully presented dessert treat. Lavender, Salted Caramel, Pistachio...which one will win your heart?
4. Make (and eat!) Chocolate in Brussels
Any reformed chocolate-addicts should stop reading now. Because how can anyone with a sweet tooth resist the thought of wandering through “chocolate square” in Brussels? You’ll learn about the almost fanatical devotion Belgian chocolatiers employ every day with their old world chocolate-making techniques and premium ingredients. These are not your everyday chocolate bars! Your guide Anneke will also take you to sample from some of Brussels best-selling chocolate boutiques on this mouth-watering tour.
5. Enjoy Tacos, Markets and Street Food in Mexico City
“Eating is one of the biggest blessings in life,” says Mexico City guide Enrique. And there’s certainly food in abundance in the streets of his home town. From the neighbourhoods of Coyoacan to Condesa and Roma, Enrique will share his favourite markets and restaurants; you’ll leave the tour having eaten some of the best tacos of your life.
6. Tapas, Tapas, and more Tapas! in Granada, Spain
“I'd like to invite you to enjoy the experience ofir de tapas, as Granainos do”, says Granada guide Gabriela. The small southern Spanish city boasts over 2000 bars and restaurants, and Gabriela is eager to help you sample its many flavours on her Tapas and Drinks tour. With Gabriela as your host, you'll meet the locals and the bar owners as you eat and drink your way around vibrant local neighbourhoods.
7. Spend Time in a Peruvian Kitchen in Lima
Your guide Aaron throws open the doors to his mother Danmar’s house, and invites you inside to learn the secrets of a traditionally prepared Peruvian meal. Start with a visit to the local market to see the ingredients first hand, then watch (and help if you wish!) while Danmar prepares dishes like ceviche, arroz con pollo, and a mouth-watering pisco sour. And if you’re not traveling to Peru anytime soon, this tour can also be enjoyed virtually! Check out Aaron’s virtual Peruvian cooking class and cook with him from your own kitchen.
8. Take Part in Moroccan Farm Life in the Atlas Mountains
It’s not everyday you get the opportunity to visit a working farm in Morocco. With your guide Hatim, you’ll get to experience Moroccan cuisine from the ground up, seeing how staple ingredients are harvested and prepared. Not only that: you can help pick the ingredients for dinner, then learn to make traditional Berber bread hands-on, along with a full lunch. A wonderful chance to gain insight into the provenance of the delicious Moroccan food you’ll enjoy all over the country.
9. Taste the best of New Zealand foodstuffs in the Bay of Plenty
Looking for an insider tour of some of New Zealand’s most delectable locally produced food and drinks? Your guide Louise, a long-time Auckand local, will spend a day with you exploring Auckland’s renowned Cafe culture in one of the city’s most well-known foodie neighbourhoods. Try a flat white, matcha latte or an L&P, seasonal fruits, pastries, cakes, cocolato, poplato and kombucha…all before lunch.
10. Experience a Feast of India: Street Food in Delhi
Bring your appetite for this 4-hour food tour of Delhi! You’ll be sampling many different foods, snacks, desserts and drinks from a range of food vendors, while walking around the heart of Old Delhi. As your guide and local chef Dhruv explains: “Being born and brought up in this part of the city I enjoy sharing my Old Delhi with guests and introducing them to its rich heritage, culture and food.” No Delhi-Belly here! The food shops you’ll visit have been in business for multiple generations and the food is carefully selected to ensure safety.
11. Jewish Food in Montreal: what’s not to like?
Two of Montreal’s most iconic food delights are rooted in Jewish culture: bagels and smoked meat. The city has an abundance of both, and many rivals competing to create the best. Your guide Melissa will make sure you sample and compare while exploring the city’s delightful neighbourhood of Outrement. “This tour is a mix of nostalgic eateries, fresh trendy new spots, and walking in picturesque neighbourhoods with historic visuals all around,” says Melissa, who designed the city’s first Jewish food tour. And check out what travel journalist Jordan Parker Erb had to say about her time with Melissa:
Insider Heads to Montreal.
12. Stroll and Eat on a Food Walk in Amsterdam
This walking food tour not only includes lots of yummy tastings of traditional Dutch dishes, but you will also meet the people who make Amsterdam’s delicious food, at a local market. Your guide, Dina, is a professional chef, who knows the culinary scene inside and out. Local cheese, herring, chocolate, baked goods – you won’t go hungry on this tour!