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These are the world’s 10 most-booked food experiences

International Traveller
If you’re looking to get your gourmand on, it’s well worth checking out this list, because we know what the most-book food experiences of 2018 were… in the entire world.

If you’re a food enthusiast and a wine fan, no doubt you make a decent amount of your travel decisions with food and wine in mind, then there’s a whopping great chance you’ll be interested to know which food experiences were the most-booked around the globe through TripAdvisor Experiences in 2018.

 

Am I right?

 

From Portugese lunches on a river cruise, to robot cabaret shows in Tokyo, it seems travellers are as equally after the delicious as they are the dazzling. The great news is, no matter where your travels take you, you’re probably not too far away from one of these experiences – the advice would just be to book in sooner rather than later – or it seems like you could just miss out.

 

Here they are…

10. Savannah Culinary and Cultural Walking Tour, Savannah, USA

Savannah Culinary and Cultural Walking Tour, Savannah, USA.
Experience Southern delights with a Savannah Culinary and Cultural Walking Tour, Savannah, USA.

 

Join a group of 13 fellow travellers as you eat your way through Savannah on a tour that’s equal part history and culinary. Okay, slightly more food-focused. You’ll visit several restaurants and food stores specialising in authentic Southern classics and sampling them as you go. After the tour, the map of your food route will allow you to go back and re-visit the spots you found the most delicious.

 

Find more info and book here.

9. Queenstown Skyline Gondola and Restaurant, Queenstown, New Zealand

Hop aboard the Queenstown gondola and head straight for the skyline restaurant where you’ll enjoy either a lunch of evening meal, while taking in the views of Lake Wakatipu and The Remarkables range. Settle in to Bob’s Peakat Skyline for four amazing courses made up of local specialities.

 

Find more info and book here.

8. Madrid Tapas and Wine Tasting Tour, Madrid, Spain

Ola! This tour will take you on a journey through Madrid’s culture with delicious tapas and wine. Our personal favourite way to tour. Limited to an intimate group of 12, you’ll explore Spanish specialties like chickpea stew, salted cod and other obscure local ingredients. The best bit? Unlike other tapas tours, the food and wine are included!

 

Find more info and book here.

7. Sydney Tower Restaurant Buffet, Sydney, Australia

Woo hoo! One of our own made the list – how fabulous! Well how could it not? With 360-degree views of the city, Sydney Tower’s revolving restaurant’s delicious buffet lunch and dinner is a bucket list experience. We personally love how the view outside your window has changed by the time you get to dessert.

 

Find more info and book here.

6. Rome Food Tour by Sunset around Prati District, Rome, Italy

Rome Food Tour by Sunset around Prati District, Rome, Italy.
Take part in a Rome Food Tour by Sunset around Prati District, Rome, Italy.

This tour will take you off the main streets and guide you to the eateries favoured by Roman locals. The food-and-walking tour will take you through the Prati neighbourhood, where you’ll sample up to 20 local delicacies at sunset. A group of just 13 people calls for a supremely intimate experience.

 

Find more info and book here.

5. New Orleans Food Walking Tour of the French Quarter, New Orleans, USA

Taste and sip your way through the Big Easy on a food tour of ‘New Awlin’s’ French Quarter. During the tour you’ll stop in to sample some of the city’s most distinctive foods and explore with a local guide, who’ll gift you with a behind-the-scenes look into local kitchens. You’ll also get tips on where to eat, drink and sightsee – just make sure you bring an appetite for everything from beignets to mouth-watering brisket.

 

Find more info and book here.

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4. Tokyo Robot Evening Cabaret Show, Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo Robot Evening Cabaret Show, Tokyo, Japan.
Enjoy an evening with a dazzling difference at Tokyo Robot Evening Cabaret Show, Tokyo, Japan.

Wacky is an understatement. If you like your dinner with a difference, then a cabaret show at Robot Restaurant will certainly do it for you. The restaurant is one of Tokyo’s most popular performance venues, often selling out weeks in advance. It features real robots, kaleidoscopic costumes and high-octane dancing. Hold on to your hat for this one.

 

Find more info and book here.

3. Pizza and Gelato Cooking Class in a Tuscan Farmhouse from Florence, Florence, Italy

Pizza and Gelato Cooking Class in a Tuscan Farmhouse from Florence, Florence, Italy.
Enjoy a culinary cooking class in a Tuscan Farmhouse from Florence, Florence, Italy

If it’s as much about how to make the food as it is about eating it, then this is the foodie experience for you. During, you’ll delve deep into Florence’s culinary scene with a remote Tuscan Farmhouse as your setting. You’ll master the basics of Italian pizza and gelato, but the highlight without a doubt is eating the fruit of your labours – quite literally – if you’re talking about the gelato.

 

Find more info and book here.

2. Montserrat Tour from Barcelona, including lunch and wine tasting in Oller des Mas, Barcelona, Spain

Take a day trip from Barcelona to experience a Catalan lunch and wine and cheese tasting session at Oller del Mas; a 10th-century castle set in a 1,000-acre estate. Enjoy a combination of tours and free time at the monastery and basilica of Montserrat before taking to the vineyard’s cellars for a tipple or two.

 

Find more info and book here.

1. Douro Valley Small-Group Tour with Wine Tasting, Portugese Lunch and Optional River Cruise, Porto, Portugal

The UNESCO-listed Douro Valley is famous for its port wine, but due to the sheer number of wineries in the region, exploring without a guide well versed in vino can be more than a little overwhelming. This tour ensures you’ll experience the very best the Douro Valley has to offer, dining on local cuisine at a celebrated villa and tasting award-winning wine at two estates. To see it all from the water, there’s the option to upgrade to a cruise by traditional Rabelo boat.

 

Find more info and book here.

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5 things every hotel needs for a more restorative stay

    Kate Bettes Kate Bettes
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    Wellbeing means different things to different travellers. Here’s how to pick a hotel that gets it right for you.

    The best wellness holidays aren’t necessarily spent wrapped in a spa robe. Sometimes they’re found around a dinner table in Cambodia, on a hiking trail in New Zealand or after finally beating jet lag on the other side of the world. The hotel you choose is what makes them happen.

    1. Easy access to good food

    meals from Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20
    Taste delicious meals at Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20.

    One of the quickest ways to derail healthy habits on holiday is to spend half of it working out where to eat instead of digging into the culture around you. Thankfully, Novotel has done much of the hard work already, with chefs building menus that lean into the flavours, ingredients and traditions of each destination.

    In Sihanoukville, Cambodia, Korkor soup – often dubbed ‘Cambodian ratatouille’ – sits alongside raw blue crab dressed with lime and chilli, best enjoyed with views across the Gulf of Thailand.

    In the lovingly chaotic city of Bangkok, the presence of food cranks up the sociability. At Novotel Bangkok Sukhumvit 20, you can settle in with mango sticky rice and stranger-turned-friends beside the pool at Sky on 20 rooftop bar, or bring them along to tackle river prawns and stir-fried crab with holy basil at the buzzing Crab Paradise Dinner Buffet.

    Then Novotel Dubai Al Barsha welcomes you with a laidback twist on the level of indulgence the Middle Eastern city is best known for up on Deck Se7en. Looking towards Burj Al Arab, the rooftop lounge has everything from Mediterranean-style dishes like seabass ceviche to Italian prosecco sundowners.

    At the other end of the scale, in the hills that surround the Novotel Bali Ubud Resort, calm comes from nature. At Siralada restaurant, Balinese traditions shape the menu while thunder rumbles over the surrounding jungle – proving the setting is as nourishing as the food itself.

    While at Novotel Nha Trang, chef Kieu Thi My Hanh and her team showcase Vietnam’s knack for balancing freshness, texture and fragrant herbs. Pho remains a favourite, while seafood salad with pomelo and mango brings those flavours together in one bright dish.

    It’s all an approach backed by partnerships with expert food creators such as Alfie Steiner, whose plant-forward recipes prove healthy food should never taste plain.

    2. Better sleep options

    Novotel Bali Ubud Resort room
    Sleep deeply with Novotel.

    There are few travel experiences more disappointing than arriving in a new country, determined to seize the day, only to fall asleep fully clothed by 3pm.

    For Australian travellers, jet lag is often an unavoidable part of the journey. That’s one reason Novotel runs sleep-focused initiatives that help guests adjust quickly without compromising on health. We’re talking partnerships with Sydney-based sleep specialist Olivia Arezzolo, known for her advice on everything from better sleep habits to beating jet lag, alongside features like pillow menus, in-room yoga content and tailored sleep guidance.

    The sooner you’re operating on local time, the sooner you can get back to more pressing matters – like deciding which spa treatment to book.

    3. More ways to move

    woman hiking around queenstown new zealand
    Stay at Novotel Queenstown Lakeside and explore local hiking trails. (Credit: GettyI mages/ naruedom)

    Every place in the world has its own way of getting you moving: whether that’s hiking up ice-bitten mountains before a sauna or gentle stretching by the pool before a facial. From fitness centres to spas, Novotel recognises that wellbeing rarely looks the same.

    At Novotel Queenstown Lakeside, activity is inescapable. Here, hiking trails, ski fields, bungee jumps, and white-water rafting have made the region famous. The hotel’s location on the shores of Lake Wakatipu means less time spent organising yourself and more time out there experiencing them. To top it all off, you can book a private hot tub for the evening before heading back into the wilderness tomorrow.

    Bali, of course, takes a softer approach. At Novotel Bali Ubud Resort or Novotel Bali Nusa Dua, movement is less about conquering a mountain and more about a dance class between the tropical gardens and lagoon pools. Afterwards, the spa takes over, with traditional treatments like a Lulur body scrub: a combination of rice, turmeric, sandalwood, ginger and jasmine that’ll soothe muscles already relaxed by the Balinese heat.

    4. Better connections

    Novotel Sharm El Sheikh
    Kids will love a stay at Novotel Sharm El Sheikh.

    One of the best things about travel is that it gives your family stories you’ll be telling for years. Novotel helps create them with activities that bring everyone together, whether that’s trying something new, learning a local skill, or simply spending more time together.

    Go for a distinctly Thai twist at Novotel Phuket Vintage Park, where many of the family activities draw on local culture. Kids can try everything from beginner Thai boxing and language lessons to umbrella painting and – a pastime beloved by children the world over – pool foam parties. Everyone is welcome to join in, whether that’s getting splashed, covered in paint, or simply watching their children discover a new side of Thailand during the dedicated Family & Kids Day.

    A different adventure awaits at Novotel Sharm El Sheikh. Kids could be perfectly content with discos, drawing classes and new holiday friends, but the Red Sea has other ideas. Sitting on the edge of Naama Bay, days here might involve snorkelling colourful reefs, taking a boat trip to Ras Mohammed National Park or heading into the desert by quad bike or camel for a Bedouin-style dinner beneath the stars.

    5. Location is everything

    Surin Beach, Choeng Thale, Thalang District, Phuket, Thaiföld
    Explore Phuket’s gorgeous beaches. (Credit: Bence Biczo)

    Everyone’s idea of wellness looks a little different. With more than 600 hotels across 65 countries, Novotel gives guests the freedom to choose the destination that suits them best. Whether that’s a beachside escape in Phuket, an alpine expedition in Queenstown or a city break in Bangkok, there’s a good chance a Novotel isn’t far away.

    All that’s left? Choosing your version of wellbeing.

    Discover stays to inspire your everyday at novotel.accor.com.