Food+Wine• Kids+Family• Lifestyle• Podcast Episodes

Episode 03: Off-The-Beaten Path Sea and Mountain Tours: Italia Sweet Italia

Show Notes

Imagine strolling through a piazza in an ancient Roman town overlooking the Adriatic Sea. As we move through the historic center, we marvel at cathedrals and the architecture of days gone by. Everything is within steps here: cheese and wine shops, museums, art galleries, and more. The mouth and soul satisfying local Italian cuisine calls to us, with tantalizing gelato and the fresh fish dishes that abound. We breathe all of it in against the peaceful backdrop of sandy dunes, pebbly coves, majestic peaks, and the time-honored tradition of love for sea and mountains.

It is here, in the village of Vasto in the region of Abruzzo, that we find Italia Sweet Italia, an authentic cultural, culinary and walking experience tour company. In this episode, I chat with tour guide and founder, Fabrizio Lucci. Italia Sweet Italia offers fully escorted, off-the-beaten path tours of one of Italy’s most culturally rich and visually stunning regions. With Fabrizio (and his family and friends), visitors experience authentic daily Italian life by invitation to farms and homes, take easy walks along the coastline, the Abruzzo mountains, national parks, and ancient hermitages, they cook pasta and pizza with local women, even view the fascinating trabocchi fishing huts, and much more.

Un traboccho; Photo credit: Italia Sweet Italia

What You’ll Learn

The inspiration behind Italia Sweet Italia
The double soul and beauties of Abruzzo
Why Vasto is an ideal base for travelers with multiple additional locations just 3 hours or less away
The sights, smells and tastes of the ancient Roman area, including castles, churches, cafes, beaches and more
Slow and sustainable travel in Vasto: what visitors can expect from the people, their way of life, and their openness to human connection
Italia Sweet Italia tours include local friends and family, with rare opportunities to be invited into homes or to generations-old farms, including locations such as a traditional pottery artist’s farm
The ancient fishing huts of the region (trabocchi) and the trabocchi coast
Beautiful horseback rides, cycling and star gazing
The effects of mass tourism on Italy, including pollution and ways tourism is changing the local culture and economics
Fabrizio’s advice for travelers that have limited time and have never been to Italy
Why sustainable, slow travel is more significant than ever before