When traveling, many people choose their destinations thinking about the climate, attractions, landscapes, or activities that can be carried out in that destination or the sports that can be practiced there.
But, currently, there is a new way of doing tourism thanks to the importance that the gastronomy of each place has regained. Gastronomic routes help tourism because they support the circular economy and prioritize a rich, deep, and respectful cultural exchange with the destinations chosen.
Gastronomic tourism, as its name indicates, is a set of routes that are linked to the culture of gastronomy. This forms a philosophy that seeks to discover new places through gastronomy where people discover, for example, how the ingredients are obtained to create the typical dishes of the place and taste each one of them.
A food tour can include a Michelin-starred restaurant, traditional restaurants, bars, pubs, or street stalls. But on these tours, it’s not just the food that matters, drinks also play a key role.
Thanks to a complete food tour, no matter which city in the world you are in, you will be able to discover the culinary heritage of the chosen destination and unique flavors, textures, and experiences.
Gastronomic tourism is a trend that has been booming for some years and is currently in constant growth. Tourists are seduced by a certain food or culinary culture, or even a certain restaurant.
Although this is something that has existed for a long time, it is no longer the same as before because, a few years ago, people could choose a destination to visit or vacation according to important and popular festivities that included gastronomy, but, nowadays, people choose a destination based exclusively on the culinary sector regardless of special dates or the time of year.
Main Characteristics of Gastronomic Tourism
The main basis of gastronomic tourism is choosing a destination based on its culinary theme. From that point, a lot of possibilities and factors arise that are important to consider, such as, for example, that this type of tourism focuses on the gastronomy of a specific region.
The gastronomy of each country is important to its history and sometimes becomes a great source of income. This can be described as a type of cultural tourism because, with any food tour, you will discover that you get to know the people, their culture, and traditions just by tasting their flavors and learning about their recipes and main ingredients.
Gastronomic tours have become a trend with obvious economic benefits for the gastronomy sector and destinations. Currently, many travel companies have complete packages that focus on this type of tourism.
Finally, gastronomic tourism is constantly evolving, as is haute cuisine and everything related to tourism, such as hotel chains, shows, and attractions.
Advantages of Gastronomic Tourism
The economic benefits of gastronomic tourism are obvious, but this type of tourism also offers a host of benefits to those who decide to do so. This is a great opportunity to discover new flavors because each culture has its spices, ingredients, and techniques when it comes to creating a particular dish.
You can get to know different cultures in depth and the most popular, modern recipes and those that are passed down from generation to generation are responsible for the culture and traditions that each population has.
Gastronomic tourism is a good way to support the economy of the chosen destination, even more so when purchases are made from small producers. This type of tourism is one of the best ways to learn new recipes.
Nowadays, there is the internet and everything can be obtained with just one click, but there is no better way to learn than by tasting the flavors in person and studying the techniques in the same way.
Finally, taking a food tour allows you to expand your gastronomic knowledge. You can enjoy different gastronomic tourism possibilities according to your needs and preferences.
For example, you can choose to go on a wine tour, discover new restaurants, you can choose to visit places and try gourmet food or you can decide on typical markets where you can buy spices or fresh products. The truth is that, whatever type of tourism you choose, your experience will be unforgettable.
