Gourmand Breaks Wine, Food & Cultural Tours

Gourmand Breaks knocked it out of the park again! Our 2 week visit to Portugal was amazing. We visited Lisbon, Porto, the Douro valley, Alentejo and Setúbal regions. All meticulously orchestrated by Gourmand, including accommodations in unique historic wine hotels, daily wine paired lunches, visits to 14 wineries, wonderful guides to help explore the cities, countryside and historic sites and attend to every detail. We chose a combination of renting a car to travel area to area, then handing the driving responsibility over to attentive guides for our wine tasting and touring days. Every day Gourmand contacted us to inform us of the plan for the day and coordinate details. The blend of attention to detail while ensuring we get to visit really special places with exposure to the history, food, wine and hospitality of the region leads to a truly stress less and wonderful experience. We are already planning our third trip with their help.

My husband and I booked a 2-week trip through Spain and Portugal with Gourmand Breaks and I cannot say enough good things about the entire experience. Ursula, Lydia and Smita were my main contacts throughout the process and they were very responsive to all questions. They will work with you to customize the trip to your interests. For us, we wanted to learn about history and architecture, but our primary focus was the food and wine. Gourmand Breaks planned the trip for us with these goals in mind. When you get close to your trip, Gourmand Breaks will create a personalized website with your itinerary and suggestions for downtime activities. The website was particularly helpful for finding unique restaurants - we tried several and were not disappointed. In each city we had a private guide to walk us through the main attractions, with no waiting in lines, and we'd end each tour with a long lunch. The guides were all super personable, knowledgeable of their city history and overall great to hang out with for a few hours. Overall, this experience changed my opinion on working with a travel company. In the past I've always booked all our travel myself, but going forward, I'll always look to a company like Gourmand Breaks because this was by far the easiest and best trip we've ever taken.

We were super impressed with the personal service with Gourmand Breaks. A friend recommended them to us for our trip to Barcelona and Libson and lived up to every expectation. Lidia and Ursula were so helpful and was always there to communicate with us. It was like having our own personal assistance full time to ensure every min on our tours that gave us full enjoyment. Anything that needed correcting they were there, I would use them again in the future Highly recommend.

We had an absolutely incredible experience working with Gourmand Breaks for our trip to Spain & Portugal! From start to finish, the coordination, communication, and attention to detail were exceptional. Every part of the trip ran smoothly thanks to their thoughtful planning. The wine tours they arranged were a true highlight — each one was unique, intimate, and memorable in its own way. We felt like we got to experience something truly special at every stop. The hotels were beautiful and perfectly located, and all our drivers were professional, punctual, and friendly. We couldn't have asked for a better travel experience. Highly recommend them to anyone planning a trip to Spain & Portugal or beyond!

Gourmand Breaks went above and beyond to create an individualized vacation for our two families. They were incredibly responsive throughout our vacation and made our travel stress free. Their professionalism was amazing and they confirmed they are one of the best at what they do. Thank you for making our vacation truly memorable.

Ursula and her teamed are extremely professional and knowledgeable Every detail was meticulously planned for our trip from Paris to Bordeaux wineries, Madrid and the Costa Brava The services of drivers and tour guides were also terrific.

Ursula and Lydia were great in planning a Spain and Portugal personalized trip for our family of 11. They were available to us throughout the trip and were able to alter plans when needed based on our travels. I would highly recommend utilizing them if you are looking for a unique, personalized, and well planned tour of Spain and / or Portugal!

We were thoroughly impressed with the service provided to us by Gourmand Breaks for our Spain and Portugal tour in May 2025. We have used small private group tour agencies before, but the level of detail and follow through we experienced with Gourmand Breaks amazed and delighted us. Ursula emailed us daily to get our feedback on our various tours, guides and drivers and to provide additional details for the next day's events. Anything that wasn't correct or up to par was immediately attended to. We requested 5 star hotels, and we were very satisfied with our lodgings. Restaurant meals that GB organized were always delicious and top notch. Recommendations for activities during "down time" were also very good. The guides were all passionate about their jobs and conveyed history and architectural information to us that made our tours a fantastic educational experience. Overall, an extremely professional and involved agency that take very good care of their customers. We recommend them highly.

Just finished a very memorable 10 day Italian trip designed by Gourmand Breaks. We were able to to experience all the must see spots. The incredible details that were arranged made this trip so easy and worry-free that all we had to do was enjoy every minute. Thanks to all!

After a 15-day bespoke tour of Portugal and Spain, I found this agency to be exceptional. I experienced the most knowledgeable and professional service that I have ever had with a with a travel agency. They were attentive to my group's desires and flexible enough to produce a truly customized tour. They always responded to our requests even on evenings, weekends and holidays. Their contacts with hotels, restaurants, tour guides and drivers were outstanding. I would recommend their services in the regions they cover.

Our recent Italy tour, including Sicily, through Gourmand Breaks was the best organized, immersive and thorough of any that we have ever taken. We travel frequently and have been on many small group and some large group tours but based on our experience using Gourmand Breaks, their custom tour is far superior to any that we have experienced before. Their timeliness in meeting us in airports, hotels, tourist spots and anywhere else we wanted was flawless. Their drivers were always punctual, prepared and very knowledgeable about the areas we were visiting. The drivers’ ability to maneuver in the local traffic was unbelievable and they can find parking spots where there just aren’t any. Our drivers were so flexible in catering to our desires that we may never be able to go back to having to adhere to a set schedule on future trips. The tour company’s selection of hotels and restaurants was always first class. Some were very unique in their quiet and remote locations and others were right in desirable downtown spots. We never had to haul luggage thanks to the convenient hotel selection, the helpful drivers and doormen at most hotels. We ate so many gourmet meals based on their recommendations that we are all seriously dieting now that we have returned home. Ursula from Gourmand Breaks was always in contact with us during the trip and made adjustments based on traffic delays, the Pope’s funeral and other unpredictable events. She even arranged to comp us a lovely dinner at our hotel when we arrived late due to traffic. All in all, a great experience and we will not hesitate to use Gourmand Breaks in the future.

My husband and I just returned from a 3 week tour of Spain organized by GB. I can not say enough about their professionalism and high standards. Working with them was a pleasure from the minute we started planning our custom itinerary. GB listened carefully to our requests, communicated their suggestions, and came through in every way. Not only did they plan a marvelous, unique itinerary, but they were with us throughout our journey. Every request and message was immediately answered. The trip went like clockwork. Our private guides displayed an impressive depth of knowledge. We stayed in some amazing and distinct historic hotels we would never have found on our own. And we were taken to some impressive and interesting locations by competent drivers who knew the terrain like the back of their hand. GB is outstanding. You don’t have to be a gourmand to love Gourmand Breaks.

Last month, we traveled for two weeks in Spain, mostly through Andalusia, and the trip was perfectly planned and all we had hoped for thanks to Ursula and Gourmand Breaks. I was initially attracted by the Gourmand Breaks website and reviews, and its focus on food and wine, as well as cultural, tours. I found one of the sample itineraries on their website and used that as a starting point. As an inveterate planner, I had lots of requests for personalization, and Ursula and Jessica were easy to work with and, equally important, after we spoke they understood our travel style and gave me a wealth of suggestions. They also did all the hard work - organizing the itinerary, providing hotel and restaurants recommendations and reservations, as requested, train tickets where rail travel was advisable, and a car and driver between stops where it made the most sense. I had the fun of being involved in the planning without any of the labor. But it was when the trip started that I really appreciated the company. The hotels they suggested were lovely and unique with great locations in the 5 towns we visited. For example, since we were staying 5 days in Madrid, we requested an apartment rather than an hotel, and they really delivered. A lovely two bedroom around the corner from the Opera and the Royal Palace, close to lots of restaurants, the metro and markets. The guides they arranged at every stop were charming and knowledgeable, and the drivers were exceptionally reliable, and friendly The restaurant recommendations were spot on, and although I added a few ones of my own, they happily made the arrangements. Their communication throughout the trip was great, checking in on us and answering any questions promptly. They were even reachable on a state holiday and were able to book me a table when that seemed impossible at a very desirable restaurant that very evening. So I can heartily recommend Gourmand Breaks to help you plan and execute a relaxing Spanish holiday. I hope to be using them again myself for a trip to the Basque region in the near future.

My husband and I are in our 30s and had never used a luxury travel agency before. When I reached out to Ursula and her team, they were so communicative and flexible, taking our budget into account, etc. We ended up doing a 10-day wine-focused trip through Spain and Portugal, and it was truly an unforgettable experience. Ursula and her team are able to provide such curated experiences that we could have never imagined getting to be a part of. In addition, having the service of an agency like this is so valuable. On our first day, Spain got a large amount of rain that resulting in flooding in many areas - Ursula immediately messaged us that our plans would need to be modified and that she would have a new plan (hotel, new city, new transportation, new winery) all figured out within a few hours. IT WAS SEAMLESS! To have that type of worry off of our shoulders was such a luxury! We extended our stay on both ends - starting in Barcelona and ending in Lisbon and even though we were technically on our own in both of those cities, Ursula and her team gave us so many valuable recommendations.

We can’t say enough about the magical vacation Gourmand Breaks created for us. It truly was a once in a lifetime trip, but we’d like to do it again! Ursula and her team were consummate professionals. Ursula listened carefully and met all of our requests, creating the perfect vacation in Northern Spain, France (Dordogne Valley, Bordeaux) and Portugal (Douro Valley, Porto). They provided a detailed itinerary with an extensive list of dining and activity recommendations. Her team was always accommodating and if anything did go wrong they went over the top to fix it. They were always just a text away. They even secured a last minute reservation for us at three Michelin star El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain! We loved staying in the historical Paradores, walking the cobbled streets of ancient towns and castles, and dining in Michelin starred restaurants. Although we hated to leave each place, we were excited to experience the next destination. The accommodations, restaurants, private historical tours, and charming informative guides made for a perfect three week vacation.

If you are traveling to Portugal, you need Gourmand Breaks to plan your trip. My wife and I did and we can not be more pleased with the results. In advance of our October trip, Ursula very pleasantly (and patiently) worked through a customized itinerary for us. While in Portugal, the drivers and city and wine guides they connected us with were wonderful. As were the accommodations. Further, the wine tastings in the Douro (special shout-out to Helder at Wine & Soul) and Vinho Verde (shout-out to Leila and Joao at Sem Igual) were excellent. We have worked with very good trip planners on prior trips to Europe, but the daily communication we had from Urusla and Jessica (which included some last minute changes) while in Portugal was the best we have experienced.

Gourmand Breaks is absolutely wonderful. I cannot more strongly recommend hiring them to plan your trip, and my wife and I certainly will do so again. We hired Gourmand to plan our three-week honeymoon through Paris, Spain, and Portugal. They took into account all the details and experiences we wanted and created an itinerary that matched our vision perfectly. We visited eight different locations. Every accommodation was top-notch, and all of our guides and chauffeurs were friendly, thoughtful, and a pleasure to be with. Our itinerary introduced us to hidden gems and experiences that we hadn't known about, yet aligned exactly with our interests. The Gourmand Breaks team was also a breeze to work with—they stayed on top of everything. If even the smallest detail wasn’t as expected or needed adjustment, they responded immediately, resolving any issue or making a requested change as if by magic. Finally, the value they offer for the price is unparalleled in our experience. We still can’t believe how fortunate we were to have found Gourmand Breaks. We plan to use them again for all our European travel and will gladly take their recommendations if we travel outside their area of expertise.

Three Weeks in Italy! An Incredible Experience from Start to Finish! I cannot say enough good things about this tour company! From the moment we booked our trip, everything was handled with the utmost professionalism and care. The booking process was smooth, and the staff was always quick to respond to any questions we had. Our tour guides were knowledgeable, friendly, and truly passionate about the destination, which made the experience even more enjoyable. They took us to hidden gems we would have never found on our own, and the itinerary was the perfect mix of sightseeing and local food and wine experiences. All of our accommodations were outstanding! The transportation was comfortable, and everything ran on time. What really stood out was the attention to detail—the little extras, like surprise local treats and personalized recommendations, made the trip feel special. We came away with wonderful memories and a deeper appreciation for the culture and history of Italy. I highly recommend Gourmand Breaks to anyone looking for an unforgettable travel experience!

My wife and I have used Gourmand Breaks in the past and they were always exceptional on all levels. Our trip to Portugal was incredible and was even more spectacular. We have and Ursula and the dedicated team to thank for a great trip.We had the luxury of visiting quite a few wine regions and some incredible wineries as well. They are truly professionals at their craft and we will definitely use them again. The selections of hotels, Michelin star restaurants and travel recommendations were spot on. The drivers and staff were always communicating with us to make sure that we had everything that we needed every step of the trip. if you are planning to book a trip I would not hesitate and contacting Gourmand Breaks for your next trip.

Gourmand Breaks were fantastic to deal with, and as a consequence, our Europe trip ran like clockwork. Ursula and Caterina's depth of knowledge of key locations, as well as their deep connections with guides, drivers, restaurants and activity operators, meant that our experience felt special throughout our time with them. It was clear that Ursula and Caterina were keeping an eye on the logistics throughout our journey, so if we needed to make any adjustments along the way, we were easily able to converse and make those arrangements. As a smaller company, Gourmand Breaks are able to provide a genuine personal service.

My wife and I had a phenomenal experience on our recent customized wine tour of northern Spain and Portugal. Ursula and Caterina planned, organized and created an amazing itinerary that exceeded our expectations in every way. All of the touring and travel arrangements were flawless. The guides and drivers were all friendly and knowledgeable, the wines and meals were outstanding. We learned an enournous amount about both countries, their wine and their food. We hope to schedule our next trip to Burgundy with them in the future.

The service and the tour itinerary was excellent. The guides were very knowledgable and attentive to your needs. The Rioja tour of wineries were covered from a small family owned ones to the large corporate type and it covered the history of the area and how it is now and where it will be going. The small family owned wineries were very interesting from a woman owned to a new venture by obtaining old wineries. The coastal tours on the Basque region included to a trip to Biarritz across to France and the San Sebastian area and ending in Bilbao. The food (tapas, Pintxos) and the wine from white to red of the local wine to match with the foods were enjoyed very much. Overall, it was memorable, educational and very enjoyable tour. My one regret was that it was not long enough.

We enjoyed an incredible 3 week vacation in France, Portugal and Spain all planned with Gourmand Breaks. Ursula and Caterina, who own this travel agency, planned an amazing experience for us in every city and village that we had the pleasure to visit. Their knowledge of the incredible historical sites, delicious foods and wines and best hotels in every area we travelled to is exceptional. Every hotel they chose was perfectly located, every meal scrumptious and every transfer from city to city was perfectly planned. Both Ursula and Caterina were available to us throughout our trip and were always in touch checking on us. Their active support throughout our trip was very important and appreciated throughout our time overseas. We highly, highly recommend traveling with Gourmand Breaks. Their attention to every detail and ongoing follow up during our trip was invaluable. We felt absolutely supported and knew that Ursula and Caterina were supporting our travel experience every step of the way. We will absolutely choose to travel with Gourmand Breaks when we visit Europe again. Thank you so much Ursula and Caterina for an amazing travel experience We wish you both ongoing success with your incredible travel agency.

We highly recommend Gourmand Breaks! They developed a personalized itinerary for us and they do all the work…hotels, restaurants, tour guides, winery visits, and drivers were all arranged ahead of time and they were all top notch. They communicated with us each day to make sure everything was going smoothly and we were able to just enjoy the trip. It was a great mix of culture, wine, food and local culture…a trip we will always remember!

I am a return client of Gourmand Breaks, recently returning from Spain in September 2023. The trip was last minute and Ursula and Caterina collaborated with me to make sure that I got the most from my experience and then some! The wineries and lunches were incredible and a Jamon tasting was one of the highlights. The drivers are professional and punctual and the accommodations are in excellent locations. Ursula and Caterina are available while in Europe and they even checked in to make sure everything was going smoothly. If you are looking for an amazing vacation that is hassle free, I highly recommend Gourmand Breaks and I’m looking forward to planning my next excursion with them.

My son and I went on a 10 day wine tour starting in Porto following the Douro through Portugal and Spain to Rioja then via San Sebastian to Bordeaux organized by Ursula and Caterina at Gourmand Travel. They arranged transport, knowledgeable local tour guides, winery visits, hotels etc meeting and exceeding our every need, making this an exceptional travel experience for any lover of wine, fine food and luxury hotels. It was also great fun with the friendly drivers and guides.

We became aware of Gourmand Breaks through friends of ours who had used them previously and were very happy with them. We got in touch with Gourmand Breaks before the Pandemic and together we planned a lovely trip in France and Spain which was unfortunately cancelled due to the Pandemic. Fast forward 2023 we planned our trip to Italy, France and Spain “at the last minute” and enlisted Gourmand Breaks for help with places to visit and the transport to get there. We don’t drive in Europe so needed good private transfers and local transport to scenic places and restaurants. We don’t like bus tours and the constraints they bring. The email communication with Gourmand Breaks was fantastic, and there was much backward and forward suggestions and alterations with our itinerary with them. We had definite ideas of our own but were open to suggestions for Spain in particular. It is useful to note that we prefer long stays of about 2 weeks in each location and use that as a base to explore. Which is where Gourmand Breaks comes to the fore. They suggest and organise interesting places and definitely not the tourist places which we prefer to avoid. We started in Bordeaux using Sarlat as our base for 2 weeks and saw some beautiful places which we would not have seen without a local English speaking guide / chauffeur. After Sarlat we were driven to Girona, a lovely town, but make sure to get accommodation in the old town only. From Girona we were taken to lovely villages like Besalu, the Costa Brava and a guided tour of Girona itself. Of course we chose plenty of free time to explore our base towns on foot. In conclusion we can thoroughly recommend Gourmand Breaks for a great personalised itinerary with quality vehicles and personable English speaking drivers. Suggestions of restaurants, places to visit, any assistance during our stay were invaluable. GB is a small independent company with flexiblity and personalised service. You’re always in communication with the same person and that’s so helpful particularly when we had questions before and during the trip. So in rounding it up, I’d have no hesitation in booking a highly personal itinerary of Spain and France with Gourmand Breaks.

If you want a holiday where all you have to worry about is where to eat, then Gourmand Breaks is for you! Ursula and the team were great in planning our trip and even when in Europe would reach out to make sure everything is running smoothly. When train drivers were on strike in France, Gourmand Breaks had already organised another train ride, that had limited seats, before we had even found out about the strike! It was our honeymoon and everything was flexible and customisable, our focus was on wineries and the wineries selected were exactly what we were after. The local tour guides that were used were amazing, the one-on-one tours were intimate and it felt like you got to experience something else that you would not get on a group tour. Recommendations, and even help booking exclusive restaurants are part of the service, one of the highlights was the cooking class in Florence and the other meal and restaurant recommendations could not be faulted. We have so many great memories from our time in Europe, and if we were to ever go back we would definitely use them again. Highly recommended! Thanks Ursula and the team at Gourmand Breaks.

Fantastic, Fantastic, Fantastic! We just returned from an incredible private (2 couples) 12 day wine and foodie tour from Porto to Barcelona and it was really worth the 2 year delay from the start of planning to the actual trip. Ursula was very, very helpful and made it easy to add Salamanca, Bilbao and San Sebastian to the itinerary. We traveled from Porto to the Douro River Valley (Pinhao), on to Salamanca, Ribera del Duero region (Penafiel), San Sebastian and Bilbao, La Rioja region (Laguardia), Priorat and finally to Barcelona. At every step of the trip we had recommendations for places to eat, activities to enjoy and history of each area. Ursula was always available when we had a question and was so flexible when we needed to make an unexpected change. Our guides were fantastic, our drivers were excellent and all had well maintained, comfortable minivans— in short, Ursula thought of everything. Most important, the wineries we went to were all interesting—some we liked more than others but each had something special to see and taste. Our tour in Priorat was outstanding and was not to be forgotten. The hotels were usually the best available in each location, the meals and wine pairings were superb and we felt totally pampered. We were so satisfied with our trip that we have recommended Ursula and Gourmand Breaks to multiple people in the past few weeks. We would travel again with Gourmand Breaks without question!

I can only echo the comments from the previous reviewer. We started our planning toward a trip meant for 2020. One month after the other, we thought that we could just back things up a bit, but it was not to be. Jamaica was my main contact, and she kept me informed on the situation in Spain and Portugal. Finally, we were able to travel in May of 2022. It is the very best trip we have ever had, and that is saying a lot, as we have been traveling the US and Europe for nearly 30 years. We started in Barcelona, one of our favorite cities (hoping to get back sometime so that we can stop by the office and say hello in person), and traveled through the Priorat region, staying at exquisite hotels and visiting several of the wineries. The visit to Clos Mogador and the jeep tour of the vineyards with Josep was especially memorable for the personalized experience of smelling the wild herbs and flowers in and around the vineyards and understanding their impact on wine flavor. None of our tours were the typical 'tourist' experiences, rather, they were very highly personalized and were great learning experiences. Next was La Rioja, and our stay at Hospederia de Los Parajes in the medieval town of Laguardia. This is where we first experienced THE POWER OF URSULA. Let me explain. Gourmand Breaks knows your hosts personally. There is incredible power in these connections. I texted Ursula about a very small issue at the hotel, and 10 minutes later I had a return text that she had spoken with the hotel owner and straightened things out. In the Rioja region, we visited Finca Valpiedra, where we enjoyed a lovely and very private picnic lunch in the vineyard after our tour, and had our first experience with the wine cellars and tunnels common to this region when we were hosted by Elena at Casa Primicia. In Portugal, our chauffer and guide for the most part was Miguel. Our experience with him was first class all the way. Everyone we met in Portugal was so incredibly friendly, gracious, and hospitable. There were some last minute changes in our itinerary due to one or two of our original locations not meeting Ursula's high standards. Our meal and tasting at Quinta Nova was outstanding - when we started asking about some of the wines during the meal, the servers began bringing more bottles for us to taste. (No, this was not usual - the other diners were watching us and later commented about our special treatment. Just call it the POWER OF URSULA.) One of our last visits was at Quinta de Ventozelo. This was a last minute substitution and a definite upgrade. However, there seemed to be a bit of confusion (probably due to the last minute) on some of the arrangements for the tour and the meal. When our lunch server finally understood that we were 'with' Gourmand Breaks, his comment Oh, you are with URSULA, as if we were royalty. Finally, we were returning to the US while covid testing was still required. This was the most stressful part of the entire trip - what if you get stuck in Europe for several days beyond your plans? However, Ursula and Jamaica explained everything very clearly and made all the arrangements. We had (negative) test results within 20 minutes, and at a very reasonable cost. Let me finish by saying that this was a luxury tour in every way, we did not have an unlimited budget. Jamaica worked with us from the beginning to understand what we were looking for, and to help make it work. I would recommend Gourmand Breaks to anyone for this type of trip, and am trying to decide if we will visit France or Italy next!

For our milestone wedding anniversary in 2020, we booked an awesome trip again with Gourmand Breaks (our second), a luxury wine and food themed tour through Spain and Portugal. But alas, it was not meant to be in 2020. Jamaica and Ursula were so patient and flexible with our change in dates due to the pandemic. From initial inquiry throughout the actual travels, they were responsive, helpful, and just plain delightful. We did make some changes to the original suggested itinerary - they were very open to helping us make the best use of our time based on our interests. The accommodations were exquisite. We stayed in charming villages that were quiet, peaceful, and complete with services, as well as in wonderful hotels in the city center. EVERY guide was out of this world, whether it was from the local wineries that we visited, or city guides and chauffeurs. I just cannot recommend Gourmand Breaks enough. They are kind, responsive, thorough, and really make you feel pampered while visiting Europe! I’m already looking forward to the next trip I can plan with them!