Gourmet Food Retreat in Andalucia

Home to an internationally renowned cuisine fusing Spanish and North African flavours, Andalucia is a food-lovers’ paradise. This week long gourmet food retreat is your passport to this culinary wonderland!

Once the hub of Islamic influence in Europe (thanks to its proximity to neighbouring Morocco), Andalucia is like nowhere else in Europe. Combining the ceaselessly Spanish – bullfighting, tapas and sombreros – with the magically Moorish – Alhambra, Spain’s most iconic building, can be found in the southern hills – the autonomous community is a cultural goldmine. Add to this a landscape as beautiful as it is diverse, with rolling green hills, whitewashed villages, forest, beach and the mighty Sierra Nevada, and you have all the makings of travel perfection!

This eight-day gourmet food holiday puts the ‘treat’ in ‘retreat’! (Sorry! - too neat a pun not to use!) Ever wanted to know how to make an authentic North African tagine? Or how to identify wild herbs and edible flowers? Your week at The Orange Grove covers all this and more. There’s a raw food course in which you’ll learn of the health benefits of uncooked and unprocessed foods, as well as tasting sessions for everything from fine wines to local sweetmeats. You'll learn to create local & moorish dishes such as gazpacho, Lamb tagine and Gypsy stew, using locally sourced ingredients. It’s not just the food that makes this trip special though; there’s some fine guided hiking to be had, including a walk on the route of sultans to the Alhambra palaces of Granada! And at the end of the day – or perhaps in between gourmet meals! – you can unwind with a dip in the pool or a sway in a hammock!

Fine food, spectacular scenery and the salubrious Spanish sun – this is without doubt one of the most relaxing retreats we’ve come across! It’s equally suitable for singles, couples and families as there’s a load to do besides the culinary, from wild adventuring to poolside reclining. In fact, it’s difficult to imagine someone feeling ill at ease at The Orange Grove, though those who are attracted to Andalucia for its nightlife might be better off heading to the coastal resorts; although there are bars in cosmopolitan Competa a short drive away, this trip is very much about getting away from crowds and discovering the true culture – and awesome cuisine - of this fascinating region.

Vegetarians are most welcome and catered for.