Tuscan Terroir: A Wine and Plant-Based Cuisine Retreat with Sheral Schowe

We do realize our prices seem high.   However, when compared to many other tours to the region, we are actually comparatively priced when you take into account that our trips include all meals (and vegan to boot!) and drinks, all the tips for drivers and local guides, and many other extras like a amenities/essentials bag, a free laundry day, etc.

It’s also worth noting that there aren’t many 100% fully vegan tours to Tuscany.  Veganism is still somewhat of a new concept in Italy, despite their cuisine being very vegetarian-friendly at its base.   Our trip cost does factor in the lengthy and hard work done with all our hotels, restaurants and local partners in educating and preparing them for our visit (meals, advocacy, toiletries, etc.), which is far beyond any tasks that other tour companies are faced with.  This work begins several months before the trip, and approaches full-time hours around 2-3 months prior to the trip’s start date.

We also realize that for many, these types of trips are something they’ve dreamed about for many years.  As such, we’ve constructed an itinerary that will make this trip truly memorable in regards to our accommodation, meals, and choice of activities.   

Absolutely!   We have many people on our trip that sign up as solo travelers.   ​However, due to the limited space at our Tuscany villa, we only have 4 single rooms available.   Please see our COST & SIGN-UP section for more information.  

Should you still be on the waiting list when the trip closes and gets confirmed, we may be able to offer you a single room (depending on availability).

FLIGHTS
You are in charge of your own transportation — whether it be flights, train, bus, car, etc. — to our starting city, and your return transportation from our departure city. 

For your arrival, we ask that you try and arrive early on the first day, as our first meeting tends to be just after lunch.  This exact time and place will be confirmed at a later date, but do plan ahead adequately to leave you enough time to get to our meeting place by that time.  Even better is arriving one or more days before.  This would provide you with a chance to take care of jet-lag and visit the town.

Please note that your transportation to our first meeting point is not included.  

VISAS
For citizens of western countries (ie USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, etc), no visas are necessary for a stay of 90 days or less in the Schengen Area, of which Italy is a member.   Other European citizens do not need a visa to enter Italy.

TRAVEL/MEDICAL INSURANCE
Medical travel insurance is mandatory on our trip.    We need to have assurances that you are fully covered in the event of a medical emergency, including repatriation.  You will need to send us your policy detail and emergency contact number before the trip’s start date.

Trip Insurance (trip cancellation, lost baggage, etc.), on the other hand, is entirely up to you, though we highly recommend purchasing it.  It often comes packaged along with medical travel insurance, or you may get coverage simply by paying for the trip using a credit card (inquire with your card supplier). 

As we are not a travel agency or booking agents, we can’t book any flights or ongoing travel (ie hotels, transportation, etc) for you. However we can surely help with recommendations, suggestions and tips as you look into flights, or extending your holiday. It never hurts to ask, so don’t hesitate to contact us with any queries whatsoever!

We’ll be heading to Italy just before the start of summer, so expect warm-to-hot daytime temperatures, but still tolerable, with cool evenings.   While Tuscany gets very hot during its summer, we’re most likely to experience good days with pleasant average temperatures that fall between 12 degrees Celsius (54°F) and 23 degrees Celsius (73°F), although occasionally this coud spike to 30 degrees Celsius (86°F).  

While we don’t have a luggage restriction on this trip, we recommend you not to bring more than 1 suitcase per person. You will need to carry your bags only from the bus to the hotel twice (plus the trip to our meeting place) but you should still make sure you can lift it by yourself (ie it’s not too heavy).

We do have one free laundry included on the trip, so hopefully this can help in not over-packing. Laundry will also be available on other days at a fee.

In terms of clothing, it’s a good idea to bring some early-summer garb, such as light cotton pants, shorts, t-shirts, etc.  A hat is a good idea to block off the sun.  Our villa has a pool so do pack a swimsuit!

A sweater or light jacket for the cooler evenings is a good idea. A rain jacket or a small umbrella could prove useful at this time of year.

Do bring some comfortable, but sturdy, shoes, as we have many walking tours and hiking opportunities.  You probably don’t need rugged hiking boots.  Hiking shoes or runners with decent grip should do the trick.  

You can always bring a 2nd set of comfy shoes/loafers to wear in the evening, for dinner and also afterwards when we’re relaxing with a nightcap.

• Other essentials should include:
• sunglasses
• Cameras and plenty of batteries and storage cards is a must.
• sunscreen lotion

We will be sending an info packet several weeks before the trip that will include, amongst other bits of information, a packing list.

If you are coming from outside of Europe, then yes, your mobile phone should work, but do check with your carrier to make sure. It is highly recommended to turn off global roaming unless you carrier can offer you a package for your stay in Italy. Otherwise you risk being charged exorbitant fees upon you return home!

If you are a UK or other European citizen, your phone should work as usual as Europe no longer has borders when it comes to mobile phone usage. However do check with your carrier to ensure your package qualifies.

If your phone is unlocked (please check with your carrier directly) you can also purchase a local Italian SIM Card when you arrive in the country (usually sold at airports). You can sometimes find SIM cards on Amazon; for example the Orange Holiday Europe prepaid SIM card.

Our villa does have WIFI but it is quite limited.  It may not work in some rooms, but it’s available in the public areas (especially outside), and then connection is a bit sporadic and uneven.  Having your own phone with a data plan is definitely recommended.

We will have WIFI on-board our bus. The connection speeds may vary, as will the connection itself.

We provide all accommodation, transportation and meals. All expenses during our included activities are taken care of, including tips for guides and drivers.

You will then only need cash for extra purchases such as souvenirs, alcoholic drinks during meals and at the villa, extra snacks, etc. There are ATMs in every town and credit cards are accepted in most places. This mostly means Visa and MasterCard, with American Express having quite a lower acceptance rate outside of hotels and higher-end restaurants.

The tour leaders will be carrying extra cash. If you decide to go on an optional activity at the last minute but don’t have enough money, we will be able to help you out and you can simply pay us back when we find an ATM.

For drinks during meals: we include non-alcoholic drinks, but alcoholic beverages (beer and wine) will require you to pay the suppliers (ie hotel, restaurant) directly. We will make it very clear what is included before each meal.

Tipping hotel and restaurant staff is not necessary and entirely up to you.

For allergies or food sensitivities that you might have, please email [email protected] before booking and get Brighde’s confirmation in writing that you can be accommodated before booking.

We do have quite a lot of walking activities on this trip, with a fair amount of uphill and downhill walking, since most Italian towns are build on hilltops. A certain amount of physical fitness will provide for a happier trip.  Having said you can always opt to skip these visits but this would somewhat dampen your enjoyment of the trip.

Youth above 16 years young are welcome.    We are currently not accepting any younger children. ​

There’s no upper age limit, though do note that there is a fair amount of walking on this trip. 

We will provide water, juice, coffee, tea, some cocktails and wine/beer during lunches and all dinners and some activities. We will make it clear what’s included and what’s not. Premium alcoholic drinks (ie expensive cognac, whiskey, champagne, etc) are not included. You can pay for those on the spot or sign it to the room and pay when checking out.

World Vegan Travel aims to be a safe place for all LGBTQ travelers. We have a zero-tolerance policy on discrimination of any sort.

​Generally speaking, Italy is considered a gay-friendly country and public opinion on homosexuality is generally regarded as increasingly culturally liberal. Same-sex civil unions and unregistered cohabitation have been legally recognized since June 2016.