Agrotourism
Starting in the 1950s and continuing through the 1970s, traditional small-scale farming in Greece became less profitable and many farmers abandoned their farms to search for work in larger towns. However, Greek people place great value and worth in their agricultural traditions, especially in the small-scale production of foods like cheese, vegetables, and olive oil. By 1985, Greek lawmakers had created a legal definition for agrotourism, which allowed, and in some cases, provided funds for the rehabilitation and restoration of many abandoned rural buildings and estates.
Greek food
Greek food is the mother of all Mediterranean diets: historically rich, fantastically delicious, and supremely nutritious. Greeks tend to believe their diet is wholesome and healthy. Widely researched and reported all over the world, the healthy Mediterranean diet is said to lower cholesterol and promote a long life. Almost everyone knows some famous Greek recipe like moussaka, souvlaki, Greek salad or baklavas, but Greek food is more than that.
Greek gastronomy has a recorded history of around 4,000 years with special characteristics based on pure and unique quality products from the rich Greek soil. The climate of Greece is advantageous and Greece produces an incredible variety of organically products; cheese, oil, fruits, nuts, grains, vegetables, wild herbs, and aromatic herbs. These are the foods that form the base of the traditional Greek diet. While each Greek meal is fresh and inviting, it is also a trip back through Greece's history.
Bread, olives, and wine constituted the triptych of the Greek diet for many centuries, just as they do today. Greek food is based on simple and healthy ingredients. Preparing and enjoying Greek food, anywhere in the world, is an adventurous journey into the cradle of civilization and the land of the Gods of Olympus.
Fruit is relatively inexpensive and available mainly by season, though in more cosmopolitan spots, one can find such things as avocados for much of the year. Other major ingredients include liberal use of lemon juice, pepper, oregano, garlic, and tomatoes in different iterations (fresh, peeled, paste, etc.).
In terms of meat, while most would associate sheep and goat as the main-consumed products, according to a study by the Agricultural University of Athens, "pork holds first place among consumers" preferences, covering 35,6% of total consumption, poultry covers 21,7%, bovine meat covers 20,3%, and goat and sheep meat cover 14,8%." Moreover, no place in Greece is further than 85 miles from the coast and all types of seafood and shellfish have been an important food for the Greeks. The Romans adopted Greek cuisine and developed it from the time of the foundation of Rome until the fall of Byzantium.
Greek cuisine shares a wide range of dishes, habits, and techniques with Italian cuisine as well as with old Byzantine and the Ottoman Empire because Greek food has been influenced by many other culinary traditions. Consequently, their contemporary cuisine shares many names with other cultures - the moussaka and baklava are Turkish names, whereas dishes like the pastitsada have a strong Italian flavor.
The Greeks revere the olive tree. Olive oil is known for its therapeutic properties to combat high cholesterol, poor metabolism, obesity, and breast cancer. Greek olive oil is renowned all around the world for its purity and its exceptional taste. It is one of the main ingredients in any traditional Greek recipe. 80% of the olive oil produced in Greece is the superior quality oil called extra virgin. Greece is now the biggest producer in the world.
When cooking with local, seasonal ingredients is something many of you aspire to do more often. And it makes sense. Seasonal cooking is such a nice way to celebrate where you live and understand the seasons. This is the key of the Greek cooking that makes the Greek food so delectable.
Itinerary
Day 1 (Friday): Welcome to Pelion
- Transfer from Volos to Portaria to Kritsa Gastronomy Hotel / Pelion Agriturismo
- Welcome dinner in the restaurant of the hotel
Day 2 (Saturday): Cooking lesson (pies)
- After breakfast, you will go to the farm to get what you need for your first cooking lesson
- You will go to the cooking school for your first lesson (pies)
- You will have what you prepared for lunch (with drinks)
- Free afternoon
- Dinner at the restaurant
- Overnight
Day 3 (Sunday): Olive oil day
- First thing after breakfast is to go and visit an olive oil museum in Katochori and have a great olive oil tasting
- Lunch in Katochori
- In the afternoon, a visit to the farm is necessary to select fruits for your second cooking class
- At 17:00, you will have the second cooking lesson. You will learn to make the famous spoon sweets
- Dinner at the restaurant
- Overnight
Day 4 (Monday): Food tour in Makrinitsa and Volos
- Buffet breakfast
- Head out in Makrinitsa to do some sightseeing and have lunch at a rustic tavern
- Then, you will visit the city of Volos and have a tapas tour (meze)
- Return to Portaria for dinner
- Overnight
Day 5 (Tuesday): Free day
- Suggestion: Meteora (transfer can be provided at an extra cost), it is a must-see site
Day 6 (Wednesday): Wine tasting
- Buffet breakfast
- Free morning
- Lunch at your agriturismo
- Free afternoon
- Before dinner, you will enjoy a brilliant wine tasting (local cheese and ham will be also served)
- Dinner
Day 7 (Thursday): Third cooking class
- After breakfast, you will go to the farm to collect some fresh ingredients
- Last cooking class: Main course and side dishes from Pelion
- You will enjoy the fruit of your labor
- Free afternoon
- Farewell dinner
- Overnight
Day 8 (Friday): Departure
After breakfast, you will be transferred to Volos train station / airport. All the good things come to an end. It has been a pleasure to have you here in Pelion!
Notes: Aegean Flavours advises you to make sure that you respect the formalities of police, customs, and ethics at the destination.