A Day in the Parma Food Valley

The day begins with your private driver and car at your disposal, collecting you in Parma and heading south into the gentle hills of the Food Valley — the countryside that gives two of Italy's most storied products their name and character.

Inside a Parmigiano Reggiano Dairy

The first stop is a working caseificio, where wheels of Parmigiano Reggiano are made each morning exactly as they have been for eight centuries. You'll follow the process from the copper vats to the vast ageing rooms, where thousands of wheels rest in silence. A guided tasting introduces the cheese at different stages of maturation — 12, 24, and 36 months — revealing how time transforms texture, aroma, and depth. It is a quiet lesson in patience and craft, and an ideal way to understand what "artisanal" truly means.

Lunch at Salumeria Ugolotti, Langhirano

From the dairy, the drive continues to Langhirano, the heart of Prosciutto di Parma country. Lunch is served at Salumeria Ugolotti, a family address where the region's finest cured meats are treated with reverence. The tasting menu is built around locally aged prosciutto — sliced to order — alongside tortelli, the delicate stuffed pasta that defines Parma's home cooking. It is an unhurried meal, the kind that rewards lingering.

Torrechiara Castle

The afternoon is given to Torrechiara, one of the most beautiful and best-preserved castles in Emilia-Romagna. Rising above the Parma valley, its towers and frescoed halls — including the celebrated Camera d'Oro — tell a fifteenth-century story of power and romance. You'll have free time to explore the ramparts and courtyards at your own pace, with sweeping views over the vineyards and prosciutto lofts below.

Return to Parma

Your driver returns you to Parma in the late afternoon, completing a full circle through the landscape that shaped the region's table.

Pricing