Autentico Florence

Hotel

Welcome to Florence! We’ll be staying at one of the city’s most beautiful and historic hotels, the Helvetia & Bristol. This 5-star hotel has undergone a stunning restoration and now boasts one of the best spas in Florence. Upon check-in, you’ll find a gift basket with snacks to help you settle in, along with a personal guide to our favorite places to shop, eat, and drink in the city.

Ahead of the tour, you’ll also have received Elizabeth’s book Eating My Way Through Italy, which includes chapters on this magical city, and Rolando’s Autentico, which introduces you to some of the people we’ll meet during our week together. 

Drinks and Dinner

At 6:30 pm, we’ll gather in the elegant Bristol Winter Garden for drinks to officially kick off the week. Over prosecco and nibbles, we’ll get to know each other and share a preview of the exciting experiences awaiting you in Florence.

Afterward, we’ll take a short stroll past the Babtistery on our way to dinner. Our destination is an incredibly romantic restaurant, set in an ancient palazzo in the shadow of the Duomo. Here, we’ll start the week with a quintessential Florentine classic: Bistecca Fiorentina.

Cooking Class

This morning, we’ll step into the life of a true Florentine in the residential neighborhood of Oltrarno, far from the bustling tourist spots. We’ll cross the bridge and stroll along the chic Via Maggio toward Porta Romana, an ancient gateway that leads to a treasure trove of local shops. Here, we’ll shop for the ingredients for our lunch, stopping at a grocer, a vegetable stand, and a wine store, where we’ll enjoy a little snack.

Rolando’s home is set within a building owned by Barthel, one of Italy’s finest kitchen designers. Inside their artisan workshops, they’ve created a stunning cooking space where Rolando will guide us through some of his favorite recipes from Autentico. Along the way, we may be joined by a few of his neighbors, sharing their own culinary wisdom and stories.

Garden Walk

After lunch, we’ll enjoy an exclusive visit to Count Torrigiani Malaspina’s private 18th-century garden, a rare and extraordinary treat. Normally closed to the public, this enchanting space offers the perfect setting for a post-meal stroll. Don’t be surprised if the Count bursts into an impromptu opera performance.

Dinner

After a long day of eating and exploring, the evening is free for you to explore Florence at your leisure.

Olive Oil & Wine

Today is all about one of the most important ingredients in Italian cooking: olive oil. Rolando was one of the first importers of high-quality olive oil to the US and has greatly impacted the way Americans consume olive oil today. One of the first olive oils he imported was from Tenuta di Capezzana.

We’ll spend the day with Countess Beatrice Contini Bonacossi at her family’s estate.  We will also visit the ancient cellars learning all about their world famous wines. We then gather in the historic kitchen around the open hearth, where we’ll toast bread to drizzle with their freshly pressed olive oil. Afterward, we’ll enjoy a lunch in the family’s private villa, feasting on traditional recipes passed down through generations. The meal will be paired with some of the estate’s most renowned—and rare—wines.

Dinner

The evening is yours to enjoy as you wish.

Oltrarno’s Palazzo Pitti

Florence’s most famous museums weren’t always museums—they were once the grand homes of powerful families like the Medici. Today, we’ll explore one of their largest estates, located in the heart of the city: Palazzo Pitti. Rather than focusing on its painting and sculpture galleries, we’ll step into the past to see how these families actually lived. With our guide, we’ll have exclusive access to the newly opened Royal Apartments, where the original decor has been meticulously restored. We’ll also get a more intimate glimpse into their world by visiting the treasure rooms—featuring stunning jewelry and tableware—as well as the renowned fashion museum, which preserves exquisite historical garments.

We’ll conclude our visit with a stroll through Florence’s largest green space, the formal Giardino di Boboli. Designed by the ruling family’s architects and artists, this spectacular garden blends art and nature into one of the most theatrical landscapes of its time.

Lunch

We’ll enjoy lunch at the rooftop loggia of Palazzo Guadagni, one of the most romantic spots in Florence. With a glass of white wine and light nibbles under its soaring arches, we’ll have the terrace all to ourselves—an exclusive treat.

Afternoon

The afternoon is yours to spend as you wish.

Dinner

Rolando’s very best friend in Florence is Chiara, the owner of the famous Trattoria Cammillo. If you have ever tried to dine here, you know how difficult it is to get one of their very few tables. On Wednesdays, the place is closed. But not for us! Chiara has invited us over to step into her kitchen, where she will share her techniques for preparing some of her best-known dishes. Afterward, we’ll sit at the family table for dinner.

Tuscan Countryside

We will spend the day exploring some of our favorite spots in the Tuscan countryside

Villa Medici at Poggio a Caiano

This 15th-century Medici villa is one of several scattered across the Tuscan countryside and is now a UNESCO-protected site. Our visit will take us through its sumptuously frescoed rooms and an extraordinary collection of still-life paintings, offering a glimpse into the Medici’s fascination with collecting and displaying exotic foods. From there, we’ll step into the gardens, wandering through manicured box hedges to explore the 16th-century stables and 18th-century greenhouses, where rare citrus fruits are still cultivated today.

Archaeological Museum

We then take a short drive to the Museo Etrusco di Artimino for a private guided tour. This small but extraordinary museum showcases stunning Etruscan metalwork and artifacts, offering a glimpse into Tuscany’s ancient past.

Farmhouse Cooking

To truly understand the culture of Tuscan food, one must explore its roots in cucina povera—a tradition of “poverty cooking” that turns humble, local ingredients into masterpieces. There’s no better place to experience this than at the historic countryside restaurant Da Delfina. More famous chefs than you know (including Rolando) count Carlo, the owner, as one of their fundamental inspirations in the kitchen. Here, we’ll meet Carlo and his nephew, who run the kitchen. They’ll share stories of dishes like ribollita, and we’ll watch them prepare meats for lunch on the massive girarrosto, a wood-fueled spit. Together, we’ll learn how simple ingredients—beans, wild greens, and old bread—remain central to Tuscan cuisine.

Evening

After lunch, we’ll head back to Florence, where the rest of the evening is yours to enjoy.

Santa Croce

When Elizabeth lived in Florence in the 1980s, her apartment was in the charming Santa Croce neighborhood. Today, we’ll explore some of her favorite hidden gems that most visitors miss.

• Ceramics: Sbigoli
  This family-run workshop sparked Elizabeth’s love of majolica. It’s one of the last ceramic studios in Florence that still produces its wares on-site. (Yes, they ship!)
• Coffee: Cosi
  This coffee and pastry shop is so ordinary that most tourists just pass it by. Locals know better. This is where Elizabeth stopped by for coffee every morning on her way to the Medici archives. It’s a miracle it still survives, and we’ll stop by for a quick mid-morning macchiato.
• Mercato Sant’Ambrogio
  We will walk through the stalls of one of the most vibrant markets in Florence, looking at the seasonal produce and butchers’ stands. You’ll have a chance to do some shopping for edible souvenirs.
  
• Bartolini 
  This is one of our all time favorite kitchen stores and where all Florentines go for everything they need.

Aperitivo

We’ll conclude our morning with a glass of wine and light bites at Alessi, Rolando’s favorite wine bar.

Afternoon

The afternoon is yours to enjoy at your own pace. Have lunch on your own, catch up on shopping, or visit museums. If you’d like, we can connect you with a private guide for personalized exploration.

Dinner

This evening, we’ve been invited to a truly special event. Princess Sabina Corsini will host us in the private quarters of the magnificent Palazzo Corsini, a 17th-century masterpiece rarely open to the public. Our evening begins with a private tour of the palace, including its breathtaking secret gardens. We’ll then gather for our final meal together in the family’s dining room, an intimate and unforgettable experience offering a rare glimpse into Florence’s noble history.

Check-out

Our tour officially comes to an end as you check out of the Helvetia & Bristol.