rental - Gluten-Free Globetrotter

Did you ever dream of eating decadent gluten-free pastries in France? How about picturing yourself skiing and swishing your way through the French Alps? Would you go on a vacation where you can do both? It’s not a dream, it’s a reality this coming January and April.

While in France last month, I met Lisa Rumsey, a doctor turned cooking teacher living just outside of Paris. After 5 years in Singapore, Lisa has returned France and blogging (in English) at BienCuitGF and teaching gluten-free baking and cooking classes out of her home.

In January and April 2016, Lisa is hosting an amazing baking experience in the French Alps. Half the day will be spent baking while the other half of the day will be spent exploring the area. Depending on the season there might be snow-shoe or hiking, cycling, market visit, wine and cheese tasting or foraging. While in the kitchen, guests will make some Alpine specialities for dinner along with homemade bread and French desserts. Lunch and afternoon tea will also be part of the baking sessions. All classes will be in English!

These “residential classes” are being held at Chalet Savoie Faire, a “hidden treasure in the heart of the French Alps.” This barn turned luxury bed and breakfast will be your home for the week of gluten-free baking and cooking. You are in great hands with Lisa in the kitchen and hostess/chef Nikki by her side. This getaway sounds truly amazing and I am trying figure out if I can afford another trip to France!

My birthday is in April so if anyone wants to send me as a present, I will not say NO. 🙂

For full details, please visit Lisa’s website and tell her I sent you!

January 8-13, 2016 or April 24-29, 2016
Gluten-Free Cookery Class and Stay in the French Alps
Chalet Savoie Faire

Itinerary includes: French-themed gluten free baking for 4 half days along with a market visit, Alpine foraging, snow shoeing or skiing if there’s snow, or hiking or biking (or reading and snoozing!) and wine and cheese tasting.

All the food provided is gluten free – some of it made by us during class! There will be three delicious meals a day, including a 3 course dinner with wine, plus a gluten free afternoon teatime, so pack those walking boots!

The fee for the course is 1450 euros (approximately $1600 USD) per person and does not include airfare. The course requires a minimum of 4 people to run and numbers are limited to maximum of 8. The dates are somewhat flexible, so if you have other dates that are of interest, please let Lisa know, especially if you have a group of friends you would like to bring along!

Portland

Gluten-Free Globetrotting Your Way Through Portland with Bikabout

April 9, 2015April 8, 2015 Erin Smith

All of my gluten-free fueled business trips to Portland, Oregon in 2012-14 paid off!

I recently curated a delicious itinerary for Bikabout.com with gluten-free destinations in Portland. Bikabout is a really cool website that puts together bicycle routes in cities across the country. The website provides self-guided bike tours, a lodging directory, a bike rental directory, and transportation tips for your travel.

I am an avid bike rider (and an avid gluten-free eater), so I loved Bikabout from the minute I connected with founder Megan Ramey, at the New York Times Travel Show. She heard me shout-out that I was a gluten-free travel blogger during an industry session and the collaboration began! Megan is also gluten-free and loved sharing niche travel ideas. Not to mention she was walking around the expo with the cutest portable bike ever!

When I wasn’t working in Portland, I was eating as you know from all of my posts about gluten-free food! When I wasn’t working or eating, I was riding a rented bicycle. The city is such a bike-friendly city and I wanted to take advantage of my downtime by exploring! I loved biking up and down the Willamette Riverfront, seeing the city from a different point of view. I cannot recommend enough hopping on a bike when you go to Portland. It’s so much fun and a great way to get around.

I put together this “Gluten-Free Globetrotting Your Way Through Portland” self-guided itinerary for Bikabout. The Bikabout tour includes where to rent a bicycle, where to eat gluten-free pizza, cupcakes, and bread, where to enjoy nature and so much more. Putting this together made me so nostalgic for Portland. As if 12 work trips in less than 2 years wasn’t enough, I am ready to go back for more!

Download my Bikabout itinerary, rent a bike, and start eating your way through the gluten-free friendly city of Portland! Burn those calories between gluten-free bites.

Europe, Italy

Gluten-Free Apartment in Venice

January 26, 2012 Erin Smith

Grand Canal, Venice — One of my favorite photos I took in Venice

I had an amazing trip to Italy in October 2009. My mom and I spent 10 busy days in Rome, Florence, and Venice. Although I loved Rome the best, Venice is one of those magical places that you just have to see for yourself. The canals, the gondolas, the dead-end alleyways. There is just something so mysterious about Venice. Although I ate very well in Rome and Florence, I couldn’t find as many gluten-free options in Venice. I was only there for about 2 days, so I didn’t go hungry and I brought treats with me from the other cities.

Just last week, a very interesting email came to me from a woman named Veronica in Italy. She has a 13-year-old daughter with Celiac Disease so Veronica understands the sometimes daunting task of traveling while maintaining a gluten-free diet. Veronica is the caretaker of an apartment with a gluten-free, non-contaminated kitchen in Lido, a short vaparetto ride away from Venice. The apartment is available for short-term rental and would be the perfect base for your Venetian vacation.

Here’s some additional information about the apartment in Lido from Veronica:

This apartment is furnished with elegance, praticality and taste. In all its details, note the constant attention of the owner had to create a welcoming and equipped with all amenities to make guests feel at home.

The apartment is on first floor of a typical 1900 villa. The apartment can accommodate up to 4 people and has a living room with small kitchen where you can find a comfortable sofa into a bed, a matrimonial bedroom, and a bathroom. This apartment is ideal for a family who want to spend a vacation in Venice or a group of friends who want to spend a weekend of fun at the beach.

It has: air-conditioning, heating, television , microwave, washing-machine, iron and hairdryer.

This apartment is located in the heart of Lido, 100 meters by foot from the vaporetto that take you to Venice and to the beautiful Piazza San Marco.

In Venice, there is one one restaurant especially gluten-free. Then you can eat at Hard Rock cafe and in any places you can have salad, meat, fish. On the Lido which is an isle in front of Venice, there is a fish restaurant where if you advise inn time they can make you pasta, risotto and also pizza.

The rates are all inclusive from 120 to 200 euro per day per apartment.

Now, since I have not been to this apartment I cannot vouch for it myself but I thought this would be an interesting option to explore when traveling to Italy. If you end up inquiring and traveling to this apartment in Lido , I would love your feedback!

For more information about this gluten-free apartment in Lido, Venice, Italy please contact Veronica directly at fabrisveronica@yahoo.it