It is wonderful if someone can travel to enjoy beautiful landscapes andlearn to prepare the traditional dishes of the destination countries.That explains why “travelling and learning to cook” tours now attract alot of travellers.

Vietnamese traditional culture and culinary art wonderful.

Iftaking tours by Fiditour, one would be able learn how to cook someVietnamese traditional dishes, go to the market himself to feel theatmosphere of Vietnamese traditional markets, and talk with localsellers to learn about the contents of the dishes.

The lesson on cooking last about two hours and is given by restaurantcooks in English. Travellers would feel excited when they can enjoy thedishes they prepare themselves with the guide of cooks.

Fiditour has been providing the tours that associate travelling andcooking for the last three years. Travellers would be able to learn tocook in either Hoi An ancient town, or Hue ancient citadel. Especially,it is also providing the tours that teach cooking to travellers inCambodia.

Pham Phuc Loi, Deputy Director of Hanh Huong Viet travel firm, saidthat in the past, travel firms mostly targeted foreign tourists whenproviding the tours. However, the demand for these tours from domestictravellers has increased. Therefore, Hanh Huong Viet is consideringproviding the services in HCM City to serve both domestic and foreigntravellers.

In late July 2011, Hanh Huong Viet would launch the program “Zen andthe culinary art” for both domestic and foreign travellers at differentages. In fact, these are not really tours in the true sense of the word,because the courses will be organised in some places which havesuitable space in HCM City, such as tourism sites or Long Thuan Garden.

According to Loi, women sometimes feel tired and boring to preparemeals for family. Therefore, the tour that guides the sitting inreligious meditation and the art of cooking dishes would help womenrelax and entertain themselves.

Viet Premier Tours is now providing the 8-day tour where travellers’demand for discovering the special characteristics of Vietnamese cuisinecan be satisfied. Travellers would be taught the most special dishes ofthe north, central and south regions. Representative from the companysaid 60 percent of travellers who book this tour are foreigners.

A tour provided by Viet Premier Tours costs VND24-35 million (USD1,161-1,693) per traveller.

Nguyen Duy Hieu, Marketing Director of Viet Premier Tours, said thattravellers like the tours which allow them to learn more abouttraditional culture. “The access to the Vietnamese culinary culture hasencouraged more and more tourists to Vietnam,” he said.

Anna J. Campbell, a Canadian traveller is proud that she has learnedhow to cook a lot of Vietnamese dishes, saying that she will introducethe dishes to her Canadian friends. “I am really surprised about the wayof doing cakes and about Vietnamese culture,” she said.

Meanwhile, Lan, a Viet Kieu (overseas Vietnamese, who settle inforeign countries), said that she feels proud of the Vietnamese cultureand culinary art. “I will teach my children how to cook Vietnamesedishes, so that they never forget about their origin,” she said.

Farms in resorts

Gathering in a simple space and sitting on small wooden chairs, themembers of Marie-Elise’s family from France, enjoyed banh xeo withseafood (Vietnamese crepe). While eating banh xeo, the six year old boykept watching how his mother made the banh xeo.

The scene was seen at “Six Senses” on Con Dao Island.

Marie said she feels satisfactory about the lessons of cooking. Shehas learned how to cook some new dishes, at VND1.7 million (USD82.24).

There is a large garden at Six Senses Ninh Van in Nha Trang city,where a lot of Vietnamese vegetables and fruits are grown. The gardennot only provides materials for the resort, but also serves as thedestination for the travellers who want to learn to cook in the openspace. A training course, where travellers can learn to cook some basicVietnamese dishes, costs VND4 million (USD193.5).

The five star Ana Mandara Da Lat resort also has a vegetable gardenin its campus. Lam Minh Thu, a manager, said that the garden providesclean food and serves the travellers who want to learn about Vietnamesecuisine.