Traveler Reviews
Discover why our past travelers rave about their Poland Culinary Vacations. From the amazing cuisine to the cultural experiences, explore why our tours stands out among others. Plan your culinary adventure today and get ready for a truly unique experience!
We had the pleasure of meeting some truly remarkable people on our culinary vacations in Poland. They shared with us some truly special memories and insights that inspired us during our journey. Here are some of our favorites:
“I wanted to thank you for arranging and conducting such a wonderful Poland Culinary Vacation for our family last month. Cassie and I, Heather and Dave, and our grandsons Justin and Ryan consider this one of the best, if not the best, family vacations we enjoyed. The cooking experiences were enlightening, well-organized and extremely enjoyable. It was obvious that the village ladies and the Chef were happy to pass on their skills and recipes and treated us like VIPs. I didn’t expect such a robust cultural experience in addition to the culinary one, but Gosia did a fantastic job educating us in the Polish culture and had an encyclopedic knowledge of everywhere we visited and everything we saw. Her enthusiasm was contagious and her energy astounding. Her open warmth and friendliness made us feel like personal guests. Having you accompany us on the tour was a real plus. Your ability to relate to both worlds added so much to the experience. The small party size (10 persons) meant no one got lost and having three bilingual guides (you, Gosia and Voytek) meant we were never at a loss for translation. Voytek was an excellent driver and his warm personality made him a friendly and reassuring presence. We would be more than happy to serve as references to persons considering your tours in the future, and I hope we get the chance to tour together again.” – David & Cassie, Y. Oak Ridge, TN
“Yes, it was a privilege to travel with you in your home country and see the beautiful countryside of Poland and experience the hospitality of the Polish people while cooking, eating and laughing together! Connecting with our heritage including the people, culture and of course the food has significant meaning to who we are today! – Milbert, P. Indianapolis, IN
“After just returning from your wonderful “The Flowers of Lower Silesia and Wroclaw” culinary tour, I would like to offer my thoughts as a NON-culinary person (that means my wife doesn’t even allow me in the kitchen). I really didn’t want to go on this trip for that reason and I thought for sure it would be pretty boring & perhaps embarrassing if I had to do anything. However to my colossal surprise it turned out to be a very stupendous experience. I thoroughly enjoyed everything including the cooking classes. You did such a amazing job of blending trips to historical sites, exposing us to local customs, visiting production facilities of interest, and providing exposure to the Polish customs and heritage that was embodied in the cooking classes. I actually enjoyed learning about the cooking traditions. Joan & I would like to thank you & Paulina so very much for such a great insight to Poland. Poland will be on the top of my list of places to go again” – Joan & Bill T., Columbia, SC
“We all really enjoyed our visit to Poland and want to thank you and Paulina for all you did to make it an enriching experience. My Dad was still talking about how much he enjoyed the culinary trip and how surprised he was to be a guy and have that much fun on what he thought would be a vacation just for the ladies. He’s ready to go again! We loved Poland and hope to be back to explore other areas. Diana and Eric already made the salmon and spinach pierogi on Sunday! We are looking forward to getting the other recipes – we’ll all be doing Polish dinner parties in the upcoming months” – Susan G., Hermitage, TN
“It was a wonderful trip and learning and experiencing Poland was the best. Your company and with Ala was so well organized and there was not a single “glitch”. My pictures were about the same as your site so I won’t send any and it is so much fun to review them – WHAT MEMORIES I HAVE! – THANK YOU THANK YOU – Carol M., Saint Louis, MO
“Thank you for an amazing experience! Once in a lifetime” – Adrienne C., Nashville, TN
“This trip far exceeded my expectations of Poland. Thank you for all your hard work!” – Stefanie B., Omaha, NE
“Thank you for a wonderful cooking experience. You are a positive force for your beautiful Polish country.” – Tracy, H., Collegeville, PA
“I had the best time thanks to you. Enjoyed every minute. Thank you.” – Charlene B., Blair, NE
“Thank you for re-acquainting me with my heritage! Your culinary tour this September was particularly meaningful to me and your detailed planning made it wonderful to be there and experience the food, the country and the people.Everyone associated with the tour was knowledgeable, friendly, and great traveling company. You thought of everything!I had a wonderful time. Look for me, and additional members of my family, to be booking another tour.” – Joanne H., Myrtle Beach, SC
“Poland Culinary Vacations presented a fabulous culinary program, an excellent tour of Malopolska (Lesser Poland) and an overall fun time. I rate this culinary vacation a definite 10.” – Christine B., Atkinson, NH
“What an amazing experience, to walk in the country of your ancestors, meet the people and feast on the food you love! Poland Culinary Vacations far exceeded my expectations in their care, knowledge and love of “foodies”! Each guided day brought a new adventure, breaking bread with local village ladies sharing their knowledge of cooking with us, visiting historical sites, rafting and the biggest flea-clothing-shopping market anyone has ever experienced. Carefully selected restaurants highlighting local cuisine ended our evenings. Each succulent mouthful was wonderful! Top this all off, by staying in a Palace with a spa in Zakopane, was just out of this world. Would I recommend Poland Culinary Vacations…Absolutely! Would I vacation again with them…Absolutely! Would I go back to Poland…Absolutely!” – Cathy M., Barrie, ON, Canada
“Krakow, Zakopane and the surrounding areas are such beautiful and interesting places to see and get to know and don’t think that I will ever tire of visiting the Lesser Poland region. What really made this holiday such a memorable one was the cooking sessions with village ladies from the villages in the Podhale area. Allowing us to see them prepare never ending array of dishes, explaining about ingredients and various ways of preparation (inevitably each of them had their own method) was just a start. Their hospitality I could easily say was unmatched with homemade cakes and “digestives”, as they described their hand finished liqueurs and wines they welcomed us with, followed by all the dishes we were shown how to make during the course of the morning. The inevitable singing and joking would ensue and by the time we were leaving we were the best of friends. The whole experience would be very hard to match and definitely never to be forgotten.” – Maria F., Caversfield, United Kingdom
“We’d like to thank Sarna Rose, our fabulous host, for the great Culinary Vacation. It exceeded all expectations. The small group made it possible to be very flexible, especially with such an accommodating driver and wonderful guide. We were privileged to cook in a restaurant, a community center, the Culinary Institute in Krakow and in a private home where the local village ladies patiently shared their knowledge of cooking and culture with us. Moments to treasure! We relished the marvelous cuisine in a variety of restaurants and the sightseeing tours were incredibly interesting and varied. We would recommend it to any age of either sex.” – Ed & Terri H., Victoria, B.C., Canada
“I can’t speak highly enough about my tour to Krakow and Zakopane with Poland Culinary Vacations. It was one of the best trips I’ve ever taken! Malgorzata ‘Sarna’ Rose runs a first-class operation. I am not a fan of large tour groups so this tour with its small number of participants and its flexibility really appealed to me. Our time was divided between cooking, sightseeing and, of course, lots of good eating. Because I’m of Polish descent the tour took me back to my “roots”. The hotels and restaurants chosen for us were excellent. My fondest memories are of the cooking sessions with village women in their kitchens. They were so welcoming and eager to share their recipes with us. After enjoying the lunch we had prepared together we were treated to singing by the women.” – Nancy J., Springfield, VA
“Want to say it has been a wonderful trip! I especially enjoyed the countryside, towns and shopping was good, too.” – Kris A., Great Falls, MT
“If I had to pick a highlight I couldn’t, I’d pick three. The three mornings we spent cooking with the country housewives were great. From the food to the nalewki it was great. There was plenty of wonderful food – especially borscht and croquettes. But, the highlight was being in those kitchens, working as a group, then sitting down to a great lunch you had a hand in making. If you’re lucky there will be singing – and you will probably be lucky.” – Jim B., Minneapolis, MN
“I recently spent a wonderful week in Lower Silesia, Poland, participating in a culinary tour. Our accommodations were great staying part of the time in a 16th century castle! How often can you say that, lol. It was a beautiful place to stay in the countryside of Poland. We spent part of our time in the country visiting some of the villages and participating in the hands on cooking with the village ladies. These wonderful women cooked and sang for us sharing their cooking knowledge. We made pierogi, golabki, and red beetroot borscht among the many dishes they shared with us. Our week was busy with touring as well as cooking. We got to experience the Polish culture and history of the area. We ate in fine restaurants, eating the tasty Polish cuisine. Being third generation Polish I found it a very emotional trip. My Grandmother had grown up near the area I was touring and I felt a part of the country. My thanks goes out to all who accommodated us, especially Sarna, the President of the Poland Culinary Vacations, Inc.” – Barbara M., Great Falls, MT
