The food culture and food & wine are now important factors in the expectations and motivations of travelers; they are a meeting point between the authenticity of a territory and the tourist need for genuine, participatory and strictly connected to local identity products. Food and wine are able to promote a destination and the related tourist practices have an important impact on the economy, employment and local heritage, also defining a specific market.

Data confirm that the new trends in tourism do not prescind from food & wine and tourism products that enhance authentic experiences, creative itineraries, sustainability. Food and wine is an opportunity to stimulate and diversify tourism, promoting local economic development, involving different business sectors and including new approaches.

The central theme of the first volume is the tourism product: what is the tourist looking for? What characteristics must have an attractive offer? How to organize the destination? In Italy, where are we? How are structured the products and the offer in our country? What are the best Italian and foreign practices? This volume aims to answer these questions and propose a recipe for development of our country, combining food and wine, tourism and art can find new competitive chances.

The second volume was made with the contribution of many international experts and dedicated to successful case histories. Portugal, Ireland and Greece but also Tuscany and Sicily, mountain resorts or archaeological sites: there are many examples of how food and wine tourism can contribute to the development of a destination.