Try Something New- Taste the Difference on a Luxury Cooking Vacation

Cooking has never been my forte. To be honest I'm about as non-domestic as they come. I can just about make a stir-fry (throw stuff in a pan and fry, how hard can it be?) and with a bit of help I can maybe make a simple pasta dish but anything else is beyond me. I have often thought of taking cooking classes but always seem to have something else to do but if those classes were in say the South of France for instance then I may well be tempted.

Cooking holidays are fast becoming the trendiest holiday around. Celebrity chefs like Nigella Lawson and Jamie Oliver have made cooking cool and where better to do it than at some exotic location with fabulous surroundings.

Cooking holidays are offered at various locations including France, Italy and Spain. The accommodation on the holidays is always something special. Guests stay at chateaux, hotels, farmhouses, restaurants and beachside villas.

Talented chefs teach the classes and groups are kept small so learners can get all the help they need.

But make no mistake, cooking holidays are not confined to the kitchen. Days are varied and include tours of local wineries, excursions to historic towns to learn more about local cuisine ingredients and trips to gorgeously quaint markets where you can pick up fresh produce.

And when cooking is not on the agenda you get to explore your surroundings and enjoy everything you normally would on a holiday; night outs, restaurants, visiting cultural sites.

If you're as awful in the kitchen as me and you fancy improving your culinary skills in an exotic location then a cooking holiday might be just what you're looking for.