Disclaimer: Please make sure you are up to date with the government’s latest foreign travel advice during the coronavirus before booking a holiday. It is also worth noting that, due to COVID-19, some attractions listed in this blog post may not be currently operating.

You can’t really call yourself a foodie if you don’t already know that Spain is tops for tapas or that Italy is perfect for pizza - but what about the very latest international eats that you need to know about for the new decade? The best tipple? The tucked away markets with the best ingredients if you’re self-catering on holiday?

Today we will be recommending the top destinations for foodies to explore and the top cuisine and restaurants in those countries. Hold onto your forks and let's tuck in to the best holidays for foodies in the 2020s!

Turkey (Bodrum)

A Turkey holiday will be filled with spice-laden bazaars and traditional durums, kebabs and dolmas, treats that can also be found on the high streets of Manchester, Liverpool and London. However, Turkey’s lesser known specialities are also well worth travelling for, such as shellfish and fresh fish, which is relatively unknown in the UK but absolutely devoured in Turkey. Additionally, the Kalburabastı dessert is one of the most famous sugar syrup desserts in Turkish cuisine. Those with a savoury tooth should also try the Turkish speciality tepsi mantısı.

Top Restaurants: Keci in Bodrum City is one of the best seafood restaurants in Turkey. You feel like you’re walking into the private kitchen of a three star Michelin chef. The ambience is cosy, the food is first rate and the setting, on one of Bodrum’s most beautiful streets, is out of this world. 

Best Tipple: Although the number one drink in Turkey, as at home, is beer followed by wine, it’s the local Raki that should be enjoyed on holiday.

Amazing Market: Yalıkavak Pazarı market, just outside the centre of Bodrum, is the place the locals go for the freshest produce.

Check out this blog post for Turkey’s latest coronavirus travel updates.

Italy – (Sicily)

If you’re considering a Sicily holiday then don’t forget the cannoli.

Whilst the traditional cannoli, arancini, caponata and thousand variations on pasta are all reason enough to explore this most sensuous of islands, it’s in Sicily that a new vanguard of famous chefs and top wine producers are revolutionising cuisine and exporting those flavours all over the world.

Sicily produces some of the freshest and most flavoursome fruit and veggies in the world and its with these ingredients that the new wave of top restaurants in the big cities are really pushing the envelope on quality. Outside of having some of the best street food in the world, which can be picked up for a handful of euros, there are now 14 Michelin-star restaurants in Sicily. 

Top Restaurants: Principe di Cerami in Taormina and Duomo in Ragusa are two of our favourite restaurants in Sicily.

Best Tipple: The world's finest limoncello comes from the world’s finest lemons in Sicily, but also check out Planeta, Donnafugata and Tasca d'Almerita, wineries that are revitalising indigenous grapes and producing some of the best wines on the planet.

Amazing Market: Borgo Vecchio in Palermo has one of the largest and most celebrated food markets in all of Italy.

Spain (Barcelona)

If you’re thinking of a Barcelona holiday as a foodie then you’re absolutely spoiled for choice. The Barcelona restaurant scene has come a long way in the last decade with many tourist paella and jamon y melon joints on the main run making way for vegan or fresh and traditional Catalan restaurants. However, some of the best traditional Catalan restaurants that have been going for decades are as popular as ever including old favourites like El Xampanyet, 7 Portes and Pla.

Barcelona, as the major port of the area, is also famous for fresh fish and the entire seafront offers fish restaurants wall to wall, from Barceloneta to Port Olimpic. Some of these restaurants are better than others so check Tripadvisor for the latest ratings.

Catalan dishes you need to try include calçots, escalivada, escudella i carn d’olla, pa amb tomàquet (which is served at basically every meal!) and mongetes amb botifarra.

Top Restaurants: We recommend a trip to El Nacional in the centre of the city. It has some of the best cava and jamon in town.

Best Tipple: Barcelona was undergoing a vermouth renaissance around a decade ago and there are still some traditional vermouth bars worth a visit. We still say that nothing beats an evening at El Xampanyet with cava and tapas.

Amazing Market: For all the same flavours and smells as La Boqueria but without the tourists, hit the Santa Caterina Market in El Born.

Check out this blog post for Spain’s latest coronavirus travel updates.