A Different Way to Experience Piedmont: Music, Food, Culture and Time to Enjoy It

Enough Time to Actually Experience It

When we designed this Piedmont journey, we knew we did not want to fill every hour.

It is a three- or four-day extension before or after a larger trip, so the pace can be relaxed. There are gastronomic experiences, two private concerts and a visit to Stupinigi, but there is also time when nothing is expected of you. That is deliberate.

When there is space to discover something for yourself, wander around, have a coffee or simply rest, you have time to process what you have experienced. The brain needs that downtime. If every hour is occupied, even wonderful experiences can start to blur together. We want the days to have enough structure to make them special without making them exhausting.

Travel Less, Experience More

For us, there is an important distinction between travelling and experiencing. Travel involves logistics. You have to get from one place to another, and some of that is unavoidable. But we try to keep the time spent on the road as short as possible because we would rather spend that energy experiencing Piedmont. That also means leaving room between the major moments.

You do not need to spend every day with the rest of the group or with your hosts. Part of the pleasure of a small private journey is being able to step away for a while and follow your own interests. Someone may want to explore, someone else may prefer to rest. That balance is one reason we have kept the journey relatively short. You can experience something remarkably special together, then continue through Italy or Europe on your own afterwards.

Two People, Many Perspectives

One of the nicest things about travelling in a small group is that everyone brings a different way of looking at the world. When Marisa and I visit museums together, I enjoy hearing her perspective because she notices things differently from me. It opens another way of seeing the same place. I have experienced the same thing with music. Even when someone is not a musician, I value hearing what they think about my playing. It is their experience of the music, and that can teach me something.

The same thing happens around a table. Conversations naturally turn towards the region, the food, the wine and what people have seen during the day. The group brings its own experiences into the journey. Marisa and I also bring very different backgrounds. She has worked with in the travel industry and with Italy for many years and lived in Florence during her studies. Her experience in travel and hospitality makes hosting natural for her. I spent five years living in Piedmont, studying, performing, cooking, eating and drinking wine with musicians and local people. When I need to prepare for a concert, Marisa can take care of the group. When we are together, our experience overlaps.

The Concert Is Part of the Evening

The concerts are where my role becomes most visible. I can talk about the five years I spent in Italy and about the composers whose music we are hearing. We can discuss the programme, Italian musical traditions and the influences behind the pieces. I can also talk about some of the experiences that have shaped my connection with the region, from cooking with Italian grandmothers to sharing old Barolos with extraordinary musicians. The music is important, but it is not isolated from everything else happening around it.

That is really what we want from these journeys. Not a schedule where one experience finishes and the next begins, but enough space for the experiences to stay with you. We both have a great love for Italy and the Mediterranean, and we have the same wish for this journey. We want people to leave thinking, my gosh, that was mind-opening. Something they will remember not because we managed to fit more into four days, but because we gave the important things enough time.

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See what makes this journey different

• Piedmont, Italy: A DeSalvio Private Journey Through Music, Art, Wine and Savoy History
• Why I Want to Bring You to Piedmont
• Why Travel Through Piedmont Slowly? Art, Music and the Pleasure of Staying Longer

Explore the experiences that shape the journey

• Piedmont Through Music: Experiencing Private Piano Concerts in Historic Italy
• The Art of Piedmont: Museums, Palaces and Hidden Collections
• The Langhe: Wine, Truffles and the Landscape of Piedmont

Discover the places behind the experience

• Turin and the House of Savoy: Experiencing the Royal Side of Piedmont
• Pinerolo: The city that me fall in love with Piedmont

See the complete private journey

• Private DeSalvio Travel Piedmont Italy Journey with Music, Wine and Cultural Experiences

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Experience Piedmont With Us

We created this journey for people who love Italy and want to experience more than its famous names. Food, wine, music, history and culture all have their place, but so does time to stop. Piedmont works particularly well for that balance. We keep the group small, the logistics simple and the experiences personal, with Robert and Marisa present throughout to share their own knowledge of the region.

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Book your call here.

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Robert Poortinga  
Travel Booking Assistant  
River cruise & Europe destination expert  
Culinary and art travel specialist

Concert Pianist

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