Dreaming of making authentic Italian pizza in the heart of Tuscany? Florence is famous for its Renaissance art, stunning architecture, and incredible food – but did you know you can join a hands-on pizza cookery class in Florence that’s fun, affordable, and set in a beautiful Tuscan villa?
In this guide, I’ll share how we combined Pisa and Florence for a budget-friendly weekend, our favourite highlights, and why this pizza-making experience was the best part of our trip.
Contents
- Introduction
- Why We Chose Italy?
- Visiting Florence on a Budget
- Booking Our Pizza Making Class in Tuscany
- Where We Stayed: Grand Hotel Duomo, Pisa
- Exploring Pisa
- Climbing the Leaning Tower of Pisa
- A Day in Florence
- Florence Opera House
- Our Pizza Cookery Class in Tuscany
- Overall Thoughts
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This post is part of my complete Northern Italy Travel Guide, where I share itineraries, tips and DIY planning advice for visiting Northern Italy.
Introduction
Joining in with a pizza cookery class in Florence is so much fun and not as expensive as you might think.
We booked this weekend away because my husband David adores pizza! He loves making it and eating it. He enjoys eating pizza so much that if we go to a restaurant and it’s on the menu – you can guarantee he’ll order it.
So I thought, what better present for a pizza lover than a cookery lesson on how to make an authentic Italian pizza?
Why We Chose Italy?
When I was searching for a pizza-making class closer to home, I discovered there weren’t any in our area – only expensive options in London.
Between pricey hotels and costly classes, the total spend wasn’t far off a trip to Italy itself. That’s when I thought, why not do the real thing in Florence, the heart of Tuscany?
Visiting Florence on a Budget
Florence is one of Italy’s most popular destinations, but flights and hotels can be pricey. Pisa, however, is just an hour away by train and much more affordable.
- ✈️ Flights: Return flights to Pisa with EasyJet can be as little as £100 per person in October.
- 🏩 Accommodation: Hotels in Pisa start around £240 for 3 nights, compared to £300+ in Florence.
- 🚆 Transport: Frequent trains connect Pisa and Florence in just 1 hour.
We based ourselves in Pisa, which gave us both value for money and the chance to explore another beautiful Italian city.
🌟 Tip: Pisa is an ideal budget base if you want to experience Florence without the higher price tag.
Booking Our Pizza Making Class in Tuscany
We booked a pizza and gelato cookery class with Walk About Tours (around €120 per person). The experience included:
- Transfers from Florence to a Tuscan villa
- Hands-on lessons with professional chefs
- All ingredients and recipes to take home
- A sit-down meal with Chianti wine
👉 See our Florence Pizza-Making Class on GetYourGuide
Where We Stayed: Grand Hotel Duomo, Pisa
Our hotel, the Grand Hotel Duomo Pisa, was full of old-world charm.
When we arrived, I couldn’t believe our luck – the view of the Leaning Tower from our window was simply majestic.
The Grand Hotel Duomo is old fashioned in many ways but has a classic charm about it, which we loved. I particularly liked the terrace bar overlooking the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Sitting there with an aperitivo as the sun set felt magical.
👉 See Availability for Grand Hotel Duomo Pisa.
Exploring Pisa
Pisa is a large city with a huge student population. Most people only visit for a day to see the Tower of Pisa but we thought it was a lovely city and a great base to visit Florence.
The train from Pisa to Florence only takes 1 hour and runs frequently all day till late at night.
Climbing the Leaning Tower of Pisa
We booked a guided Pisa walking tour that included climbing the Leaning Tower and visiting the Cathedral.
The tower leans because it was built on soft ground and is therefore unstable. Every now and then it needs restoration work to stabilise it again.
There are 294 steps to climb and it feels like your walking in a fairground ‘crazy house’ attraction. It made me feel slightly queasy.
At the top there is a fantastic view of Pisa, where you can take some great photographs.
🌟 Tip: At night it is particularly picturesque and there is no one else around.
A Day in Florence
The city of Florence is the capital city of the Tuscan region. It is home to beautiful Renaissance art and architecture.
There are many wonderful sights to visit including the Cathedral Duomo and the Ponte Vecchio bridge that spans over the Arno River.
Florence is rich in culture, history and cuisine and is compact enough to explore by foot.
We sat in one of the many restaurants in Piazza della Signoria for coffee. Bought an extremely expensive but delicious gelato cone on the Pont Vecchio bridge and indulged in delicious food inside a delicatessen that was popular with locals.
Florence Opera House
In the evening, we visited the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Theatre to watch Carmen. The modern, contemporary opera house offered a completely different atmosphere to Venice, where we had seen opera before.
👉 Check the latest programme and tickets
Our Pizza Cookery Class in Tuscany
The highlight of our trip!
A minibus picked us up in Florence and whisked us to a Tuscan villa surrounded by rolling hills. The outdoor kitchen had granite counters and a wood-fired oven overlooking the countryside.
- 🍨Gelato first: flavours like pistachio and strawberry.
- 🍕 Pizza dough & sauce: Chef Luca (who was hilarious and full of energy) taught us traditional techniques.
- 🍽️ Dining: We ate our homemade pizzas with Chianti wine, followed by our gelato creations.
The afternoon started with collecting our ingredients from the kitchen garden.
Our first lesson was how to make authentic Italian gelato. We all made different flavours like pistachio and strawberry that we would eat later for our dessert.
We were then given some delicious appetisers and a glass of wine.
After the gelato lesson, the chefs taught to make pizza dough in the traditional way and how to make a fantastic tomato sauce.
We cooked the pizzas in the outdoor oven and sat at large tables overlooking the country side to eat. We ate our creations and washed it down with plenty of Chianti, which was all included in the price.
The lessons were brilliantly delivered, informative and fun. The staff and setting was fantastic.
The experience was equal parts fun and educational. At the end, we received all the recipes – which inspired me to buy an outdoor pizza oven and an ice cream maker for home!
Overall Thoughts
Pisa is the ideal base for visiting Florence and exploring Tuscany without the price tag that you pay in Florence, and October is a less busy time to visit.
Our pizza cookery class in Florence was the most amazing, fun day – one of the most memorable experiences I have ever had. I would definitely recommend this experience.
Great fun, value for money and immensely enjoyable. If you think you would like to partake in this experience, you can book a cookery lesson on the link below with WalkAbout Tours:
Need further inspiration for Italy Trips? See all my Italy Blogs Here!
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