The new European vacation? Travelers are returning for trips that are all about food and wine

Colin and Jenoa Matthes were drawn to the food scene in places like France and Italy when they left their home state of Utah for a world tour in 2019.

We loved the food in all of the countries and how different it was. In the U.S., we get a lot of cuisines from around the world, according to Colin Matthes.

Stay Awhile is a tour company set up by a couple last year.

The first destination for Stay Awhile was Bologna, Italy, where guests took part in a month-long food tasting and remote-working trip, trying the local mortadella sausage, almond and Pistachio Granitas, and eating authentic tagliatelle al ragu.

Next up for Stay Awhile is a 10-day French pastry-making trip to Paris in June of 2023, where guests will learn to make desserts and baked goods ranging from gateau opera, a sponge with coffee and chocolate filling, to the classic croissants.

The Place Des Vosges, a square in the Marais district of Paris. Guests taking part in Stay Awhile’s French baking course visit the area to sample gourmet delicacies.

Matthes said it can be difficult to find authentic recipes to bake pastries at home in Paris. He told CNBC that he doesn't think he's getting a true French eclair recipe.

Stay Awhile hired a chef who trained at the prestigious Le Cordon Bleu cooking school. The city's 11th arrondissement is known for its restaurants, bars and opera house.

Along with learning to make French classics, the itinerary includes a wine tasting in the Champagne region as well as a guided tour of Parisian district Le Marais to try delicacies such as cheese, cured meat and chocolates.

Fresh loaves of bread at one of Poilane’s bakeries in Paris. The company said bakers undergo nine months of training to learn the trade.

There is a lot of time for people to visit the city. Matthes said that the family-run bakery Poilane was the best in all of Paris.

The cost for Stay Awhile's Parisian baking tour is $5,400. There are plans for an Italian cooking course at a villa in Tuscany and a gourmet gastronomy experience in Spain.

Matthes said the main goal was for people to have in-depth experiences with food and cuisine.

One of the most popular places for food in Spain is San Sebastian. The city is one of the highlights for SmoothRed. In order to experience the cuisine of San Sebastian and the vineyards of Rioja, the sales director recommends that you fly to Bilbao.

The Bilbao- San Sebastian-triangle with Rioja is very popular. It isn't just doing a wine tour, it's a gourmet retreat.

San Sebastian, in northern Spain, is known for its gourmet food scene.

A four-day trip might include two nights at Hotel Marques de Riscal, a luxury spa hotel in Rioja, with an eight-course meal at the restaurant, followed by a night at the five-star hotel in San Sebastian. The prices include transfers but not flights.

Borda Berri and Mendaur Berria are small bars located in San Sebastian. He suggested a fish restaurant about a half hour west of San Sebastian. It was one of the world's 50 best restaurants in the year 2021.

There is increasing interest in food-focused trips. Some of the increase in sales is due to delayed bookings from 2020 Burgundy and Champagne are popular in France.

Pintxos, a traditional small-plate dish, in San Sebastian, Spain.

Guests are staying longer. Travelers can take a boat trip to an oyster farm on a tour of the French region. They could add an e-bike tour of a vineyard in Tuscany.

Florence and Siena are both close to Borgo San Vincenzo, a new boutique hotel named after the patron saint of winemaking.

Travelers are encouraged to get off the beaten track and experience the region in a more authentic way through olive oil tastings from small producers to a cheesemaking demonstration at a nearby farm.

Boutique hotel Borgo San Vincenzo, in Tuscany, is named after the patron saint of winemaking, Saint Vincent.

An e-bike tour to taste Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, a local wine, was a hit with guests this year, according to a hotel representative.

Borgo San Vincenzo will offer winemaker dinners with a variety of producers. One of the dinners will feature dishes created by the hotel's head chef, which will be matched with wine produced by his brother.

The Flying Monk Bar at the Borgo San Vincenzo hotel in Tuscany serves classic Italian cocktails, such as Aperol or prosecco spritz.

A pumpkin, leek and almond lasagna with Icario Trebbiano 2021, a white wine, or spicy shrimp with pioppini mushrooms are examples of possible combinations.

Local ingredients are at the center of the cooking school at Daylesford, an organic farm and upscale estate in the Cotswolds, a picturesque region famous for its rolling countryside and villages with honey colored stone buildings.

Guests can learn about the region via its produce by taking half and full day classes at the school.

A chef prepares the table at the Daylesford cooking school in the U.K.’s Cotswolds region.

Daylesford owns cottages and a pub in Kingham, where participants can either stay in one of the cottages or the pub.

There is a farm shop, garden and antiques center, wine store and restaurants in Daylesford.

Despite its expansion over the past two decades, Daylesford is still an organic farm according to chef James Devonshire.

He told CNBC that it either rears or grows a lot of different ingredients. Travelers can find heritage tomatoes grown in the garden or double Gloucester cheese at its creamery.

The garden is not open to the public because they use as much as possible from the garden.

A room at Fowler’s House, a rental cottage in the village of Kingham, part of the Daylesford estate in the U.K.’s Cotswolds region.

People pick produce for their class from the garden, with recent recipes including an onion bhaji with charred cauliflower and a fillet of beef with potatoes.

Some of the most popular classes are canape-making, a seasonal dinner party course and a summer barbecue and firepit class.

The cookery school is quieter than Daylesford's shops and restaurants would suggest.

He said it was like a little place of refuge.