Booking choice: The private food and wine walk, from $129 per person. Check dates Compare the options below
The tours compared here are sold on GetYourGuide or Viator, and every one cancels free up to 24 hours before. Ratings and review counts come from each platform, and they vary a lot: the classic dairy-and-ham tour has close to a thousand reviews, the producer days only a handful.
Below: how the tours compare on price and length, the best walk, the best dairy and ham tour, whether the longer days are worth it, which include culatello and who each suits.
The quick answer
For a meal-sized walk, the private food and wine walk ($129, rated 5.0 from 651 reviews) is the best in Parma, and the shared two-hour tasting ($74) the budget pick. To see Parmigiano and Prosciutto di Parma made, the most booked tour is the $154 morning with transport, rated 4.9 from 954 reviews. Add Modena balsamic vinegar on the $208 day, or go private with a driver for $220.
What are the best Parma food tours?
The private food and wine walk for the city, the Parmigiano and Parma ham tour to see production, and the cheese, ham and balsamic day if you want all three in one go.
- Best walk: the private food and wine walk, $129, 5.0 from 651 reviews on Viator.
- Best value walk: the two-hour tasting, $74, shared group, on GetYourGuide.
- Best production tour: the Parmigiano and Parma ham tour, $154, 4.9 from 954 reviews on GetYourGuide.
- Best full day: the cheese, ham and balsamic tour, $208, on GetYourGuide.
- Best private option: the Food Valley private tour, $220, on Viator.
How do Parma food tours compare?
City walks cost $74 to $129 for 2 to 3.5 hours; production tours $50 to $220 for 2 to 4 hours; longer days $208 to $324.
From-prices per person in USD; ratings and review counts are each platform's own.
| Tour | Sold on | Type | Length | Rating | From |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private food and wine walk | Viator | City walk, private | 3 hours | 5.0 (651) | $129 |
| Taste of Parma tasting | GetYourGuide | City walk, shared | 2 hours | 5.0 (11) | $74 |
| Full meal walk | GetYourGuide | City walk, small group | 3.5 hours | 4.7 (101) | $101 |
| Organic dairy tour | GetYourGuide | Dairy, own way there | 2 hours | 4.9 (262) | $50 |
| Parmigiano and Parma ham tour | GetYourGuide | Dairy and ham, transport | 4 hours | 4.9 (954) | $154 |
| Food Valley private tour | Viator | Dairy and ham, private | 4 hours | 4.9 (131) | $220 |
| Cheese, ham and balsamic | GetYourGuide | Three producers, full day | 6.5 hours | 4.9 (317) | $208 |
| Culatello lowlands half day | Viator | Culatello producer, private | 5 hours | 5.0 (6) | $262 |
| Prosciutto, culatello and culatta | GetYourGuide | Curing-room tasting | 1 hour | 5.0 (2) | $25 |
Which Parma food walk is best?
The private walk ($129) if you want a full meal and your own guide; the two-hour tasting ($74) for a shorter, cheaper shared version; the full-meal walk ($101) for pasta and trippa over lunch or dinner.
The private walk makes five stops in three hours from Piazza Garibaldi: cured meats including culatello, three ages of Parmigiano, two fresh pastas, pastries, gelato, coffee and two glasses of wine. It is wheelchair accessible and covers about 3 km. The two-hour tasting does four stops and seven tastings from Strada Mazzini, with five ages of Parmigiano, Lambrusco and 12- and 25-year balsamic, over about 2 km. The full-meal walk from the Garibaldi monument serves prosciutto, Parmigiano, pasta, trippa alla parmigiana and gelato with water and one alcoholic drink; children under 10 pay less and under-5s go free.
Parma's top-rated food walk: private, three hours, with culatello and two fresh pastas.
Check dates for the private food and wine walkWhich tour shows Parmigiano and Parma ham being made?
The most booked is the $154 Parmigiano and Parma ham tour with transport; the $220 Food Valley tour does the same privately.
On the Parmigiano and Parma ham tour a van takes you from pickup points in Parma to a working dairy; one guest describes a 20-minute ride and, on a morning visit, seeing the entire cheese process. You taste the cheese with water or wine, then walk to a small family ham producer. Closed shoes are required, strollers and large bags are not allowed, and a late arrival counts as a no-show. Details of every dairy option: Parmigiano dairy tours.
Parma's most booked food tour: a working dairy and a family ham maker in one morning, with transport.
Explore the Parmigiano and Parma ham tourIs the cheese, ham and balsamic day worth it?
Yes, if you want the three famous products in one day: 6.5 hours for $208, with a Modena balsamic maker and its small family museum after the dairy and the ham producer.
It is the same operator as the most booked dairy and ham tour, with the same rules: closed shoes, no strollers or large bags, and late arrivals counted as no-shows. Guides use headsets, and there are two meeting points depending on the option you choose. Guests single out the Modena stop and the family-run ham producer.
Parmigiano, Parma ham and traditional balsamic in one guided day.
Check dates for the cheese, ham and balsamic tourIs a private Parma food tour worth it?
For families or anyone who wants to set the pace, yes: the Food Valley private tour costs $220 for four hours with your own guide, and you can add a driver or use your own car.
The Food Valley private tour starts at 8:30 AM with an hour at a Parmigiano dairy and an hour at a Prosciutto di Parma maker, with tastings and drinks, and a photo stop below the castle at Torrechiara. Lunch is not included. The operator is candid that these are artisan producers, so you are not guaranteed to see work in progress at every stop. It is rated 4.9 from 131 reviews on Viator.
Your own guide and, if you want it, a driver: a private dairy and ham morning.
Check dates for the Food Valley private tourWhich Parma food tours include culatello?
The private walk and the two-hour tasting put it on the board, the $25 curing-room tasting compares it with prosciutto and culatta, and two small tours visit producers in the Bassa.
The big dairy and ham tours do not include culatello. If it is on your list, the lowlands half day ($262) and the Parmigiano, culatello and Verdi day ($245) go to where it is made, with only a handful of reviews so far. All the options are in culatello tours compared, and the difference from prosciutto is explained in culatello vs prosciutto.
How do you choose a Parma food tour?
Decide first whether you want to eat a meal in town or see food being made in the countryside; then pick by budget and group size.
- First time in Parma, one day: a food walk on arrival, a dairy and ham tour the next morning.
- Families: the private walk (wheelchair and stroller accessible) or the full-meal walk with child prices; the van tours ban strollers.
- Vegetarians: the dairy tours; the private walk has vegetarian options with notice.
- Arriving by train: leave slack before the van tours, since late arrival is a no-show.
- Culatello fans: the private walk, the $25 tasting or a day in the Bassa.
Short on time and budget? Seven tastings, including culatello and five ages of Parmigiano, in two hours.
Explore the two-hour city tastingFrequently asked questions
How much is a food tour in Parma?
About $74 to $129 for a city walk, $50 for a dairy visit without transport, $154 for the classic Parmigiano and Parma ham tour with transport, $208 for the three-product day and $220 or more for private tours.
Should I book on GetYourGuide or Viator?
Book the tour, not the platform: each tour here is sold on one of them. The private walk and the private Food Valley tour are on Viator; the dairy and ham tours and the two-hour tasting are on GetYourGuide. Both offer free cancellation up to 24 hours before on these tours.
How far ahead should I book a Parma food tour?
Book the most popular tours as soon as your dates are fixed, especially for mornings in high season. Free cancellation up to 24 hours before means there is little risk in booking early.
Are Parma food tours suitable for children?
Most are. The full-meal walk discounts under-10s and lets under-5s in free, and the private walk is stroller accessible. The dairy and ham van tours do not allow strollers or baby carriages.
Ready to book
Choose your tasting
Free cancellation up to 24 hours before on every option. Prices are from-prices in USD and move with the season.
Parma Private Food and Wine Walking Tour
- Private local guide, start at Caffè San Pietro, Piazza Garibaldi
- Cold-cut board with Culatello di Zibello, Prosciutto di Parma, culaccia, coppa, salame
- Three ages of Parmigiano Reggiano, two fresh pastas, pastries and gelato
Parmigiano Production and Parma Ham Tour & Tasting
- Transport from pickup points in Parma and back
- Guided Parmigiano Reggiano dairy and aging-room visit
- Visit to a Prosciutto di Parma producer
A Taste of Parma: Parmigiano, Culatello & Wine
A shared two-hour city tasting with culatello
