Some experiences from our guests.
This cooking workshop week is highly recommended. Janos is a great enthusiastic cook who served us delicious Italian
learned to make dishes, we did that in the morning and during lunch, we all ate it together, with wine, delicious.
the area is beautiful, we stayed in the old part of Bolsena between the Italians, what an atmosphere! I
In the afternoon we swam in Lake Bolsena.
Mariët showed us many beautiful places, we walked in Tuscany where the Etruscans used to live.
In the evening we ate in a restaurant, or we ate at Mariët’s house in their cozy courtyard,
where Mariët cooked delicious vegetarian meals for us,
wine very nice. a week for us to remember!
Thank you, Mariette. See you soon dear greetings Gladys and Ria

Dear Mariët
The culinary cooking week was great, especially Janos de Kok!
I learned a lot and saw a lot of the beautiful Italian nature.
What a wonderful week,
I enjoyed it If a mechanic is needed again, let me know. I’m always up for a free trip to Italy
love Maartje

Hey Mariët
For the first time alone on holiday after the death of my partner. With a Volkswagen camper van to Italy.
Because I have a thing for “culinary” and appreciate Italian food for its simplicity and taste, I decided to start cooking in Italy.
I’m not Jamie Oliver, so a self-organized tour with culinary highlights through Italy was out of the question (who knows next year?). On the internet, you can find several organizations that offer cooking courses in Italy. None convinced me. Too expensive, too perfectionist, too stilted, etc. I am a “simple soul” myself and don’t want to make life more difficult than it is.
That’s how I came across you and the website invited me to contact you. I was late to register (2 weeks before the start date) but there was still room.
What a week. Full of surprises and special moments. Not a moment of boredom due to Mariët’s loose approach. The (apparent?) ease with which they quickly organize something else in the event of an unexpected setback (an appointment at a cheese farm was canceled at the last minute) (1/2 hour later you are at a cooperative olive press) is striking. She is therefore not a “tour guide” but an enthusiast who wanted us to enjoy what she has been enjoying for some time. Namely an authentic piece of Italy with a different pace of life and full of surprises.
I have been to Italy (especially the north) before, but now I have experienced that true Italy only begins below Florence.
Besides what you can expect from a cooking course, making pizza, preparing dough for kinds of pasta, fillings, and sauces, fish, meat dishes, etc., the cook was so enthusiastic that he took us to a wholesaler and involved his grandmother to make us some “bread products”. and sweets to prepare.
Furthermore, there was a walking tour that week that I didn’t participate in because I was on vacation, right! Did some shopping that day, talked for hours on a terrace about important and trivial matters, and let time do its thing: pass.
Certainly not unpleasant in this environment.
I thought that the second day, when we visited a concert with dinner in the courtyard of a castle, would already be the highlight of the week. No, more surprising things followed. A super enthusiastic cook/teacher. A boat trip around the former holiday resort of Pope X (four or five popes ago), which is located on an island in the middle of Lake Bolsena. Visit a winery with 120 hectares of vineyard. In the evening, eat together at Mariët’s in their beautiful garden in the middle of Bolsena. Or eat by the water with a view of a red ball (the sun) sinking into the lake.
Mariët and cook Janos thank you. You have a big heart. Are wonderfully uncomplicated and inventive. The right ingredients fill in an unforgettable week for me. A And, oh yes, I definitely learned a thing or two about cooking too
“Warning”:
Do you want a holiday with a tight schedule in which everything is predetermined and you can’t stand when a day doesn’t go exactly as planned?
“Then this is not the travel organization you need”.
However, if you like surprises, are not afraid of changes, and would like to have a holiday organized by a few fascinating people who have two feet on Italian soil:
Feel free to book, you won’t regret it.
Greetings from a satisfied guest,

Ten days after the stay in beautiful Bolsena, just a comment.
Together with three enthusiastic students, I participated in Janos’ Italian cooking course.
It was amazing. First of all, the reception by Mariet.
We were taken each day by car to Castel Giorgio, into the interior of Lazio. In Castel Giorgio, we were welcomed by our cook Janos with many bottles of cool water and delicious coffee. It was around 34 degrees every day!
What he has taught and presented to us in four days, in combination with the enthusiasm with which he does it, is great. After all the work in the kitchen, it is nice to taste the dishes together.
We also did a wine and olive oil tasting and he took us to a wholesaler for kitchen supplies. An El Dorado for novice cooks!
In the afternoon a lovely dip in Lake Bolsena and then in the evening have something to eat and talk.
The next day it’s up early again for new cooking experiences. Janos is creative and inexhaustible, and fortunately, he speaks good English!
It was a wonderful, too-short week, a few days to enjoy the beautiful Bolsena and its beautiful surroundings is recommended!
Thanks to our hostess Mariet! Joke Pels

The next morning, after another delicious breakfast, we go to the restaurant Il Rovere where our teacher Janos welcomes us with a cup of coffee and soon we start making pasta, ravioli, risotto, pasta sauce, gnocchi, etc. What a party to do and then we can eat everything too! We can’t say porridge anymore and beg Janos to adjust the portions a bit because we fear we will gain kilos After the well-deserved siesta and a wonderful dip in the lake, Mariët again provided us with a delicious light meal and provided us with all the information and necessities that come in handy during the holiday week, such as the best places to swim, drink coffee or fruit, and buy wine. Wonderfully hospitable and helpful and every evening good food in the garden or picnic by the lake. The days fly by with the lessons of Janos, who very enthusiastically and patiently transfers his knowledge and recipes to us and lets us enjoy all facets of Italian cuisine. And also the lesson with the 82-year-old grandmother about making the delicious focaccia and sandwiches was unforgettable! The photos speak volumes and the dishes taste as delicious as they look! Saying goodbye to Janos and his kitchen is hard for us, unfortunately, you can’t take the sun that you taste in Italy in the ingredients and dishes in your suitcase…. Well, the kitchen stuff that we bought in the great warehouse and the olive oil from the olive farmer from Bolsena, brings back the memories a bit. And after the last excursion to the winery and the beautifully situated Civita di Bagnoregio, it is almost time to go to her house and immediately plan to come back here. What a great holiday: the best of Italy has been united in this cooking week in beautiful Bolsena and its surroundings. And the more than hospitable reception and guidance by Mariët is a very important factor in this, they radiate their love for Italy on all sides and convey it to the guests. Activa Bolsena is highly recommended in every way! Margret Leferink

What a wonderful cooking week I had in Bolsena! The weather was good, the apartment was fine, and was close to the lake. The cooking classes were educational and fun and the dishes were delicious. What a lot I’ve learned. From simple to more complicated dishes. And all kinds of useful tips to put a quick Italian ‘impress your friends’ meal on the table. Everything was possible and Janos was up for anything, really enjoyed it! The surroundings are beautiful and the atmosphere is relaxed. Especially the small scale of your travels, Mariët, is what appeals to me. Nice and simple, personal, and with no fuss. I enjoyed your company and effort to make us feel comfortable. In short; a holiday that was nothing to criticize as far as I’m concerned. I will be back next year, you have gained a fan!
Saluti e ci vediamo! Monique

Dinxperlo,
Our cooking holiday in Bolsena. Last October, my brother and I came up with the idea of ​​going on a cooking holiday. After wandering around the internet for a long time, we finally came to follow the red shoes.
What attracted us to the cooking week organized by them was the accommodation; the holidaymakers were accommodated in cottages in the old center “in the middle of the Italians”, that was exactly what we wanted, and that’s how it was. We had a house on a square and lived next to the Italians in the old town of Bolsena for a week.
Our organizers accompanied us from arrival to departure. We were met on arrival with a drink on a terrace and from that moment on we discussed the schedule for the coming day every day. So our days were filled, not only with cooking, but with visits to towns, markets, wine and oil tasting, and a wine festival.
We were also invited by Mariët for dinner in the garden, complete with palm and banana trees, a cozy fire, tasty snacks, and all this accompanied by guitar music. Our cook Janos has contributed greatly to making our holiday a success. He made us feel comfortable in his kitchen and he responded to any question or suggestion from our side. After that, it was of course a pleasure every day to eat our homemade meal together at the end of the afternoon. We thoroughly enjoyed this week, thanks in part to the creativity and commitment of Mariët, the cooking skills of Janos, and of course, the delicious wine that flowed in abundance. We are already homesick for Bolsena, so hopefully see you next year!