Where to Go: the 12 Best Workshops & Classes Worldwide

1.Cai Be Mekong Delta Tour: Cooking Class, Cycling & Craft Villages

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 1,881 reviews · from $39Our pick

Travel from Ho Chi Minh City to Cai Be for a boat ride, folk music, craft workshops, antique homes, Vietnamese cooking class, garden lunch, and easy countryside cycling. Guide assignments vary, with Mark and Abe among the guides praised for clear English and helpful service.

“I had Mark as my tour guide and he was incredible. He had a great attitude towards his work and came off as genuinely interested in what he was showing and ensuring his guests had the best time. The tour itinerary itself was also great, and gave great insight into Vietnam. Definitely recommend anyone to book this tour if they’re down south.”

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2.Thai cooking class &Market tour by Amazon Prime Series Chef.

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 266 reviews · 4 hours · from $70

Chef Wandee, a mentor to two finalists on Amazon Prime’s The World Cook Season 2, leads this small-group Khao Lak class. Tour a local market, choose dishes from 29 recipes, make curry paste from scratch, and cook in an open-air garden kitchen. Hotel pickup, recipes, and video clips are included.

“Delicious experience! We started off with a great tour of the Bang Niang Fresh Market and were shown how coconut cream and coconut milk are made. The cooking class that followed was excellent and the staff are extremely helpful and friendly. We made a papaya salad, some fried pork on lemongrass skewers, a massaman curry and some coconut pancakes. Everything was absolutely delicious. Shoutout to Chef Wandee for allowing us to dip into her local craft beer collection! My only wish is that we could have cooked more dishes!”

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3.Jackson: Snake River Class 2-3 Whitewater Rafting Adventure

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 250 reviews · 3h 30m · from $120

Join Jackson Hole Whitewater for an 8-mile Snake River trip with Class II and III rapids, canyon views, swimming, and wildlife spotting. Guides such as RJ, Taylor, Adam, and Will keep first-timers comfortable while adding local stories. Choose a classic raft or a smaller boat with more paddling.

“It was great! So much fun! We had the best guide named Will. He was very helpful, informative about the path, wildlife we would possibly see and we felt safe.”

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4.Cai Rang Floating Market Biking Cooking Class in Can Tho Rural

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 172 reviews · from $30

Start early from Can Tho for Cai Rang and Phong Dien floating markets, with breakfast on the river. Guides such as Trinh, An, Nhu Y, and Nga lead you through small canals, a fruit garden, rice noodle production, and quiet country roads. Expect an active, food-focused day for about $30.

“First of all, thank you so much to our tour guide An, our boat driver, and Khoi who drove us from HCM to the floating market! They were all so lovely! An provided us with lots of information as she is one of the people who grew up in the flRead more”

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5.Savegre River Rafting Class II-III from Manuel Antonio

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 80 reviews · 6 hours (approx.) · from $125

From Manuel Antonio or Quepos, you’ll ride to the Savegre River for a six-hour rafting day with safety kayaker, photographer, snacks, and a Costa Rican lunch. Guides such as Nico, Jairo, Mario, and Jonathan work well with first-timers and families, while water levels shape the rapids.

“An awesome experience even for first timer like me, the guides were very knowledgeable and helpful. Our guide Nico made it super fun.”

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6.Cooking class & Vibrant Market by Scooter/Tuktuk (Half-Day)

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 55 reviews · from $49

Spend five hours in Ben Tre with a local chef, traveling by scooter or tuk-tuk to a market, tasting fruit and street food, choosing ingredients, and cooking four to five Mekong dishes. The menu changes with the market, with vegan, vegetarian, and non-vegan options available.

“We had a great day and really enjoyed this cooking class. We could choose the dishes by ourselves from a menu. In the morning we went to the market to buy the ingredients. During cooking everything was explained to us and afterwards we had a perfect lunch.”

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7.Cai Be Mekong Delta: Cooking Class, Cycling, Craft Villages

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 36 reviews · from $36

Spend a full day in Cai Be with an English-speaking guide such as Peter, Min, or Jonathan. Travel by shared boat and paddle boat, cycle Tan Phong Island, cook lunch in a garden, visit an ancient house, and see coconut candy and crispy rice popcorn made by hand.

“Our Guide Min was very helpfull and friendly. Only floating Markets are not more existing. Lunch was surprisingly in a very good quality. Bicycle Tour was my Highlight.”

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8.Din Tai Fung Dinner and VIP Class River Cruise Experience in Shanghai

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 31 reviews · from $173

See Shanghai by night on a private four-hour tour with a guide and driver, VIP seating on a 60-minute Huangpu River cruise, and a Din Tai Fung xiaolongbao dinner. Guides such as Sunny and Mason have earned strong praise for friendly, careful service. Central hotel pickup is included.

“Sunny is a wonderful guide. Our group (traveling for business) had a fantastic time. Highly recommended this tour!”

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9.Douro Valley: Traditional Cooking Class, Farm Tour and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 28 reviews · 4 hours · from $175

At Quinta de Louredo, Fabio and his family welcome you for a four-hour farm visit, harvest, and hands-on cooking class. Taste vinho verde, olive oil, cheeses, and farm produce, then prepare a traditional three-course Portuguese lunch while hearing the family story and helping support the farm’s recovery after wildfire.

“What a fabulous half-day ... greeted with a lovely "brunch" of breads, jams, cheeses, olives, wine, verbena tea (from fresh verbena on the farm); followed by a walk around the farm, and conversation about how they are recovering from a devastating fire last year. Our "cooking lesson" was chopping ingredients for a fabulous tomato soup, and a cod & french fries dish that was oh-so-tasty ... and then traditional holiday desserts (we helped separate eggs for the custard)”

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10.Top Home Cooking Class with Stunning River View AC Kitchen

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 25 reviews · from $38

Join Lua and her family at a spotless, air-conditioned apartment kitchen in Ho Chi Minh City. Over three hours, you will prepare three Vietnamese dishes from scratch, eat the meal together, and learn practical techniques for home cooking. Vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, and other menus can be arranged.

“Very well organized and pleasant to do ! It was nice experience we did in family. So much food we couldnt eat everything !”

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11.Big Sky: Half-Day Gallatin River (Class II-IV) Rafting Trip

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 12 reviews · 3 hours · from $155

Spend three hours rafting the Gallatin River from small rapids to House Rock and the Mad Mile. Guides such as Hayden, Charlie, and Mitch lead the trip, while wetsuits, booties, splash tops, helmets, paddles, and shuttle transport are included.

“Great rafting. The guides were great. Nothing bad to say”

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12.One Hour Chinese Calligraphy or Painting Lessons in Yangshuo

★★★★★★★★★★4.8 · 10 reviews · 1 hour · from $19Best value

Choose calligraphy or traditional Chinese painting and learn at your Yangshuo hotel. An English-speaking instructor shows you how to prepare ink, hold the brush, and create Chinese characters or classic brushwork. Private lessons cost $19 per person, with a 150 RMB transfer fee for Xingping-area hotels.

“Our tour guide Andy was very attentive and helpful, his English was excellent. The tour was perfectly organised, including assistance with fulfilling all the additional Covid19-related regulations The tour on the Li River is wonderful, Andy provided many interesting facts about the sights on the way, which we would have stayed unaware of as all information on the boat was only provided in Chinese. Altogether, a very enjoyable trip!”

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