Want some ideas on where to go on holiday in April? We’ve selected our pick of destinations for a food lover’s break this spring: alfresco dining in Florida, natural wine breaks on Sweden's west coast, and a Cornish seafood festival. This is just a small selection of our UK, European and global travel guides, click here for more inspiration, or check out our pick of the best UK culinary escapes for 2022 and Europe’s top food trips for 2022. Want to know where to visit in March? Take a look here, then check out where to visit in May.

Advertisement

Cornish seafood festival

The tiny Cornish harbour village of Porthleven is jam-packed with foodie gems, from simple seafood to high-end dining with an Asian twist, and the perfect pint.

A seaside food event at its most unpretentious, Porthleven Food Festival (26-28 April) will showcase over 150 food producers and chefs from the local area with a series of demos and workshops. Many of the best-known local chefs (Josh Eggleton, Jude Kereama and Mick Smith among them) will be participating and showcasing local ingredients in sharing-style dishes.

The weekend will also see the village harbour come alive with craft food and street-food stalls. And local food and drink traders will be showcasing their produce at the Royal Cornwall Food & Farmers Market, including ciders from Cornish Orchards, sourdough pizzas from Chanbury’s Woodfired Italian and floral flat whites from Origin Coffee Roasters. Or grab a pasty at Ann’s Pasty Lounge while participating in an artsy workshop.

Here's where to eat and drink in Porthleven while you're there.

More like this
Porthleven Food Festival

Spring forest food trails in Sweden

Celebrate the beginning of spring with a foodie walking trail through the forests of West Sweden. First, hop on the train from Gothenburg to Jonsered, a tiny riverside hamlet home to popular Poppels Bryggeri, where you can taste a range of Swedish beers matched with the likes of torched shrimp, ricotta and chanterelle ravioli, and Swedish roe scooped up with crisps. Round the corner is Brödfabriken, where you can chill out with classic cinnamon bun and coffee fika under a blanket by the river. From here, follow the Gotaleden walking trail, treading through forests blanketed with tiny flowers, winding along rivers and clambering over rocks around Lake Aspen. Continue the riverside trek or take a short train ride to spend the night at Nääs Fabriker, an old cotton factory built in 1890, now home to a stylish hotel with onsite restaurants, shops, bakery and brewery. Wrap up in your robe and pad to the al fresco lakeside spa to sink into the jacuzzi, dip in the lake and warm up in the sauna. Book a table in the plant-adorned conservatory room in the main restaurant for dishes such as grilled scallop with fried chorizo crumble, venison tenderloin with Swedish mushrooms and blackberries, and lingonberry and malt hop sorbet.

April promises signs of spring in Gothenburg, when the city's courtyards and terraces come to life. Try cinnamon buns and coffee at Da Matteo, flash-fried herring at quirky food truck Strommingsluckan and bags of plump prawns by the river outside the charming ‘fish church’ seafood market. Head out on the ferry to the archipelago for a taste of Styrsö’s car-free island life and cinnamon buns at charming Café Obergska before a brisk dip off one of the sandy beaches.

Check out more local favourites in Gothenburg here.

A lake surrounded by trees and a large cotton mill converted into a hotel

Alfresco dining in Florida

Make the most of the reliably warm yet not too hot spring season in Florida with alfresco eating and outdoorsy adventures. Choose an eclectic city break in Miami, that boasts everything from sandy beaches and swish cocktail bars to an artsy independent craft beer and restaurant scene amongst the colourful murals in Wynwood. Or stay in the heart of Little Havana to soak up the area's Cuban culture with morning cafecitos, El Sanguich's pork-stuffed toasted sandwiches and late-night cocktails at iconic bar Café La Trova.

Down in the Florida Keys, take in ocean views and breathtaking sunsets over seafood suppers on the vast deck of Key West institution, Louie’s Backyard. The town's picture-perfect, porch-fronted clapboard houses host plenty of restaurants with dining decks; tuck into key lime pie and Caribbean dishes in Blue Heaven’s vibrant backyard complete with live music and chickens mooching around.

Celebrate the USA’s National Beer Day on April 7 on a craft beer trail in St. Pete/Clearwater. Cycle along the pedestrianised Pinellas Trail and hop off for tastings in small town breweries and stop in St. Pete to soak up the sun outside iconic spots Green Bench and 3 Daughters Brewing. Finish at Mastry’s Brewing Co before heading for a chill on the beach.

Advertisement

For more recommendations, check out our guide to Florida's foodie neighbourhoods.

People on stools at La Sandwicherie Miami

Authors

Alex Crossley Portrait
Alex CrossleyDigital Editor

Comments, questions and tips

Choose the type of message you'd like to post

Choose the type of message you'd like to post
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement