Sun, sea, mountains, peace and quiet and quality of life – second home owners are motivated by a variety of desires and needs. But if it’s a foodie feast you’re after, then Tuscany is the ultimate place to be.

The Italian region is revealed as the top gourmet destination in our World Second Home Locations Index, closely followed by the Côte d’Azur in France.

Both leave residents and visitors spoilt for culinary choice, with the highest number of restaurants in the Michelin Guide of all the 60 global locations analysed (194 and 190 respectively).

From Phuket to Palm Beach and Cornwall to the Costa Brava, places were rated according to their lifestyle and leisure offerings, as well as global reach and prime residential property values.

Here we focus on eating out, to create a global top ten for connoisseurs of good food.

Triumphant Tuscany

La Dolce Vita is alive and well in Tuscany. With its fabulous cuisine, architecture, historic museums and idyllic landscapes, it is one of the most culturally rich destinations in the world. This translates into the high score in the leisure and lifestyle category of our index.

It remains competitively priced compared to many other markets, with prime residential values averaging just over £230/$300 per square foot (€3,000 per square metre). Stretching from the Apennines to the Tyrrhenian Sea, this vast Italian region attracts many global travellers, who can enjoy a stay in one of 35 high-end hotels and take their pick of the 194 restaurants featured in the Michelin Guide. More than 40 of them boast one Michelin Star and above, plus a further five have Michelin Green Stars, the accolade which recognises restaurants at the forefront of sustainability.

Two Michelin starred Il Piccolo Principe offers various tasting menus in the iconic surroundings of the Grand Hotel Principe di Piemonte at Viareggio, while Poggio Rosso serves creative cuisine influenced by the local landscape and has a Michelin Green Star for its participation in social agriculture projects and ‘zero miles’ ingredients. 

The Côte d’Azur and other top foodie locations

The Côte d’Azur is hot on Tuscany’s heels when it comes to fine dining. And here, its natural setting, transport, hospitality and leisure scene, as well as the climate, provide enduring worldwide appeal.

Next, in joint place, come the Costa Brava in Spain and Phuket in Thailand with 50 restaurants apiece in the Michelin Guide, followed by coastal Cornwall which has 43 restaurants in the guide, three of which have Michelin Green Stars.

Mallorca (36 restaurants in the Michelin Guide), Megève (35), the Cotswolds (34), Lake Como (33) and Courchevel (30) make up the top 10 culinary destinations.

Of course, food isn’t the only thing on the menu in our index. When all lifestyle and leisure offerings were taken into account, the rankings shift with the Côte d’Azur now at the head of the table, followed by Monaco, Aspen, Tuscany, Mallorca, St Moritz, the Cotswolds, Costa Brava, Palm Beach and Costa Smeralda.

Further information

Contact Jelena Cvjetkovic or Alex Balkin