Looking for a weekend getaway? One of America’s best food tours is just a few hours by car from some of Florida’s largest cities, about 30 miles northeast of the state capital on the other side of the border.
Recently named the No. 2 food tour in America by readers of USA Today, the Taste of Thomasville Food Tour, a guided walking tour, has been operating since 2013.
Debra Smith told Fox News Digital that she decided to start a food tour in the southern Georgia town after she retired from teaching and was looking for something to do.
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“So, I thought, why can’t a food tour in Thomasville work?” Smith said.
Almost 16,000 people later, Smith said she considers it a success.
The Taste of Thomasville Food Tour has been welcoming visitors like those above to the Georgia town’s restaurants since 2013. (Taste of Thomasville Food Tour)
“Very much so – more so than I ever believed it would be,” she said.
Most of Thomasville’s food tour visitors come from Florida, mainly from nearby Tallahassee. Smith said she also gets visitors from the Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando areas.
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“They’re looking for that getaway for the weekend that they don’t have to drive hours and hours and hours to get to,” she said.
“A lot of them want to get away from the big town,” she added. “And they find Thomasville is what they’re looking for.”
Thomasville, Georgia, has a small-town charm that appeals to visitors on the food tour who travel for weekend getaways. (Taste of Thomasville Food Tour)
So what makes Thomasville a destination spot for people who love food and travel?
Smith said she believes it comes down to the town’s history, architecture, culture and food options.
“No two restaurants are alike,” Smith said.
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The Taste of Thomasville offers four walking tours: a daytime stroll through downtown (which includes a visit to the “Big Oak,” one of the largest oak trees east of the Mississippi River), an after-hours tour for adults only, a children’s tour and a seasonal Victorian-era tour featuring a sampling of sweet treats and desserts during the holidays.
“I think my pricing makes it affordable for everyone.”
Tuesday was notable for the Taste of Thomasville, which organized its first-ever bus tour, Smith said.
Stops along the tour include Jonah’s Shrimp and Grits, Sweet Grass Cheese Shop, Moonspin Pizza and Grassroots Coffee.
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Another reason Smith believes Thomasville is a desirable food tour destination is its affordability.
“I think my pricing makes it affordable for everyone,” she told Fox News Digital.
The “Big Oak” is a popular spot for photographs in Thomasville. (Taste of Thomasville Food Tour)
All tours are priced at $70 or less – a far cry from the No. 1-ranked Gourmet Food & Wine Tours in Sonoma, California.
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The Sonoma tour – one of several offerings throughout Napa Valley and Sonoma Valley – costs $255, by comparison.
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America’s other top food tours are said to be in Las Vegas; West Palm Beach, Florida; Los Angeles; Mobile, Alabama; Columbus, Ohio; Pittsburgh; Seattle; and Detroit.
