Chocoholics, you've found your heaven! First, check out the top-end goods — a visit to one of Robert Linxe's La Maison du Chocolat stores will start you drooling. Then stop for refreshment at a chocolate cafe (try Chez Angelina) before booking in at the Lenôtre Culinary School for a cocoa cooking class. Nip out to the Île-de-France region for a (free) tour of the Nestlé factory, before, if you've timed it right, sampling the chocolate demonstrations, fashion shows and sculptures of the Salon du Chocolat festival.
Flanders, Belgium
Belgium produces 172,000 tonnes of chocolate each year, much of which is sold in more than 2000 chocolate shops in Belgium. And it's not just any old chocolate: the Belgians are proud of quality and innovation, and Flanders in particular boasts some of the planet's finest and most imaginative chocolatiers. Look out for Hans Burie's flamboyant creations (often featuring animals or architecture) in Antwerp and Laurent Gerbaud's orient-inspired offerings in Brussels. Both Bruges and Brussels boast museums where you can learn more about the history and production of chocolate — and then eat some!
Ghana
Next time you munch a bar of Dairy Milk, think of Tetteh Quarshie. Who? The man who arguably did the most for modern chocolate production once brought a few seeds of theobroma cacao home from the island of Fernando Pó (now Bioko, Equatorial Guinea) in 1876. Planting the seeds in Mampong, a little inland from Accra, he germinated the agricultural industry that made Ghana the primary cocoa exporter for most of the 20th century — even today Ghana produces 21 percent of the world's cocoa.
Southern Belize
In the beginning there was the pod, and the pod was good. Way before Columbus got lost on his way to the East Indies, the Maya and Aztecs of Central America were tucking into xocolatl and kukuh — bitter, spiced drinks concocted from cacao beans. Today, the cacao growers of Belize's southern Toledo district have received a new lease of life thanks to Green & Black's chocolate, whose Maya Gold bars are based on the ancient kukuh recipe.
Venezuela
Purists know that the rarest and finest of the three varieties of cocoa bean is the criollo — chocolate snobs lovingly describe its lingering aftertaste as featuring vanilla, caramel and nuts. Venezuela, and specifically the Paria Peninsula — known as the "Chocolate Coast" — is the origin of the most sought-after criollos, chuao and porcelana. The best are grown on small family-run farms such as Hacienda Bukare, built in 1908. The Esser family, which runs the hacienda, can show you their plantation and, more importantly, provide samples.
Bournville, Birmingham, UK
It's not quite Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, but Birmingham's Cadbury World feeds the need in us all to drool over big vats of brown liquid loveliness and watch naked bars whizz through wrapping machines. The factory in Bournville was revolutionary when it opened in 1879; with a surge in the popularity (and affordability) of cocoa. The Cadbury family moved production from the city centre to the suburbs, building a mini-town which provided houses, education and pensions for its workers — a sweet social experiment.
Turin, Italy
Ever since Duke Filiberto introduced to Turin's ruling court the sweet Aztec drink he'd discovered on his conquistadoring in the late 16th century, the city's been mad for all things cocoa. Chocolate shops are numerous (and top-notch) along the grand boulevards and piazzas. Pop into Guido Gobino's emporium for a true taste of Turin; the man is a master of the gianduja, a sensational hazelnut-chocolate combo which has been the culinary symbol of the city since its invention in 1867.
Switzerland
You can't grow cocoa in the Alps. And the empire-lacking Swiss have no historic attachments to any bean-growing colonies. Yet this compact nation has the highest per-capita chocolate consumption in the world, and has spawned some of the most famous makers: Lindt, Nestlé, Suchard and Toblerone all call Switzerland home. For factory fun, visit the Nestlé-Calliers site near Gruyères (free samples included!), or for handmade pralines and top truffles try one of the Sprüngli outlets — the company has been crafting cocoa since 1836.
Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA
This chocolate-scented town, HQ of the Hershey's empire, is as saccharine as the all-American movies that caused kids across the globe to demand this iconic brand. It's a US institution and has spawned a whole resort of choco-themed entertainment. Milton Hershey set his stall here in 1894, but times have changed. Today, you can sip choc martinis in a Hershey-themed restaurant and slap your picture on a chocolate bar at Hershey's Chocolate World, before being smeared with therapeutic cocoa at the Hershey's Chocolate Spa.
Grenada, Caribbean
Drive from Grenada's capital St George's through the misty monkey-swung highland forests of Grand Etang National Park and you'll eventually reach remote Hermitage St Patrick's — home to arguably the best chocolate in the world. The minuscule Grenada Chocolate Company produces award-winning bars and cocoa in the most ethical fashion: beans are grown, picked, processed and packed in the onsite factory-cum-family-abode; the electricity is solar-powered; and the business a local cooperative, directly benefiting those on its doorstep.
This is an edited extract from Lonely Planet's Best in Travel 2010: 850 trends, destinations, journeys and experiences for the upcoming year, Lonely Planet Publications, 2009. $24.99.
