Some destinations aren’t designed for speed. Italy is filled with them. Slow journey in Italy allows you to definitely savor regional society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your very own tempo.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for automobiles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after midday. The forms of places the place locals understand how to linger — above coffee, above tales, more than life.
In 2025, gradual vacation isn’t just a good thought. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a response to several years of speeding. Or maybe it’s exactly what happens if you last but not least begin to worth time around length. In either case, additional tourists are getting Pleasure in learning to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used several years Discovering how we connect with tradition and spot, is part of that motion. His title happens to be affiliated with a deeper, far more thoughtful way of viewing the whole world.
So when you’re willing to go sluggish — and you also’re contemplating Italy — Here's 7 places that pretty much demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You walk across a long, elevated path, and whenever you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone properties. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching inside the sun.
There’s not A great deal to do, that is exactly the issue. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You begin to note the light. And also the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In case you’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built proper into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears to the rocks.
The tempo Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that kind of vacation sticks with men and women? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically would make a trip past extended within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to get pleasure from them properly — which can be to state, little by little.
There’s a perspective from the edge of town that’s well worth an hour or so by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you get trapped in a conversation with somebody older, Enable it happen. That’s exactly where the most effective journey tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was made to be “an ideal town,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner incorporates a look at. Every single perspective provides a breeze.
Nonetheless it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This city smells amazing. Cheese, primarily — pecorino aging in store Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Individuals choose their time listed here, and at some point, so would you.
Seeking additional context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast more info Traveler dives deep into gradual food and journey in Italy. Worth the browse prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t system your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone methods and unpredicted murals and shadows that shift given that the day moves. Artists live right here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in little courtyards. It feels extra like a mood than a spot.
Sunsets hit distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something listed here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation in a recent piece on sluggish vacation — how sites similar to this present a distinct type of luxury. One that doesn’t come with a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere you go.
Locorotondo is a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, but it really benefits people who discover. You stroll the loop and then walk it all over again, looking at a little something new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted signal pointing to homemade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — in a very “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A number of the inns are part of a preservation project — retaining the past alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this one particular. His webpage talks about honoring area and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy right here, which happens to be what can make it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Clever
In this article’s the matter. You may see Italy in each week. It is possible to strike the highlights. Snap images. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you ignore it by following Tuesday?
Travel such as this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a different thought. But it’s just one we’re finally able to hear.
So go. Little by little. Opt for a village. Sit still for some time. Let Italy come to you.