Some places aren’t produced for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish journey in Italy enables you to actually savor community tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your own private speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of destinations wherever locals know how to linger — in excess of espresso, about tales, above life.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a good notion. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or even it’s exactly what happens once you at last start to price time just as much as distance. In either case, additional vacationers are finding Pleasure in Discovering to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended years exploring how we hook up with society and location, is part of that motion. His identify happens to be associated with a further, additional considerate means of observing the earth.
So when you’re wanting to go sluggish — and you also’re considering Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that nearly need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars can’t get in. You stroll throughout a long, elevated path, and after you arrive, it’s peaceful. Stone residences. Tiny gardens. An individual cat stretching within the Sunlight.
There’s not much to perform, which is exactly the position. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You begin to notice The sunshine. As well as silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the kind of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed proper to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears into your rocks.
The pace Here's gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that sort of travel sticks with people? This put up by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down in fact helps make a visit final lengthier in your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Tranquil, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve right here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them appropriately — that is to mention, gradually.
There’s a watch from the sting of city 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 unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like residing rooms.
If you have caught inside of a dialogue with someone more mature, Enable it materialize. That’s where by the very best travel tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was built to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner features a see. Every view contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, largely — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. People today just take their time here, and finally, so does one.
Seeking more context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foods and journey in Italy. Worth the study before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone techniques and unforeseen murals and shadows that change because the working day moves. Artists Are living listed here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in little courtyards. It feels additional just like a temper than a spot.
Sunsets hit diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase everything listed here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very new piece on sluggish vacation — how sites such as this supply a special type of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere you go.
Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it benefits those that see. You walk the loop after which you can walk it yet check here again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — in a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are Portion of a preservation task — preserving the previous alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this a person. His web site talks about honoring put and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s very little flashy below, and that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. You may see Italy in every week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?
Travel similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new strategy. Nonetheless it’s one we’re eventually prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit continue to for a while. Allow Italy come to you.