Some areas aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy lets you actually savor regional culture, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your very own pace.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too slender for autos. Cafés that only fill up immediately after midday. The styles of destinations the place locals know how to linger — about espresso, in excess of tales, more than everyday living.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a good concept. It feels necessary. Maybe it’s a response to yrs of hurrying. Or maybe it’s precisely what transpires when you last but not least begin to price time about length. In any case, much more travelers are obtaining Pleasure in Mastering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended decades Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His name has become related to a further, extra considerate method of seeing the world.
So if you’re ready to go gradual — so you’re contemplating Italy — Allow me to share seven places that virtually demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Little gardens. A single cat stretching from the Solar.
There’s not Significantly to do, that's precisely the point. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You begin to note The sunshine. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted ideal into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in to the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that sort of journey sticks with individuals? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down essentially can make a trip very last more time within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes mature listed here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — and that is to say, gradually.
There’s a watch from the sting of city that’s well worth an hour or so by by itself. 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 truly feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you get trapped inside a conversation with somebody more mature, Enable it occur. That’s in which the ideal travel tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was built to be “the proper metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner features a view. Every perspective features a breeze.
However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t hurry something in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals choose their time right here, and inevitably, so do you.
On the lookout for a lot more context on why this fashion of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food items and vacation in Italy. Worth the read through prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change as being the working day moves. Artists Are living in this article. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in very small courtyards. It feels more like a temper than the usual spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase everything below. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very new piece on sluggish travel — how places similar to this offer you a distinct kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo can be a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it really rewards individuals that observe. You wander the loop then wander it once more, looking at some thing new every time — a cat with a windowsill, an open up door, a hand-painted signal pointing to handmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Element of a preservation project — maintaining the past alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this one particular. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s what exactly this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy below, that's what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is The brand new Sensible
Right here’s the thing. You can see Italy in each week. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap pics. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different thought. But it’s one particular we’re lastly wanting to hear.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Pick read more a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.