Some sites aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Gradual journey in Italy helps you to truly savor nearby tradition, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for cars and trucks. Cafés that only replenish after noon. The sorts of locations in which locals know how to linger — around coffee, more than tales, about daily life.
In 2025, slow travel isn’t just a good notion. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about whenever you eventually begin to price time as much as length. In any case, much more travelers are locating joy in Understanding to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in several years Discovering how we connect with culture and spot, is a component of that motion. His identify has grown to be associated with a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.
So if you’re ready to go sluggish — so you’re pondering Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your initially impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk across a lengthy, elevated path, and after you get there, it’s quiet. Stone properties. Tiny gardens. An individual cat stretching in the Sunlight.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which happens to be exactly the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the sort of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed ideal into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in to the rocks.
The speed here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, plus the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to learn why that sort of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a visit final longer as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes develop in this article, and locals know how to love them appropriately — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a check out from the sting of city that’s worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover churches with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you stop, and piazzas that truly feel additional like residing rooms.
If you can get trapped inside of a dialogue with an individual older, Enable it come about. That’s in which the top vacation stories get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life here. Pienza was built to be “the proper town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner provides a watch. Every single check out features a breeze.
However it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today just take their time here, and finally, so does one.
Seeking extra context on why using this method of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food and travel in Italy. Well worth the examine prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t strategy 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 Reside listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels far more just like a mood than the usual destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase anything here. You Enable it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation inside a recent piece on gradual journey — how locations similar to this present a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots in all places.
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 after which wander it once more, observing some thing new each website time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to selfmade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy shows its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t adjusted” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are part of a preservation challenge — holding the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy right here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Good
Below’s the issue. You'll be able to see Italy in a week. You could hit the highlights. Snap photos. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you forget about it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different concept. But it really’s a person we’re last but not least ready to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.