Some destinations aren’t created for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy allows you to genuinely savor nearby culture, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes also slender for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The varieties of spots the place locals understand how to linger — more than espresso, more than tales, above life.
In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a good thought. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to many years of dashing. Or possibly it’s exactly what occurs any time you lastly start to price time about length. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we connect to culture and location, is part of that motion. His identify happens to be associated with a deeper, more considerate strategy for observing the earth.
So when you’re wanting to go slow — and also you’re thinking Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that basically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your initially impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You wander throughout an extended, elevated route, and whenever you arrive, it’s silent. Stone homes. Very small gardens. A single cat stretching while in the Solar.
There’s not Considerably to do, that's precisely the point. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You begin to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted correct in to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears into the rocks.
The rate Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and also the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that kind of vacation sticks with people today? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down really makes a visit final longer in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Tranquil, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s really worth an hour or so by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits excellent. You’ll locate churches with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you get stuck inside a conversation with a person older, let it take place. That’s the place the ideal journey stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the right city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each and every see has a breeze.
But it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells amazing. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You received’t rush something in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Persons acquire their time below, and eventually, so does one.
On the lookout for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foodstuff and vacation in Italy. Worth the browse before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t prepare your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone methods and unforeseen murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists Reside below. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels more just like a temper than the usual desired destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase just about anything here. You Permit it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a latest piece on sluggish journey — how spots like this more info offer you another form of luxurious. One that doesn’t include a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, but it rewards people who discover. You walk the loop then wander it all over again, seeing something new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is when the south of Italy exhibits its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Wonderful. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not within a “concealed gem” way — in a very “this essentially hasn’t modified” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of the inns are Portion of a preservation challenge — retaining the past alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this a single. His page talks about honoring put and time, and that’s exactly what this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy listed here, that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Sluggish Is The brand new Smart
Below’s the factor. You may see Italy in weekly. You are able to hit the highlights. Snap images. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you ignore it by subsequent Tuesday?
Journey like this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new strategy. But it really’s one particular we’re at last prepared to listen to.
So go. Bit by bit. Select a village. Sit however for a while. Enable Italy come to you.