Some areas aren’t manufactured for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Gradual travel in Italy lets you really savor regional tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your individual tempo.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too slim for autos. Cafés that only refill immediately after midday. The types of spots exactly where locals know how to linger — more than espresso, in excess of stories, more than lifetime.
In 2025, sluggish travel isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels necessary. It's possible it’s a response to several years of hurrying. Or perhaps it’s precisely what occurs if you last but not least begin to benefit time about length. In any case, additional vacationers are obtaining joy in Mastering to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended yrs Checking out how we hook up with society and position, is an element of that movement. His title has become connected with a further, extra considerate technique for seeing the earth.
So when you’re prepared to go sluggish — and you’re wondering Italy — Listed below are seven places that almost demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your first impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across a long, elevated route, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone homes. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching during the Sunlight.
There’s not Significantly to do, and that is exactly the point. You wander, maybe get a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You start to notice The sunshine. Along with the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the kind of traveler who likes a little bit of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built suitable to the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears into the rocks.
The tempo Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that sort of travel sticks with men and women? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down truly would make a visit last longer with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Silent, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes increase in this article, and locals understand how to delight in them appropriately — that's to state, slowly but surely.
There’s a perspective from the sting of town that’s truly worth an hour or so by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the Sunshine hits just right. You’ll locate churches with unpredicted frescoes, doorways which make you halt, and piazzas that experience much more like dwelling rooms.
If you obtain caught within a dialogue with an individual more mature, Allow it transpire. That’s the place the top vacation tales start out.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life right here. Pienza was meant to be “the ideal town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner has a check out. Just about every view incorporates a breeze.
But it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells astounding. Cheese, largely — pecorino getting older in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You won’t hurry nearly anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today acquire their time below, and ultimately, so do you.
Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish meals and travel in Italy. Worth the examine before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t strategy your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone steps and sudden murals and shadows that shift because the working day moves. Artists Are living right here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels much more like a temper than a desired destination.
Sunsets hit different in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase just about anything right here here. You Enable it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a current piece on slow journey — how destinations like this provide a special form of luxurious. One which doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is usually a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, nonetheless it rewards individuals that recognize. You wander the loop after which you can wander it once more, looking at one thing new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted sign pointing to homemade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy exhibits here its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — inside a “this actually hasn’t altered” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Component of a preservation project — retaining the previous alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this one particular. His website page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy below, which is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Wise
Right here’s the point. here You'll be able to see Italy in per week. You'll be able to hit the highlights. Snap pics. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by following Tuesday?
Journey read more such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a whole new concept. But it’s just one we’re ultimately ready to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Choose a village. Sit nonetheless for a while. Let Italy come to you.