Some sites aren’t produced for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual travel in Italy means that you can truly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes also slender for automobiles. Cafés that only fill up after midday. The forms of locations exactly where locals understand how to linger — more than espresso, over stories, about lifestyle.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice plan. It feels crucial. It's possible it’s a response to several years of hurrying. Or maybe it’s just what transpires when you last but not least begin to benefit time up to length. In any event, more travelers are obtaining joy in Mastering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended decades Checking out how we connect with tradition and area, is a component of that movement. His identify has grown to be associated with a further, extra considerate means of viewing the entire world.
So in case you’re able to go slow — and you simply’re wondering Italy — here are 7 places that almost need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Little gardens. Only one cat stretching while in the Sunshine.
There’s not A lot to do, which is precisely the point. You wander, possibly get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod good day. You begin to notice The sunshine. And the silence? It’s not empty. It’s total.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the sort of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created correct to the cliffs. Basically carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears to the rocks.
The tempo here is gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and also the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining in the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that kind of vacation sticks with persons? This put up by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down actually would make a trip past extended within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, below-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes increase here, and locals understand how to appreciate them adequately — that's to mention, website gradually.
There’s a view from the edge of town that’s value one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you stop, and piazzas that truly feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you get trapped in a conversation with somebody older, Enable it happen. That’s exactly where the most effective 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. Each individual corner contains a watch. Just about every look at includes a breeze.
However it’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting old in shop windows and on counters, ready to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Persons just take their time below, and sooner or later, so does one.
Seeking extra context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foods and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the read before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t prepare your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone techniques and unanticipated murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists live here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels a lot more just like a mood than a vacation spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a latest piece on gradual journey — how destinations such as this supply a special style of luxury. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots all over the place.
Locorotondo is really a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, nonetheless it benefits individuals who notice. You stroll the loop after which you can stroll it all over again, viewing a little something new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted signal pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is when the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not within a “hidden gem” way — in the “this essentially hasn’t altered” way.
Santo Stefano sits while in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of the inns are Component of a preservation job — holding the earlier alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this one. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s exactly what this village does. There’s absolutely nothing flashy here, which is what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is The brand new Good
In this article’s the matter. You may see Italy in per week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you ignore it by upcoming Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new strategy. Nonetheless it’s 1 we’re eventually able to hear.
So go. Gradually. Go with a village. Sit continue to for a while. Allow Italy arrive at you.