Some areas aren’t designed for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Slow vacation in Italy permits you to genuinely savor neighborhood culture, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your very own pace.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for autos. Cafés that only fill up following midday. The types of sites wherever locals know how to linger — about coffee, in excess of tales, more than everyday living.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels vital. Maybe it’s a response to several years of hurrying. Or maybe it’s exactly what happens once you at last begin to benefit time as much as distance. Either way, a lot more travelers are obtaining joy in Finding out to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in several years Discovering how we connect with culture and location, is part of that motion. His title is becoming connected to a deeper, much more considerate strategy for observing the globe.
So should you’re able to go gradual — and also you’re thinking Italy — here are seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander throughout an extended, elevated route, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone houses. Small gardens. One cat stretching within the Sunshine.
There’s not much to perform, which happens to be exactly the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. 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 bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is designed ideal into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears in to the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of journey sticks with individuals? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a visit final longer in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine here place. Sagrantino grapes develop in this article, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a check out from the sting of city that’s truly worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that experience more like living rooms.
If you receive stuck inside a conversation with somebody older, Enable it happen. That’s exactly where the most effective travel tales start out.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was made to be “the right town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner has a perspective. Each individual view contains a breeze.
But it really’s not almost aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, largely — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You gained’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks choose their time listed here, and eventually, so do you.
In search of much more context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals 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 unforeseen murals and shadows that shift as being the working day moves. Artists Stay in this article. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels extra similar to a mood than a location.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very modern piece on slow vacation — how destinations like this provide another form of luxury. One which doesn’t come with a rate tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere you go.
Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it really rewards people that recognize. You stroll the loop and after that stroll it all over again, viewing a thing new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Wonderful. Extremely alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position 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 Portion of a preservation task — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this just one. His site talks about honoring area and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s very little flashy below, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Clever
Right here’s the point. You'll be able to see Italy in a week. You could strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a fresh strategy. Nonetheless it’s a single we’re ultimately ready to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Pick a village. Sit even now for some time. Permit Italy come to you.