Some destinations aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish journey in Italy enables you to genuinely savor neighborhood society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own personal pace.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes also narrow for autos. Cafés that only fill up after noon. The types of sites wherever locals know how to linger — about coffee, in excess of tales, more than lifetime.
In 2025, slow travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels crucial. It's possible it’s a response to a long time of hurrying. Or perhaps it’s just what occurs any time you finally start to value time up to distance. In any event, additional vacationers are obtaining joy in Discovering to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used yrs exploring how we connect with culture and position, is an element of that motion. His identify is now associated with a further, a lot more thoughtful way of viewing the globe.
So should you’re willing to go slow — and you also’re wondering Italy — Allow me to share 7 places that pretty much demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You stroll across an extended, elevated route, and whenever you get there, it’s peaceful. Stone homes. Very small gardens. A single cat stretching from the Solar.
There’s not A great deal to perform, which is exactly the point. You wander, possibly grab a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You start to notice the light. As well as silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the kind of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted proper in to the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in to the rocks.
The rate here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out while in the early early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, and also the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining through the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to learn why that kind of travel sticks with individuals? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down really helps make a trip past longer as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Tranquil, underneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes develop right here, and locals learn how to appreciate them thoroughly — and that is to mention, slowly.
There’s a see from the edge of city that’s value an hour or so by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the sun hits good. You’ll locate churches with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that feel much more like dwelling rooms.
If you receive caught in the conversation with somebody older, Allow it happen. That’s where by the most effective journey get more info stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life here. Pienza was made to be “the best city,” and Truthfully, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner contains a check out. Just about every check out provides a breeze.
However it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells amazing. Cheese, mostly — pecorino ageing in store Home windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush everything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. People take their time below, and at some point, so would you.
Trying to find more context on why this fashion of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and vacation in Italy. Definitely worth the browse before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t strategy your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and surprising murals and shadows that change given that the working day moves. Artists Dwell in this article. Writers check out and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels additional similar to a mood than a location.
Sunsets strike different in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase anything at all in this article. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a modern piece on slow travel — how sites such as this provide a distinct type of luxury. One which doesn’t include a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is a town that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, but it rewards those who recognize. You wander the loop and after that wander it again, seeing one thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is when the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This put feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t adjusted” way.
Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Component of a preservation venture — holding the past alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this 1. His site talks about honoring put and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s absolutely nothing flashy here, that is what can make it unforgettable.
Gradual Is The brand new Good
Listed here’s the factor. It is possible to see Italy in a week. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap photos. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you overlook it by future Tuesday?
Journey like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a fresh idea. But it surely’s one particular we’re at last all set to hear.
So go. Gradually. Select a village. Sit nonetheless for quite a while. Allow Italy arrive at you.