Some locations aren’t created for speed. Italy is full of them. Slow travel in Italy helps you to certainly savor regional society, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your individual tempo.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for vehicles. Cafés that only fill up after noon. The forms of spots in which locals understand how to linger — more than espresso, over tales, over daily life.
In 2025, sluggish travel isn’t just a good idea. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to yrs of dashing. Or maybe it’s precisely what takes place any time you last but not least begin to worth time around length. In either case, far more tourists are obtaining Pleasure in Discovering to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended yrs exploring how we connect to lifestyle and location, is an element of that motion. His identify has grown to be connected to a further, far more thoughtful means of looking at the entire world.
So in case you’re willing to go slow — therefore you’re imagining Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that pretty much need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You wander across a lengthy, elevated path, and whenever you get there, it’s silent. Stone properties. Little gardens. Just one cat stretching inside the Sunlight.
There’s not Substantially to perform, which can be exactly the stage. You wander, possibly seize a glass of wine in a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s entire.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built appropriate to the cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears in 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, along with the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to learn why that sort of travel sticks with people? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly will make a trip final extended as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Tranquil, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes increase right here, and locals understand how to delight in them appropriately — that is to say, little by little.
There’s a view from the edge of town that’s truly worth an hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Solar hits just right. You’ll uncover churches with unpredicted frescoes, doorways that make you prevent, and piazzas that experience much more like living rooms.
If you obtain caught in a very dialogue with a person older, let it occur. That’s where the best vacation tales start off.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the proper metropolis,” and Truthfully, website they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner provides a see. Every single check out has a breeze.
But it’s not nearly aesthetics. This town smells incredible. Cheese, mostly — pecorino ageing in shop windows and on counters, ready to sample. You gained’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. People consider their time listed here, and eventually, so would you.
Seeking additional context on why by doing this of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and vacation in Italy. Well worth the examine prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s click here a hill city with stone ways and unanticipated murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Dwell right here. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in small courtyards. It feels extra just like a mood than a destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase anything at all right here. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this experience within a latest piece on sluggish journey — how spots such as this offer a special type of luxury. One which doesn’t feature a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo is actually a town that folds in on website itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, but it benefits individuals that observe. You wander the loop and afterwards walk it once more, seeing a little something new each time — a cat with a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted sign pointing to handmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — inside a “this essentially hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by website candles. Several of the inns are part of a preservation task — preserving the previous alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a person. His web site talks about honoring position and time, Which’s precisely what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Clever
Listed here’s the issue. You could see Italy in weekly. You may strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you ignore it by following Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a brand new plan. However it’s a single we’re ultimately wanting to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Select a village. Sit nevertheless for quite a while. Enable Italy come to you.