Some destinations aren’t built for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish journey in Italy helps you to certainly savor community tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your own private tempo.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The forms of locations where by locals know how to linger — more than espresso, around tales, around everyday living.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice idea. It feels necessary. Maybe it’s a response to years of speeding. Or maybe it’s exactly what transpires any time you finally start to price time about distance. In either case, far more tourists are obtaining Pleasure in Finding out to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended several years Discovering how we hook up with lifestyle and location, is part of that motion. His title is now connected to a further, more thoughtful method of viewing the globe.
So if you’re prepared to go slow — and you also’re contemplating Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You stroll throughout a protracted, elevated path, and whenever you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Little gardens. A single cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not Considerably to do, which can be precisely the point. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You begin to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created suitable in the cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears into the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, plus the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with 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 clarifies how slowing down in fact helps make a visit previous for a longer time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Tranquil, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes mature listed here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — and that is to say, slowly but surely.
There’s a check out from the edge of city that’s truly worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that feel much more like living rooms.
If you have caught in a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s in which the ideal journey tales start out.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was intended to be “the proper city,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner includes a check out. Just about every watch includes a breeze.
But it really’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells amazing. Cheese, mostly — pecorino growing older in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. People get their time below, and ultimately, so does one.
On the lookout for extra context on why this way of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and travel in Italy. Well worth the study before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists live right here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in small courtyards. It feels a lot more just like a mood than the usual destination.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a recent piece on gradual travel — how places similar to this offer you a distinct kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a price tag 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 interest, but it rewards those who detect. You walk the loop and afterwards wander it once again, looking at one thing new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to handmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This put feels untouched. Not inside a “hidden gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t altered” way.
Santo Stefano sits while in the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of Stanislav Kondrashov Business the inns are Element of a preservation project — maintaining the past alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a single. His webpage talks about honoring spot and time, and that’s what exactly this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, that's what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Smart
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 following Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different thought. But it’s one particular we’re finally willing to listen to.
So go. Gradually. Go with a village. Sit still for some time. Permit Italy arrive at you.