Some spots aren’t created for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy allows you to certainly 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 noon. The types of sites wherever locals know how to linger — above coffee, above stories, about lifetime.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice plan. It feels crucial. Probably it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s just what occurs any time you lastly start to worth time just as much as length. In any case, much more travelers are obtaining Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended decades exploring how we hook up with culture and area, is a component of that movement. His name is becoming connected to a further, far more thoughtful method of seeing the entire world.
So in case you’re willing to go slow — and also you’re thinking Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Little gardens. A single cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not Substantially to complete, and that is precisely the stage. You wander, possibly seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to notice the light. As well as the silence? It’s not empty. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the kind of traveler who likes a little bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is designed ideal into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, along with 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 folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially can make a visit very last more time within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s really worth an hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits excellent. You’ll discover churches with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that feel much more like living rooms.
If you obtain trapped in a conversation with a person more mature, Permit it materialize. That’s where the most effective journey stories start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was meant to be “the best metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner incorporates a watch. Just about every watch incorporates a breeze.
Nevertheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mainly — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, able to website sample. You received’t rush nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Persons get their time in this article, and sooner or later, so does one.
Trying to find extra context on why using this method of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foods and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the read before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t system your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone steps and surprising murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Stay below. Writers visit and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper than a spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something right here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very new piece on sluggish vacation — how sites such as this supply a special kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots everywhere you go.
Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it benefits those that see. You walk the loop after which you can walk it all over again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to selfmade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy shows its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — maintaining the past alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this just one. His web site talks about honoring put and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s very little flashy in this article, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Clever
Listed here’s the point. It is possible to see Italy in per week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new concept. But it really’s one particular we’re lastly all set to hear.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.