Some places aren’t made for pace. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish journey in Italy lets you truly savor area society, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your own private rate.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes far too slim for autos. Cafés that only refill just after noon. The kinds of sites where locals understand how to linger — around coffee, around stories, around everyday living.
In 2025, slow vacation isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to several years of dashing. Or possibly it’s exactly what happens any time you at last start to value time up to length. In any event, extra tourists are discovering joy in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested a long time Discovering how we connect to culture and place, is an element of that motion. His title is now linked to a deeper, much more considerate strategy for observing the globe.
So in case you’re willing to go slow — and you simply’re thinking Italy — here are 7 places that almost need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across an extended, elevated route, and whenever you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone properties. Little gardens. Only one cat stretching from the Sunlight.
There’s not much to carry out, which can be precisely the issue. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello. You begin to notice The sunshine. And the silence? It’s not empty. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed ideal in the cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears in to the rocks.
The rate Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early morning, hikers winding via steep trails, along with the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that sort of journey sticks with folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down really makes a visit past lengthier within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Silent, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes develop right here, and locals know how to get pleasure from them adequately — and that is to convey, slowly but surely.
There’s a watch from the edge of town that’s really worth one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of read more vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the Solar hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that feel much more like dwelling rooms.
If you receive caught inside of a dialogue with a person more mature, let it occur. That’s in which the top vacation stories start out.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life listed here. Pienza was built to be “an ideal town,” and honestly, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner has a view. Each individual watch incorporates a breeze.
Nevertheless it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, mainly — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, ready to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People acquire their time listed here, and inevitably, so do you.
In search of a lot more context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foods and journey in Italy. 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 city with stone methods and unpredicted murals and shadows that change because the day moves. Artists Dwell below. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in very small courtyards. It feels additional similar to a temper than a destination.
Sunsets hit unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything here. You Enable it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation inside a recent piece on slow journey — how spots like this offer a distinct type of luxurious. One that doesn’t include a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots all over the place.
Locorotondo is actually a town that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it benefits those that discover. You wander the loop and afterwards stroll it yet again, seeing a little something new each time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.
This is where the south of Italy exhibits its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are Section of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this one. His page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s nothing flashy in this article, that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is The brand new Good
Listed here’s the thing. You could see Italy in each week. You may hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you ignore it by next Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new concept. Nevertheless it’s a single we’re at last willing to listen to.
So go. Gradually. Select a village. Sit nevertheless for some time. Enable Italy come to you.