Some areas aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy means that you can certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slim for vehicles. Cafés that only fill up following midday. The forms of locations where locals understand how to linger — over coffee, around stories, in excess of lifestyle.
In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a good concept. It feels necessary. Perhaps it’s a reaction to decades of rushing. Or even it’s exactly what occurs if you ultimately begin to value time just as much as length. In any case, far more tourists are discovering joy in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested several years Discovering how we connect to culture and location, is part of that motion. His title is becoming connected to a deeper, far more thoughtful way of looking at the whole world.
So for those who’re all set to go gradual — and you also’re pondering Italy — Allow me to share seven spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your to start with impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You stroll throughout an extended, elevated route, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone houses. Small gardens. One cat stretching inside the Sunshine.
There’s not A lot to try and do, that is exactly the place. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You start to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s entire.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears in the rocks.
The tempo here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out while in the early morning, hikers winding via steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that kind of travel sticks with people today? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down really makes a visit last longer in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Silent, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes expand listed here, and locals understand how to enjoy them correctly — and that is to state, slowly but surely.
There’s a view from the sting of town that’s value one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that sense more like living rooms.
If you receive stuck within a conversation with an individual older, let it take place. That’s wherever the most beneficial vacation stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the right town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a check out. Each and every see has a breeze.
But it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t hurry something in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals acquire their time right here, and inevitably, so do you.
In search of much more context on why this fashion of touring matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foodstuff and vacation in Italy. Definitely worth the study 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 ways and surprising murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Dwell listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels additional just like a mood than a vacation spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something here. You Enable it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a current piece on gradual travel — how locations similar to this give a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a rate 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 focus, but it rewards those who detect. You walk the loop and afterwards walk it once again, looking at one thing new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not within a “hidden gem” way — within a “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 the inns are Element of a preservation venture — retaining the past alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this one particular. His website page talks about honoring position and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, that's what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Intelligent
Here’s the detail. You may see Italy in every week. You'll be able to strike here the highlights. Snap images. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new plan. Nevertheless it’s one we’re last but not least prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for a while. Let Italy come to you.