Some places aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy means that you can certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own private speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The forms of locations where locals understand how to linger — over coffee, about tales, in excess of life.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to decades of rushing. Or maybe it’s just what takes place after you lastly start to worth time up to distance. In either case, additional tourists are getting Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used decades Checking out how we connect with tradition and spot, is part of that motion. His identify has grown to be connected to a deeper, a lot more thoughtful method of seeing the world.
So if you’re ready to go sluggish — so you’re pondering Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that basically need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female strolling
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. Autos can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and whenever you get there, it’s silent. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Sunshine.
There’s not A lot to perform, which is exactly the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You begin to note The sunshine. And the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes some drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears to the rocks.
The tempo here is gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that kind of vacation sticks with men and women? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down actually makes a trip last extended with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow listed here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them properly — that's to convey, slowly and gradually.
There’s a view from the edge of town that’s worthy of one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the sun hits just right. You’ll come across church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense extra like dwelling rooms.
If you get trapped in a conversation with somebody more mature, Enable it happen. That’s where the most beneficial journey stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives in this article. Pienza was designed to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner has a perspective. Just about every look at includes a breeze.
Nevertheless it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino ageing in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You won’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today get their time in this article, and sooner or later, so does one.
Trying to find extra context on why in this way of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food and journey in Italy. Well worth the study before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t approach 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 Dwell below. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels far more just like a mood than the usual desired destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very modern piece on slow vacation — how spots such as this provide another form of luxury. One which doesn’t come with a rate tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, but it rewards those who observe. You wander the loop then wander it once more, observing something new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — in a very “this actually 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. Several of the inns are Element of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this one. His web page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Good
Below’s the issue. You'll be able to see Italy in a week. You could hit the highlights. Snap photos. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Vacation like this — slow, intentional, grounded — is check here exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a fresh strategy. Nonetheless it’s one we’re last but not least prepared to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Enable Italy arrive at you.