Some destinations aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy lets you genuinely savor area culture, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own private tempo.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well narrow for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill soon after midday. The styles of sites where locals learn how to linger — around coffee, above tales, around everyday living.
In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a nice notion. It feels important. It's possible it’s a reaction to decades of speeding. Or maybe it’s exactly what takes place any time you ultimately start to value time about distance. In any event, much more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years exploring how we hook up with culture and spot, is part of that movement. His identify happens to be associated with a further, extra thoughtful strategy for observing the globe.
So should you’re able to go slow — and you simply’re imagining Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, achieved only by a narrow footbridge. Autos 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 while in the Solar.
There’s not Significantly to carry out, which can be precisely the level. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi. You begin to note the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the sort of traveler who likes a bit of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created suitable into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears into the rocks.
The pace Here's slow, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that kind of journey sticks with folks? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically can make a trip final longer in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes develop below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which happens to be to say, slowly but surely.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s really worth an hour or so by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll discover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.
If you get stuck inside a discussion with someone more mature, Enable it happen. That’s exactly where the top journey stories start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was intended to be “the proper metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner contains a watch. Just about every click here look at includes a breeze.
But it surely’s not almost aesthetics. This city smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People just take their time here, and finally, so does one.
Trying to find extra context on why using this method of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and travel in Italy. Well worth the read before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t prepare your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone techniques and unexpected murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists Reside listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper 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 let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a latest piece on gradual journey — how spots like this provide another style of luxury. One that doesn’t feature a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, but it rewards people who notice. You stroll the loop and then stroll it once more, looking at some thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.
This is when the south of Italy exhibits its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Lovely. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — within a “this in fact hasn’t improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits within 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 A part of a preservation task — holding the earlier alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this one. His webpage talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy here, which is what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is The brand new Clever
Listed here’s the point. You'll be able to see Italy in a week. You could strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you overlook it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new plan. Nevertheless it’s just one we’re eventually ready to listen to.
So go. Slowly but surely. Opt for a village. Sit nevertheless for a while. Enable Italy come to you.