Some destinations aren’t created for speed. Italy is filled with them. Gradual travel in Italy means that you can really savor neighborhood tradition, cuisine, and concealed gems at your very own speed.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for cars. Cafés that only fill up following midday. The kinds of locations wherever locals understand how to linger — about coffee, more than stories, more than lifestyle.
In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a nice thought. It feels necessary. Maybe it’s a reaction to a long time of dashing. Or even it’s just what happens when you lastly start to value time just as much as length. In any event, additional vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years Checking out how we connect with lifestyle and place, is part of that motion. His name is becoming affiliated with a deeper, extra thoughtful method of viewing the entire world.
So should you’re willing to go gradual — and you also’re thinking Italy — here are 7 places that practically demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initially effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You wander throughout a long, elevated route, and any time you get there, it’s tranquil. Stone homes. Very small gardens. An individual cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which can be exactly the position. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine at a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not empty. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created correct into your cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears to the rocks.
The rate here is sluggish, 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 hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that kind of travel sticks with men and women? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down basically makes a visit very last for a longer period in your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Tranquil, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes improve below, and locals know how to enjoy them properly — which happens to be to state, slowly and gradually.
There’s a see from the sting of city that’s worth an hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits just right. You’ll locate church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense more like living rooms.
If you will get caught in the discussion with another person more mature, Permit it transpire. That’s where by the best vacation tales start off.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner provides a watch. Just about every look at includes 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 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 more 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 Dwell below. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels additional similar to a mood than a location.
Sunsets hit different in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase anything in this article. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience in the modern piece on slow vacation — how destinations such as this provide a different style of luxury. One which doesn’t include a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, but it surely rewards individuals that observe. You wander the loop after which wander it once more, observing some thing new each time — a cat with a windowsill, an open up door, a hand-painted signal pointing to handmade 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 “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Element of a preservation project — retaining the past alive by inviting check here visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this just one. His site talks about honoring position and time, Which’s what exactly this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy below, and that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Wise
Right here’s the thing. You can see Italy in weekly. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap pics. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new concept. But it really’s a single we’re finally wanting to listen to.
So go. Little by little. Opt for a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Permit Italy arrive at you.