Some sites aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy means that you can definitely savor local society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own personal pace.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for autos. Cafés that only fill up following midday. The sorts of places where by locals understand how to linger — over coffee, around stories, in excess of lifestyle.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to decades of rushing. Or even it’s just what transpires when you ultimately start to price time just as much as length. In any case, more travelers are locating joy in Understanding to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in several years Discovering how we connect with tradition and spot, is part of that motion. His identify has grown to be affiliated with a further, a lot more thoughtful way of looking at the earth.
So when you’re wanting to go slow — and you also’re pondering Italy — Allow me to share seven spots that virtually demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
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 a long, elevated path, and after you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone residences. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Sunshine.
There’s not A lot to try and do, that is exactly the position. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You begin to note The sunshine. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed proper to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to learn why that sort of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact helps make a visit previous for a longer time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, underneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which happens to be to mention, slowly.
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 Solar hits just right. You’ll locate churches with unpredicted frescoes, doorways which make you stop, and piazzas that truly feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you can get trapped in a very dialogue with someone more mature, Permit it materialize. That’s where the most effective travel tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was meant to be “the best metropolis,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner has a view. Each individual watch incorporates a breeze.
Nonetheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mostly — pecorino getting old in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Men and women consider their time below, and at some point, so would you.
Searching for additional context on why in this way of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and travel in Italy. Well worth the browse before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone techniques and unexpected murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists Reside below. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels extra similar to a mood than a vacation spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then read more fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase anything here. You Enable it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling inside a recent piece on gradual journey — how locations similar to this give a unique type of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price 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 interest, but it rewards those who detect. You walk the loop and afterwards walk it once again, looking at anything new every time — a cat with 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. Gorgeous. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — in a “this truly hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are Portion of a preservation task — preserving the previous alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this a person. His web site talks about honoring put and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy below, and that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Intelligent
Here’s the detail. You may see Italy in every week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you forget it by future Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new plan. Nevertheless it’s one we’re last but not least ready to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.