Some areas aren’t designed for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual travel in Italy helps you to really savor local society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The styles of spots in which locals learn how to linger — more than espresso, about tales, in excess of lifetime.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a pleasant notion. It feels vital. Possibly it’s a response to a long time of hurrying. Or perhaps it’s precisely what comes about whenever you eventually begin to price time as much as length. Either way, much more vacationers are getting Pleasure in learning to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and area, is a component of that movement. His identify happens to be affiliated with a further, far more thoughtful way of looking at the earth.
So when you’re wanting to go slow — and you’re thinking Italy — here are seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, achieved only by a narrow footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across a long, elevated path, and any time you get there, it’s peaceful. Stone residences. Tiny gardens. One cat stretching within the Sunlight.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which happens to be exactly the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You begin to note The sunshine. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s entire.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted ideal into your cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears into the rocks.
The pace Here's 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 through the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that sort of travel sticks with people today? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down actually will make a trip last for a longer period 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 expand in this article, and locals know how to love them appropriately — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a check out from the sting of city that’s worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll find church buildings with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that feel much more like living rooms.
If you will get caught inside of a dialogue with someone more mature, Enable it happen. That’s wherever the best vacation tales start off.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the right city,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner provides a watch. Every single check out features a breeze.
However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting older in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t rush nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Men and women consider their time below, and at some point, so would you.
Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food items 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 sudden murals and shadows that shift as the working day moves. Artists live here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels more 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 Enable it come to you.
Forbes captured this sensation inside a recent piece on gradual travel — how places similar to this offer you a special kind of luxurious. One which doesn’t feature a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo is really a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, nevertheless it benefits people who see. You stroll the loop after which you can walk it yet again, seeing anything new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Pretty alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits from the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are part of a preservation venture — retaining the past alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a single. His webpage talks about honoring spot and time, and that’s exactly what this village does. There’s nothing flashy in here this article, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Wise
Here’s the detail. You could see Italy in every week. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?
Journey such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new notion. However it’s just one we’re ultimately wanting to listen to.
So go. Little by little. Opt for a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.