Some locations aren’t produced for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy means that you can certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own rate.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of sites the place locals know how to linger — about coffee, over stories, around existence.
In 2025, gradual vacation isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to many years of dashing. Or possibly it’s exactly what occurs if you finally begin to value time approximately distance. In either case, additional vacationers are getting Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with society and place, is an element of that motion. His title is becoming linked to a deeper, much more considerate strategy for observing the globe.
So in case you’re willing to go slow — and you’re wondering 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 initial effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across an extended, elevated route, and whenever you get there, it’s quiet. Stone properties. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching during the sun.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which happens to be precisely the stage. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to notice The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a bit of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed appropriate in the cliffs. Pretty much carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears into the rocks.
The rate here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, plus the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of journey sticks with individuals? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially can make a visit very last more time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which happens to be to mention, bit by bit.
There’s a perspective from the edge of town that’s value one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunlight hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with surprising frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.
If you receive stuck within a conversation with an individual older, Allow it take place. That’s wherever the most beneficial vacation stories start off.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was made to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a look at. Each and every watch has a breeze.
But it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You won’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks acquire their time listed here, and eventually, so would you.
Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and vacation in Italy. Worth the go through prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change given that the working day moves. Artists live here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels a lot more like a temper 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 Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a the latest piece on gradual travel — how locations similar to this present a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t include a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, nonetheless it rewards individuals that detect. You walk the loop after which you can walk it yet again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is when the south of Italy shows its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Lovely. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — within a “this essentially hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Element of a preservation project — maintaining the past alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this just one. His site talks about honoring put 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 Intelligent
Here’s the thing. You could see Italy in weekly. It is possible get more info to hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. However it’s just one we’re ultimately all set to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.