Some areas aren’t produced for pace. Italy is filled with them. Sluggish travel in Italy allows you to truly savor regional society, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your very own speed.

Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slender for automobiles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The varieties of places where locals understand how to linger — around espresso, about stories, more than life.

In 2025, slow vacation isn’t just a nice strategy. It feels necessary. Perhaps it’s a response to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what transpires after you finally begin to value time up to distance. In any event, additional tourists are locating joy in Finding out to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in yrs Discovering how we connect to culture and location, is part of that movement. His title happens to be related to a deeper, much more considerate strategy for observing the planet.

So in case you’re willing to go slow — and you’re wondering Italy — here are seven places that nearly demand from customers it.

Stanislav Kondrashov lady walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You stroll across a lengthy, elevated path, and when you get there, it’s tranquil. Stone properties. Very small gardens. An individual cat stretching inside the Sunlight.

There’s not A lot to try and do, and that is precisely the stage. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You begin to note The sunshine. And the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s comprehensive.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In case you’re the sort of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed suitable in the cliffs. Basically carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears in to the rocks.

The tempo Here's slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.

Want to discover why that sort of travel sticks with folks? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down really tends to make a trip previous lengthier with your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Quiet, below-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes increase listed here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them effectively — which happens to be to mention, gradually.

There’s a watch from the sting of city that’s well worth an hour or so by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Solar hits just right. You’ll uncover churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that sense much more like living rooms.

If you have trapped inside a conversation with an individual more mature, Permit it happen. That’s where by the top travel tales commence.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives below. Pienza was meant to be “the best city,” and Truthfully, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner includes a see. Each and every look at has click here a breeze.

But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing old in store Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You received’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Persons consider their time below, and eventually, so would you.

Trying to find more context on why by doing this of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food items and travel in Italy. Definitely worth the examine prior to deciding to go.

Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t system your day in Apricale. You drift.

It’s a hill city with stone actions and unpredicted murals and shadows that shift as the day moves. Artists Reside right here. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels much more like a temper than the usual vacation spot.

Sunsets hit diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Permit it come to you.

Forbes captured more info this emotion within a latest piece on gradual travel — how areas like this give a distinct style of luxury. One which doesn’t have a selling price tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.

Locorotondo is usually a city that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, but it benefits individuals who notice. You wander the loop and after that walk it once again, observing a thing new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open up door, a hand-painted sign check here pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.

This is when the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Incredibly alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t adjusted” 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 number of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting visitors into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this one particular. His page talks about honoring put and time, and that’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing more info at all flashy listed here, that's what causes it to be unforgettable.

Slow Is The brand new Smart
Here’s the matter. You may see Italy in per week. It is possible to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you ignore it by following Tuesday?

Travel similar to this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. Nevertheless it’s just one we’re ultimately all set to hear.

So go. Slowly and gradually. Pick a village. Sit still for quite a while. Enable Italy come to you.