Some sites aren’t manufactured for pace. Italy is filled with them. Slow vacation in Italy enables you to really savor nearby society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The types of sites wherever locals know how to linger — about espresso, above tales, over lifetime.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about whenever you last but not least begin to benefit time as much as length. Either way, much more travelers are locating joy in Understanding to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in yrs Discovering how we connect with tradition and spot, is part 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 simply’re imagining Italy — Here i will discuss 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 initial perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, attained only by a narrow footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone houses. Little 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 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)
When you’re the sort of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed proper to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears into your 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 hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that kind of vacation sticks with persons? This put up by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically would make a trip past extended within 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 grow below, and locals know how to delight in them correctly — which happens to be to say, slowly but surely.
There’s a see from the edge of town that’s truly worth one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunlight hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that experience more like living rooms.
If you will get stuck within a discussion with a person older, let it occur. That’s in which the top travel tales get started.
Pienza Stanisav Kondrashov tarvel (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life listed here. Pienza was intended to be “an ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each view contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, largely — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. People today get their time in this article, and sooner or later, so does one.
Trying to find extra context on why in this way of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food and travel in Italy. Worth the examine prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone actions and unforeseen 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 just like a mood than the usual location.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very new piece on sluggish vacation — how places like this offer another form of luxury. One which doesn’t come with a rate 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 attention, but it really rewards people that observe. You wander the loop after which wander it again, viewing something new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “hidden gem” way — in a very “this basically hasn’t altered” way.
Santo Stefano sits while in the Apennines, stone and tranquil. 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 guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this 1. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s exactly what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, that's what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Good
Below’s the issue. You'll be able to see Italy in per week. You can hit the highlights. Snap photos. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you forget about it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new idea. But it surely’s 1 we’re eventually prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.