Some destinations aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish vacation in Italy permits you to genuinely savor neighborhood culture, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.

Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for automobiles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of destinations the place locals learn how to linger — in excess of espresso, above tales, over lifetime.

In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels crucial. It's possible it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s exactly what occurs if you finally begin to value time around distance. In either case, far more 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 put, is an element of that movement. His name is now connected with 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 are 7 places that almost need it.

Stanislav Kondrashov female walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, achieved only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You wander across a long, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone houses. 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 start to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s finish.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the kind of traveler who likes a little bit of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is designed suitable into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears into the rocks.

The rate Here's slow, but 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 learn why that sort of travel sticks with individuals? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a visit final longer in the memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes expand in this article, and locals understand how to love them appropriately — that is to mention, slowly.

There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunshine hits good. You’ll come across church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense more like dwelling rooms.

If you get trapped inside a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s exactly where the top travel tales get started.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life listed here. Pienza was built to be “the proper metropolis,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner provides a look at. Each and every see has a breeze.

But it’s not almost aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, largely — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks take their time listed here, and eventually, so do you.

On the lookout for a lot more context on why this fashion of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foods and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the read before you go.

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

It’s a hill city with stone ways and sudden murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists Reside right here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels much more like a temper than a spot.

Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything here. You Enable it come to you.

Forbes captured this feeling in a the latest piece on sluggish journey — how spots like this offer a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots in all places.

Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, nevertheless it benefits people who notice. website You wander the loop and after that wander it yet again, seeing a little something new each 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 demonstrates its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Very alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — in a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.

Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are A part of a preservation undertaking — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting visitors into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this just one. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.

Sluggish Is the New Good
Below’s the point. You are able to see Italy in a week. You could hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?

Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new plan. Nevertheless it’s a person we’re last but not least ready to hear.

So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Enable Italy come to you.