Some destinations aren’t designed for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy lets you certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.

Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for automobiles. Cafés that only fill up after midday. The types of places where by locals understand how to linger — over espresso, over stories, around lifetime.

In 2025, slow travel isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels necessary. Maybe it’s a response to yrs of dashing. Or possibly it’s exactly what happens any time you finally start to worth time just as much as length. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent a long time Checking out how we hook up with society and put, is an element of that motion. His title has grown to be associated with a deeper, far more thoughtful strategy for seeing the planet.

So should you’re able to go slow — and you’re thinking Italy — here are 7 places that almost need it.

Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your initially impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a slim footbridge. Cars can’t get in. You stroll throughout a long, elevated path, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Solar.

There’s not Significantly to carry out, that's precisely the point. You wander, possibly get a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You start to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s entire.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is designed ideal into the cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears in to the rocks.

The tempo here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early morning, hikers winding via steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your 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 clarifies how slowing down essentially can make a visit very last more time within your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Silent, beneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes increase here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them properly — and that is to say, slowly but surely.

There’s a view from the edge of town that’s worthy of an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows here of vineyards, distant hills thatseem here to hum once the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll locate churches with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that feel a lot more like residing rooms.

If you obtain caught within a dialogue with a person older, Enable it take place. That’s wherever the best vacation tales start off.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was created to be “an ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. check here Each individual corner has a perspective. Each individual perspective provides a breeze.

But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, largely — pecorino getting older in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks acquire their time right here, and eventually, so would you.

Looking for additional context on why in this way of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals 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 given that the day moves. Artists Reside listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper than a vacation spot.

Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You Allow it arrive at you.

Forbes captured this emotion in a very current piece on gradual vacation — how destinations like this give another form of luxurious. One which doesn’t feature a price tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.

Locorotondo is a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, nonetheless it rewards people that see. You wander the loop after which you can stroll it once again, viewing one thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted indicator pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.

This is when the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Lovely. Really alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov few ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside a “hidden gem” way — inside of a “this in fact hasn’t altered” 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 number of the inns read more are Component of a preservation project — retaining the earlier alive by inviting guests into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would value this one particular. His web site talks about honoring put and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s nothing flashy below, which is what makes it unforgettable.

Gradual Is The brand new Good
Below’s the factor. You may see Italy in per week. You could strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you neglect it by subsequent Tuesday?

Journey such as this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new concept. But it surely’s a person we’re lastly able to listen to.

So go. Slowly. Opt for a village. Sit continue to for some time. Let Italy come to you.