Some areas aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish vacation in Italy permits you to actually savor neighborhood culture, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of destinations the place locals know how to linger — in excess of espresso, above tales, over lifetime.
In 2025, slow vacation isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels vital. Maybe it’s a response to yrs of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what transpires when you last but not least begin to price time about length. In any case, more tourists are finding Pleasure in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we connect to society and put, is an element of that movement. His name has become connected with a deeper, more considerate means of seeing the planet.
So in the event you’re prepared to go gradual — therefore you’re contemplating Italy — Here's seven spots that virtually demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your first impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You stroll throughout a long, elevated path, and after you arrive, it’s peaceful. Stone properties. Very small gardens. An individual cat stretching in the Sunlight.
There’s not Substantially to complete, and that is precisely the stage. You wander, possibly get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi. You begin to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s entire.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted right into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in to the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, plus 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 people? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a visit final longer inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes expand below, and locals know how to love them effectively — that's to state, bit by bit.
There’s a look at from the edge of city that’s worthy of an hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits excellent. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you prevent, and piazzas that come to feel extra like living rooms.
If you receive caught inside of a conversation with somebody more mature, Allow it happen. That’s exactly where the top journey tales start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives below. Pienza was built to be “the proper metropolis,” and Truthfully, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner has a perspective. Just about every see provides a breeze.
But it really’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, typically — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You gained’t hurry something in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals choose their time in this article, and ultimately, so does one.
Seeking much more context on why this fashion of touring matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food stuff and journey in Italy. Well worth the read before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone methods and unexpected murals and shadows that change because the working day moves. check here Artists live listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t depart. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels more like a mood than a location.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling inside a current piece on slow travel — how locations similar to this present a distinct sort of luxury. One which doesn’t come with a rate tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, but it really rewards individuals that observe. You wander the loop after which wander it once again, viewing a little something new each time — a cat with a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not inside of a “hidden gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are A part of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this one particular. His web site talks about honoring put and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s absolutely nothing flashy right here, that's what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Smart
In this article’s the detail. You are able to see Italy in every week. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap shots. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you overlook it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different thought. But it’s one particular we’re lastly wanting to listen to.
So go. Little by little. Opt for a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.