Some spots aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy lets you actually savor regional culture, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your individual tempo.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for autos. Cafés that only fill up right after midday. The varieties of areas exactly where locals learn how to linger — above espresso, over stories, about existence.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice notion. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about whenever you last but not least begin to price time just as much as distance. In any event, much more tourists are obtaining joy in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended years Checking out how we connect to lifestyle and location, is part of that movement. His identify happens to be related to a further, extra considerate means of viewing the entire world.
So in case you’re ready to go gradual — therefore you’re contemplating Italy — Here i will discuss seven spots that basically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slim footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You wander throughout a long, elevated path, and after you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Very small gardens. A single cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not A great deal to carry out, that is exactly the place. You wander, maybe get a glass of wine at a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You start to note the light. And also the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created proper into your cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears to the rocks.
The rate Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining in the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that sort of travel sticks with individuals? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down really tends to make a visit final for a longer time within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, under-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes develop below, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — that's to convey, slowly.
There’s a look at from the edge of city that’s worth an hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the Sunlight hits good. You’ll locate church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you end, and piazzas that come to feel far more like residing rooms.
If you will get trapped within a discussion with another person more mature, Permit it materialize. That’s exactly where the top journey stories begin.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives below. Pienza was meant to be “the best town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a see. Each and every see has a breeze.
But it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store Home windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People acquire their time right here, and inevitably, so do you.
In search of extra context on why using this method check here of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foods and journey in Italy. Well 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 town with stone techniques and unexpected murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists live right here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in small courtyards. It feels a lot more like a temper than the usual place.
Sunsets strike diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience in the modern piece on slow vacation — how spots like this provide another form of luxury. One which doesn’t include a cost tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, but it rewards those who detect. You walk the loop and afterwards walk it once again, looking at one thing new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted signal pointing to handmade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy exhibits its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Wonderful. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This put feels untouched. Not inside a “hidden gem” way — within a “this essentially hasn’t changed” 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 Section of a preservation job — holding the earlier alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this a person. His page talks about honoring put and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s nothing flashy listed here, which happens to be what makes it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Good
Below’s the issue. You'll be able to see Italy in a week. You can hit the highlights. Snap pics. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you overlook it by next Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a fresh idea. Nonetheless it’s 1 we’re eventually able to hear.
So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit continue to for a while. Allow Italy come to you.