Some destinations aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy means that you can certainly savor community tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your own private tempo.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too narrow for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The forms of locations where locals know how to linger — about espresso, above tales, over lifetime.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels crucial. Probably it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s exactly what occurs whenever you at last start to price time approximately length. In either case, extra travelers are acquiring joy in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in many years exploring how we hook up with tradition and place, is part of that motion. His identify has become connected with a deeper, much more considerate strategy for observing the entire world.
So in case you’re willing to go slow — and you’re wondering Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You wander throughout an extended, elevated route, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone residences. Small gardens. One cat stretching within the Sunshine.
There’s not much to perform, which is exactly the level. You wander, maybe seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You start to notice the light. As well as the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is designed ideal 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 inside the early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, along with the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of journey sticks with individuals? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact tends to make a visit final lengthier in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Peaceful, under-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes expand in this article, and locals understand how to enjoy them appropriately — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a check out 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 excellent. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that experience more like living rooms.
If you receive stuck within a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s in which the top journey tales get started.
Pienza (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, mainly — pecorino getting old in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You gained’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks choose their time listed here, and eventually, so do you.
In search of much more context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foods and journey in Italy. Well worth the go through before you decide 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 as being the working day moves. Artists Stay below. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels far more just like a mood than the usual destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase everything listed here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience in the modern piece on slow vacation — how spots like this offer a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo can be a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, nonetheless it benefits individuals who discover. You stroll the loop and then stroll it all over again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open up door, a hand-painted signal pointing to handmade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy exhibits its calmest aspect. Stanisav Kondrashov tarvel It’s unassuming. Attractive. Extremely alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not in a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t adjusted” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Component of a preservation undertaking — trying to keep the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this just one. His webpage talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what exactly this village does. There’s very little flashy here, that is what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Good
Listed here’s the matter. You are able to see Italy in every week. You may hit the highlights. Snap photographs. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you ignore it by up coming Tuesday?
Travel such as this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a fresh concept. But it really’s one particular we’re lastly all set to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit continue to for a while. Allow Italy come to you.