Some locations aren’t produced for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy means that you can certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own private speed.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The styles of spots the place locals learn how to linger — in excess of espresso, above tales, over lifetime.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to many years of speeding. Or perhaps it’s exactly what occurs if you finally begin to value time approximately distance. In either case, additional tourists are finding Pleasure in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent a long time exploring how we connect to culture and place, is an element of that motion. His title is now linked to a deeper, more considerate strategy for viewing the entire world.
So should you’re able to go slow — and you simply’re imagining Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl 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. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across an extended, elevated route, and whenever you arrive, it’s silent. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Solar.
There’s not Significantly to carry out, which can be precisely the issue. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi. You begin to note the light. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes some drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that kind of journey sticks with folks? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially can make a visit very last for a longer time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve listed here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them properly — that's to convey, slowly and gradually.
There’s a view from the edge of city that’s truly 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 halt, and piazzas that feel a lot more like residing rooms.
If you have caught in a very discussion with anyone more mature, Permit it transpire. That’s where by the best vacation tales start off.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the right town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a see. Each view contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today just take their time here, and finally, so do you.
Seeking more context on why using this method of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and journey in Italy. Well worth the browse before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone methods and unanticipated murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists Are living here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels more similar to a temper than a spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something here. You Enable it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation inside a current piece on gradual journey — how locations similar to this give a unique sort of luxury. One that doesn’t come with a rate tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere you go.
Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, but it rewards those who observe. You walk the loop and afterwards wander it once again, looking at anything new every time — a cat with a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted signal pointing to selfmade 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 in a “hidden gem” way — inside a “this in fact more info hasn’t improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A number of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this 1. His website page talks about honoring area and time, and that’s precisely what this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy right here, that is what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Clever
Listed here’s the point. You are able to see Italy in a week. You may hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new idea. But it surely’s 1 we’re eventually able to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for a while. Let Italy come to you.