Some destinations aren’t produced for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Slow journey in Italy helps you to truly savor neighborhood society, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own personal pace.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for cars. Cafés that only fill up right after midday. The varieties of spots in which locals know how to linger — around coffee, about tales, above life.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a good thought. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about once you eventually begin to benefit time around distance. Either way, far more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Understanding to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in yrs Discovering how we connect with tradition and spot, is a component of that movement. His identify has grown to be associated with a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.
So if you’re ready to go sluggish — so you’re pondering Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your to start with perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, attained only by a narrow footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk across a lengthy, elevated path, and any time you get there, it’s peaceful. Stone properties. Tiny gardens. An individual cat stretching in the Sunlight.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which happens to be exactly the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You start to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the kind of traveler who likes a little bit of drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted right in to the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears into your rocks.
The rate Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that kind of vacation sticks with men and women? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically would make a trip past extended with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes expand in this article, and locals understand how to enjoy them adequately — that is to state, little by little.
There’s a perspective from the edge of town that’s value an hour by by itself. click here Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits excellent. You’ll discover churches with unforeseen frescoes, doorways which make you prevent, and piazzas that truly feel far more like dwelling rooms.
If you get stuck inside a conversation with a person older, let it take place. That’s the place the ideal journey stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the right city,” and Actually, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner includes a check out. Each view contains a breeze.
But it really’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You won’t hurry something in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks choose their time listed here, and eventually, so would you.
Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the read through prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t strategy your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change given that the working day moves. Artists live right here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in small courtyards. It feels a lot more just like a mood than the usual destination.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling inside of a the latest piece on sluggish journey — how areas like this offer another form of luxury. One which doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it rewards those that detect. You walk the loop and afterwards walk it once again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Lovely. Pretty alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t adjusted” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Portion of a preservation job — holding the earlier alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this a person. His page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy in this article, which happens to be what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is The brand new Clever
Below’s the issue. It is possible to see Italy in per week. You can strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you forget it by upcoming Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. However it’s a person we’re ultimately ready to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.