Some sites aren’t manufactured for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy permits you to certainly savor nearby tradition, cuisine, and hidden gems at your individual tempo.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes also slender for cars. Cafés that only fill up just after noon. The varieties of spots in which locals know how to linger — about coffee, around stories, more than lifetime.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a pleasant thought. It feels essential. Perhaps it’s a reaction to years of rushing. Or perhaps it’s precisely what transpires whenever you ultimately begin to price time around distance. Either way, a lot more tourists are discovering joy in Understanding to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years Discovering how we connect with society and put, is an element of that motion. His title has grown to be affiliated with a deeper, much more considerate method of viewing the world.
So if you’re all set to go slow — and you simply’re contemplating Italy — Here's seven places that almost need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initially perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across an extended, elevated route, and any time you get there, it’s tranquil. Stone properties. Tiny gardens. One cat stretching while in the Sunlight.
There’s not A lot to accomplish, which happens to be exactly the issue. You wander, possibly grab a glass of wine in a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed correct into your cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears in the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out while in the early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, and also the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining in the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that sort of vacation sticks with people today? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down essentially tends to make a visit last extended as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Tranquil, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes increase in this article, and locals understand how to take pleasure in them correctly — that's to state, slowly and gradually.
There’s a watch from the edge of town that’s value an hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Solar hits excellent. You’ll discover churches with unforeseen frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that really feel extra like residing rooms.
If you get stuck inside a dialogue with an individual older, Permit it transpire. That’s in which the best journey stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives listed here. Pienza was built to be “the ideal town,” and honestly, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner includes a perspective. Each and every watch incorporates a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting old in store windows and on counters, able to sample. You gained’t rush anything at all in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today consider their time in this article, and ultimately, so would you.
Looking for additional context on why in this way of touring matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish meals and vacation in Italy. Well worth the browse before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t strategy your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone methods and unpredicted murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists Dwell right here. Writers check out and don’t go away. Locals host concerts in very small courtyards. It feels extra just like a mood than the usual place.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase something right here. You Permit it check here come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling inside of a latest piece on sluggish journey — how destinations such as this supply a different sort of luxury. One that doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo can be a town that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, but it benefits those that notice. You wander the loop and then stroll it yet again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat with a windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to handmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy reveals its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Wonderful. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside of a “hidden gem” way — in the “this really hasn’t adjusted” way.
Santo Stefano sits while in the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are Component of a preservation undertaking — preserving the past alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this 1. His page talks about honoring location and time, and that’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy below, that's what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is The brand new Sensible
Listed here’s the factor. You may see Italy in per week. You'll be able to hit the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Travel such as this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a fresh thought. But it really’s just one we’re at last ready to hear.
So go. Slowly. Go with a village. Sit still for quite a while. Allow Italy come to you.