Some areas aren’t manufactured for pace. Italy is filled with them. Slow journey in Italy helps you to certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own private speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The sorts of locations where locals understand how to linger — over coffee, about tales, above everyday living.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels vital. It's possible it’s a response to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s just what occurs any time you finally start to value time up to length. In any event, extra tourists are finding Pleasure in learning to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His title happens to be associated with a further, additional thoughtful method of looking at the whole world.
So for those who’re all set to go sluggish — and you also’re considering Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that basically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk across a lengthy, elevated route, and if you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Little gardens. Just one cat stretching during the sun.
There’s not Substantially to complete, that's precisely the point. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You begin to note The sunshine. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes some drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built right into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears in to the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of vacation sticks with persons? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down actually will make a trip past for a longer period with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — and that is to say, bit by bit.
There’s a view from the edge of town that’s value one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unpredicted frescoes, doorways which make you stop, and piazzas that truly feel more like dwelling rooms.
If you can get trapped in a dialogue with someone more mature, Enable it materialize. That’s where the very best travel tales start out.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was made to be “the right town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner features a view. Every perspective provides a breeze.
Nonetheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells incredible. Cheese, mostly — pecorino growing old in shop windows and on counters, all set to sample. You gained’t hurry something in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals acquire their time right here, and finally, so do you.
Seeking a lot more context on why in this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the go through before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t approach your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone steps and surprising murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Reside listed here. Writers website take a look at and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in small courtyards. It feels a lot more like a mood than the usual place.
Sunsets hit diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all right here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a current piece on gradual journey — how areas similar to this present a distinct type of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo can be a town that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it surely rewards people that discover. You stroll the loop and after that stroll it all over again, viewing a little something new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not within a “hidden gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t altered” way.
Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s very little flashy below, and that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Intelligent
In this article’s the detail. You may see Italy in every week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap images. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by up coming Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new concept. But it surely’s a single we’re at last able to hear.
So go. Slowly. Select a village. Sit however for a while. Let Italy come to you.