Some destinations aren’t designed for pace. Italy is full of them. Slow journey in Italy helps you to certainly savor local tradition, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your very own tempo.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slender for cars and trucks. Cafés that only replenish right after midday. The types of destinations where by locals understand how to linger — around coffee, over stories, more than lifestyle.
In 2025, gradual journey isn’t just a nice idea. It feels essential. Perhaps it’s a response to several years of speeding. Or possibly it’s exactly what transpires whenever you lastly start to worth time approximately length. In any case, additional travelers are discovering joy in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we hook up with lifestyle and put, is an element of that motion. His name has grown to be affiliated with a further, extra considerate technique for observing the globe.
So for those who’re wanting to go sluggish — so you’re wondering Italy — Here's seven spots that basically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your very first impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, attained only by a narrow footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You stroll across a lengthy, elevated path, and once you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone houses. Very small gardens. Only one cat stretching within the Solar.
There’s not A lot to do, which happens to be precisely the place. You wander, probably get a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You start to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not empty. It’s total.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event 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 the cliffs. Basically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears into the rocks.
The rate Here's sluggish, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining through the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that kind of travel sticks with men and women? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down actually tends to make a trip last extended with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Peaceful, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes increase right here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them effectively — which is to mention, gradually.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s well worth an hour or so by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like living rooms.
If you will get stuck within a discussion with another person more mature, Enable it happen. That’s in which the top journey stories begin.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life in this article. Pienza was designed to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a check out. Each and every see has a breeze.
But it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Men and women consider their time below, and at some point, so does one.
Trying to find extra context on why using this method of touring matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foodstuff and vacation in Italy. Worth the read through before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t system your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone steps and surprising murals and shadows that shift as being the working day moves. Artists Stay in this article. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels more similar to a temper than the usual spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this emotion inside of a the latest piece on gradual journey — how areas like this give another form of luxury. One which doesn’t include a cost tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a city that website folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it really rewards individuals that observe. You wander the loop then wander it once again, seeing anything new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to do-it-yourself 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 peaceful. 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 value this a single. His website page talks about honoring area and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. You could see Italy in weekly. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap images. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you overlook it by subsequent Tuesday?
Journey like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different concept. But it really’s one particular we’re last but not least prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.