Some areas aren’t created for pace. Italy is filled with them. Gradual travel in Italy allows you to really savor local society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish soon after noon. The varieties of spots exactly where locals learn how to linger — more than espresso, over stories, about existence.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice strategy. It feels crucial. It's possible it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s exactly what happens if you finally begin to benefit time around distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are obtaining Pleasure in Mastering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent decades Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His name has become associated with a further, extra considerate strategy for viewing the entire world.
So should you’re able to go slow — and you simply’re wondering Italy — Here's seven places that pretty much demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander throughout an extended, elevated route, and whenever you arrive, it’s silent. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Sunlight.
There’s not Considerably to do, that's precisely the issue. 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 complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the sort of traveler who likes a little drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created correct into your cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears into your rocks.
The speed Here's slow, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining in the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that kind of vacation sticks with persons? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact helps make a trip past extended with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to appreciate them thoroughly — which can be to state, little by little.
There’s a perspective from the edge of town that’s well worth an hour or so 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 unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.
If you get stuck inside a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s in which the top journey stories start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was built to be “the proper metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner contains a watch. Just about every look at includes a breeze.
However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells remarkable. Cheese, largely — pecorino getting older in store Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t rush something in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals choose their time listed here, and eventually, so do you.
On the lookout for a lot more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food items and vacation 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 Stay in this article. Writers visit and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper than a spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something right here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a latest piece on slow journey — how spots like this give another style of luxury. One which doesn’t feature a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo is really a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, nonetheless it benefits individuals who discover. You stroll the loop and after that stroll it again, viewing something new each click here 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 inside a “hidden gem” way — in the “this essentially hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and peaceful. 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 appreciate this one. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy in this article, that's what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. You may see Italy in every week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. 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 new notion. However it’s just one we’re ultimately all set to hear.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Opt for a village. Sit nevertheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.