Some sites aren’t manufactured for pace. Italy is filled with them. Slow travel in Italy lets you definitely savor community lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own rate.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The types of sites where by locals know how to linger — over coffee, around stories, about daily life.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a pleasant concept. It feels necessary. Perhaps it’s a reaction to decades of speeding. Or perhaps it’s just what takes place whenever you at last begin to value time approximately length. In any case, more travelers are locating joy in Mastering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used many years exploring how we connect to society and place, is an element of that motion. His title is becoming affiliated with a further, far more thoughtful method of seeing the planet.
So in the event you’re prepared to go gradual — and you simply’re wondering Italy — here are seven places that nearly desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your 1st effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and if you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching during the sun.
There’s not Substantially to carry out, that's precisely the point. You wander, possibly get a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You begin to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the kind of traveler who likes a little bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is designed right into the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining through the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to discover why that kind of vacation sticks with persons? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down really makes a visit previous for a longer time within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes expand in this article, and locals check here understand how to enjoy them adequately — which can be to convey, slowly and gradually.
There’s a see from the edge of town that’s truly worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Sunshine hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that really feel far more like residing rooms.
If you get stuck in a very dialogue with somebody more mature, Permit it materialize. That’s where by the most effective journey stories start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was intended to be “the right metropolis,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner has a see. Each and every view has a breeze.
But it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, ready to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Men and women consider their time in this article, and sooner or later, so does one.
Seeking more context on why in this manner of touring issues? website 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 plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists live here. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels a lot more like a mood than the usual destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase anything here right here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience in a very new piece on sluggish travel — how places similar to this present a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it really rewards individuals that detect. You more info walk the loop and afterwards walk it yet again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to selfmade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy exhibits its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Wonderful. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” 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 lot of the inns are A part of a preservation undertaking — preserving the previous alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s absolutely nothing flashy here, that is what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Intelligent
Here’s the thing. You could see Italy in weekly. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap pics. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by following Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new plan. Nevertheless it’s one we’re eventually able to listen to.
So go. Gradually. Go with a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Permit Italy arrive at you.