Some spots aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy helps you to truly savor area society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes also slender for autos. Cafés that only fill up following midday. The sorts of destinations wherever locals know how to linger — around coffee, around stories, in excess of existence.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s just what takes place after you ultimately start to worth time about length. In any case, much more travelers are obtaining joy in Finding out to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended decades Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and put, is an element of that motion. His title is becoming affiliated with a further, additional considerate means of viewing the entire world.
So should you’re willing to go slow — and also you’re considering Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars can’t get in. You stroll throughout a long, elevated path, and whenever you arrive, it’s silent. Stone houses. Little gardens. A single cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not Considerably to complete, and that is precisely the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You start to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s entire.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted right in to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears into your rocks.
The rate Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding through steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that kind of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact can make a visit very last more time within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes increase right here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them effectively — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a look at from the sting of town that’s value one hour by here itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunlight hits good. You’ll find churches with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you cease, and piazzas that sense more like living rooms.
If you will get caught in a very dialogue with anyone more mature, Enable it materialize. That’s exactly where the top travel stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal city,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner features a view. Every perspective contains a breeze.
But it really’s not almost aesthetics. This city smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, ready to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. People today just take their time here, and inevitably, so do you.
In search of a lot more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and travel in Italy. Well worth the go through prior to deciding 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 read more and unanticipated murals and shadows that change as the day moves. Artists Reside listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper than a 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 read more emotion inside of a the latest piece on sluggish travel — how locations similar to this present a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a rate tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is usually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, nonetheless it benefits individuals who discover. You stroll the loop after which wander it once more, observing one thing new every time — a cat click here on a windowsill, an open up door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Lovely. Pretty alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — within a “this basically hasn’t altered” 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 Portion of a preservation job — holding the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this just one. His page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s precisely what this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Wise
Right here’s the issue. It is possible to 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 fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. Nevertheless it’s one we’re last but not least prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit continue to for a while. Allow Italy come to you.