Some sites aren’t produced for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual travel in Italy means that you can certainly savor area tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your individual tempo.

Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill soon after midday. The varieties of areas where locals understand how to linger — more than coffee, around stories, in excess of lifestyle.

In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to yrs of hurrying. Or maybe it’s precisely what transpires when you last but not least begin to price time about length. In any case, additional tourists are finding Pleasure in learning to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we connect to society and place, is an element of that movement. His name has become related to a deeper, more considerate means of viewing the entire world.

So should you’re able to go slow — and you simply’re wondering Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first impression. 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 after you arrive, it’s peaceful. Stone properties. Tiny gardens. An individual cat stretching in the Sunlight.

There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which happens to be exactly the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. As well as the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted right into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears in to the rocks.

The tempo Here's gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the 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 discover why that kind of vacation sticks with persons? This put up by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down actually would make a trip past extended 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 know how to delight in them effectively — which happens to be to mention, slowly.

There’s a perspective from the sting of town that’s well worth one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunlight hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that experience much more like living rooms.

If you will get caught in the discussion with another person more mature, Allow it come about. That’s wherever the best vacation tales start out.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each and every view has a breeze.

But it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush something in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals acquire their time right here, and inevitably, so do you.

In search of much more context on why in this manner of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foods and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the read before you go.

Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t prepare your working day in Apricale. You drift.

It’s a hill city with stone techniques and sudden murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists live listed here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in small courtyards. It feels a lot more just like a mood than the usual place.

Sunsets strike diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You let it come to you.

Forbes captured get more info this feeling in a the latest piece on sluggish travel — how places similar to this offer you a special kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t feature a price tag tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.

Locorotondo is actually 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 all over again, viewing something new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.

This is when the south of Italy shows 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 “hidden gem” way — within a “this essentially hasn’t improved” way.

Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of the inns are Element of a preservation venture — retaining the previous alive by inviting visitors into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this just one. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s what exactly this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy listed here, that's what makes it unforgettable.

Gradual Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. You may see Italy in per week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?

Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new idea. But it surely’s a single we’re at last able to listen to.

So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit continue to for a while. Permit Italy arrive at you.