Some areas aren’t created for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy helps you to certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish soon after midday. The varieties of areas exactly where locals learn how to linger — above espresso, in excess of tales, more than everyday living.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels vital. Maybe it’s a response to several years of hurrying. Or maybe it’s just what takes place after you lastly start to worth time up to distance. In any event, additional tourists are getting Pleasure in Discovering to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we hook up with society and put, is an element of that movement. His name has become related to a further, extra considerate means of seeing the world.
So if you’re ready to go sluggish — and you also’re pondering Italy — here are seven places that nearly demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles 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 Substantially to accomplish, which happens to be precisely the stage. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You begin to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not empty. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the sort of traveler who likes a little bit of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created suitable in the cliffs. Pretty much carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears into your rocks.
The rate here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early morning, hikers winding via steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining in the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that sort of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down really makes a visit very last more time in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to love them effectively — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that feel 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 most beneficial travel 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. Each and every corner includes a see. Each perspective provides a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting old in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You gained’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks take their time listed here, and eventually, so would you.
On the lookout for a lot more context on why this fashion of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foodstuff and vacation in Italy. Definitely worth the study 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 ways and sudden murals and shadows that shift because the working day moves. Artists Dwell below. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in small courtyards. It feels more like a temper than a spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something here. You Enable it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a recent piece on gradual travel — how places similar to this offer you a special kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t feature a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.
Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, nonetheless it benefits people that discover. You stroll the loop and after that stroll it all over again, viewing something new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to handmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Wonderful. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — inside a “this truly hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits from the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are Component of a preservation undertaking — preserving the past alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this a single. His web site talks about honoring position and time, and website that’s just what this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy below, that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Wise
In this article’s the factor. It is possible to see Italy in a week. You could strike the highlights. Snap images. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you neglect it by upcoming Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — slow, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different idea. But it surely’s one particular we’re at last willing to listen to.
So go. Gradually. Select a village. Sit nevertheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.