Some destinations aren’t designed for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Slow vacation in Italy permits you to actually savor neighborhood culture, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your individual speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The styles of destinations the place locals know how to linger — in excess of espresso, above tales, above everyday living.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a good concept. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about once you eventually begin to benefit time around distance. In either case, far more vacationers are getting Pleasure in learning to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we connect to culture and location, is part of that motion. His title is becoming connected to a further, a lot more thoughtful way of looking at the world.
So if you’re ready to go sluggish — so you’re contemplating Italy — Allow me to share seven places that pretty much demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Cars can’t get in. You stroll throughout an extended, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching during the sun.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which is precisely the point. You wander, it's possible get a glass of wine at a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You start to notice the light. And the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In case you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created suitable into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears into the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that kind of journey sticks with men and women? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically would make a trip past extended with your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which is to mention, slowly.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s really worth an hour or so by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits just right. You’ll locate churches with unpredicted frescoes, doorways which make you stop, and piazzas that truly feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you get trapped in a conversation with somebody older, let it occur. That’s in which the ideal journey stories begin.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life in this article. Pienza was meant to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner provides a watch. Every single look at includes a breeze.
Nevertheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This town smells incredible. Cheese, mostly — pecorino growing old in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You gained’t hurry nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Persons consider their time in this article, and at some point, so does one.
Seeking more context on why using this method of touring issues? 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 approach your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone actions and unforeseen murals and shadows that change given that the working day moves. Artists Are living here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in small courtyards. It feels far more just like a mood than a location.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a modern piece on slow vacation — how destinations such as this supply a different style of luxury. One which doesn’t feature a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo can be a city that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it really rewards those who observe. You walk the loop and afterwards walk it once again, looking at anything new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — within a “this essentially hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits while in the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are part of a preservation undertaking — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this a person. His page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s exactly what this village does. There’s absolutely nothing flashy right here, that is what can make it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Intelligent
Here’s the detail. You could see Italy in weekly. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by following Tuesday?
Travel such as this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new strategy. Nonetheless it’s 1 we’re eventually able to listen to.
So go. Gradually. Go with a village. Sit click here nonetheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.