Some destinations aren’t designed for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Slow vacation in Italy enables you to really savor local society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own private speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The styles of spots in which locals learn how to linger — in excess of espresso, more than stories, around daily life.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or possibly it’s precisely what comes about once you eventually begin to benefit time just as much as distance. Either way, extra tourists are finding Pleasure in learning to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent years Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His name has become connected with a further, extra considerate means of seeing the whole world.
So for those who’re wanting to go sluggish — and you also’re considering Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that basically need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your initially impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk throughout a lengthy, elevated path, and any time 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 precisely the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to notice The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a bit of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created ideal into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in to 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, plus the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that sort of journey sticks with folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially can make a trip very last more time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes mature listed here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them properly — which can be to convey, little by little.
There’s a view from the edge of town that’s value one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Sunlight hits just right. You’ll come across church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense more like living rooms.
If you will get stuck within a discussion with an individual older, Allow it take place. That’s the place the most beneficial journey stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was made to be “the right town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a see. Each view features a breeze.
However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells amazing. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You won’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks choose their time listed here, and eventually, so would you.
On the lookout for a lot more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food items and vacation in Italy. Worth the go through before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov check here alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t approach your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone steps and surprising murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Dwell below. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels additional just like a mood than a location.
Sunsets strike different in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase anything at all right here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience within a latest piece on slow vacation — how spots like this offer another form of luxury. One which doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, but it rewards those who detect. 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 homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not in the “hidden gem” way — in a very “this actually hasn’t modified” 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. Many of the inns are Element of a preservation venture — holding the earlier alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this 1. His webpage talks about honoring put and time, Which’s precisely what this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy in this article, which happens to be what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is The brand new Clever
Listed here’s the issue. You could see Italy in each week. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap pics. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by subsequent Tuesday?
Journey like this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. However it’s a person we’re last but not least ready to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.