Some locations aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy permits you to genuinely savor neighborhood culture, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own private speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill soon after noon. The varieties of areas exactly where locals learn how to linger — more than espresso, over stories, about lifestyle.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to yrs of rushing. Or maybe it’s precisely what transpires when you ultimately start to worth time just as much as length. In any event, extra tourists are finding joy in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested a long time Discovering how we connect to culture and location, is an element of that motion. His title is becoming linked to a deeper, much more considerate technique for viewing the whole world.
So should you’re ready to go sluggish — so you’re contemplating Italy — Allow me to share seven spots that virtually demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Little gardens. A single cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not Considerably to do, that's precisely the point. You wander, perhaps seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed proper to the cliffs. Basically carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears into your rocks.
The speed here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early morning, hikers winding via steep trails, and also the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining in the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that kind of vacation sticks with persons? This put up by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically would make a trip past for a longer period as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes develop below, and locals know how to delight in them correctly — which happens to be to say, bit by bit.
There’s a see from the edge of town that’s worthy of one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunlight hits good. You’ll come across church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense extra like dwelling rooms.
If you get stuck inside a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s in which the top travel stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives in this article. Pienza was designed to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a see. Each view contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting old in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You received’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Men and women consider their time below, and ultimately, so would you.
Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food items and vacation in Italy. Definitely worth the go through 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 steps and surprising murals and shadows that shift as being the working day moves. Artists Are living here. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in very small courtyards. It feels more 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 right here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a latest piece on slow journey — how areas like this offer another form of luxury. One which doesn’t include a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it rewards those that detect. You walk the loop and afterwards walk it yet again, seeing anything read more new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to home made gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Pretty alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Section of a preservation job — holding the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy here, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Sensible
Listed here’s the point. You are able to see Italy in a week. You could hit the highlights. Snap photos. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you ignore it by following Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a different thought. But it’s one particular we’re finally willing to listen to.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Opt for a village. Sit nevertheless for quite a while. Enable Italy come to you.