Some locations aren’t manufactured for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Slow travel in Italy permits you to genuinely savor local tradition, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own personal speed.

Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes also narrow for automobiles. Cafés that only refill after midday. The types of areas wherever locals learn how to linger — around espresso, over tales, about everyday living.

In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a good plan. It feels necessary. Probably it’s a response to years of speeding. Or maybe it’s precisely what occurs whenever you lastly start to benefit time up to length. In either case, more travelers are getting joy in Mastering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested yrs Checking out how we connect to culture and area, is a component of that movement. His title has grown to be related to a deeper, much more thoughtful way of looking at the world.

So should you’re prepared to go slow — and also you’re pondering Italy — Allow me to share seven spots that pretty much demand it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slim footbridge. Cars can’t get in. You stroll throughout a protracted, elevated route, and if you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Little gardens. A single cat stretching from the sun.

There’s not Significantly to complete, which happens to be exactly the position. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi. You start to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the sort 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 in to the rocks.

The pace Here's 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 discover why that sort of journey sticks with individuals? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact helps make a visit last for a longer period with your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, below-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes grow listed here, and locals learn how to enjoy them adequately — which is to say, bit by bit.

There’s a view from the sting of town that’s worthy of an hour or so by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the sun hits just right. You’ll locate churches with unexpected frescoes, doorways which make you halt, and piazzas that website experience extra like residing rooms.

If you have stuck in a discussion with a person more mature, Allow it happen. That’s where by the most beneficial travel stories start.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives in this article. Pienza was intended to be “the ideal metropolis,” and Actually, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner features a watch. Each and every watch features a breeze.

But it surely’s not pretty much aesthetics. This city smells astounding. Cheese, mainly — pecorino growing older in shop windows and on counters, able to sample. You won’t hurry anything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. People today take their time here, and ultimately, so does one.

On the lookout for extra context on why this way of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep website into sluggish meals and journey in Italy. Well worth the read through before you go.

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

It’s a hill city with stone steps and unanticipated murals and shadows that shift since the working day moves. Artists Reside below. Writers go to and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in tiny here courtyards. It feels additional similar to a temper than the usual destination.

Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Allow it come to you.

Forbes captured this experience in a current piece on gradual journey — how areas like this provide a special type of luxury. One which doesn’t include a value tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.

Locorotondo is really a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it benefits people who discover. You stroll the loop after which wander it once again, looking at a thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted signal pointing to handmade gelato.

This is where the south read more of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Incredibly alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t changed” way.

Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Portion of a preservation challenge — trying to keep 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 just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy below, that's what makes it unforgettable.

Sluggish Is The brand new Clever
Listed here’s the factor. You can see Italy in weekly. It is possible to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?

Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?

Journey such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new plan. However it’s one particular we’re at last able to hear.

So go. Slowly and gradually. Opt for a village. Sit still for quite a while. Enable Italy arrive at you.