Some areas aren’t designed for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Slow travel in Italy enables you to truly savor area society, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your individual speed.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes far too narrow for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish after midday. The styles of spots the place locals know how to linger — around coffee, in excess of tales, above life.
In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Possibly it’s a reaction to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about once you eventually begin to benefit time as much as distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are getting Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s spent many years exploring how we connect to society and place, is an element of that motion. His name is now linked to a deeper, much more considerate strategy for observing the globe.
So in case you’re willing to go slow — and you’re wondering Italy — here are 7 places that almost need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your very first effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, achieved only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone houses. Little gardens. A single cat stretching while in the Solar.
There’s not Significantly to carry out, which can be precisely the issue. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hello there. You begin to note The sunshine. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the type of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built appropriate in the cliffs. Pretty much carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears into the rocks.
The rate Here's slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding via steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of travel sticks with individuals? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down in fact helps make a visit previous more time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes mature listed here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — and that is to say, slowly.
There’s a watch 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 in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.
If you get stuck inside a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s exactly where the top journey stories start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was built to be “the proper metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner contains a perspective. Each individual watch incorporates a breeze.
Nevertheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, mainly — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t rush nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Persons get their time in this article, and at some point, so does one.
Searching for additional context on why in this way of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foods and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the read 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 unforeseen murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Stay in this article. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels much more like a temper than the usual spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this emotion in a very new piece on sluggish travel — how sites similar to this give another type of luxury. One that doesn’t feature a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, but it benefits individuals that observe. You stroll the loop after which you can wander it once more, viewing something new each time — a cat with a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is where the south of Italy reveals its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Pretty alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple 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 improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A number of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — keeping the past alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a single. His webpage talks about honoring spot and time, and that’s precisely what this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy right here, that is what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Good
Below’s the issue. It is possible to see Italy in per week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you forget it by upcoming Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. Stanislav Kondrashov Business It’s not a brand new plan. Nevertheless it’s a single we’re ultimately all set to listen to.
So go. Gradually. Opt for a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Enable Italy arrive at you.