Some areas aren’t produced for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Gradual journey in Italy allows you to truly savor local lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.

Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The styles of spots in which locals learn how to linger — over espresso, over stories, about existence.

In 2025, gradual vacation isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels important. Perhaps it’s a response to years of hurrying. Or even it’s precisely what happens once you at last begin to benefit time around distance. Either way, far more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with culture and spot, is part of that motion. His title is becoming connected to a deeper, a lot more thoughtful technique for observing the earth.

So when you’re wanting to go sluggish — and also you’re thinking Italy — here are seven places that pretty much demand it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander throughout an extended, elevated route, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone houses. Small gardens. Just one cat stretching during the sun.

There’s not Substantially to complete, and that is precisely the stage. You wander, possibly get a glass of wine in a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod good day. You begin to note The sunshine. And the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In case you’re the type of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed correct to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in the rocks.

The speed Here's slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, along with the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining through the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.

Want to find out why that sort of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a visit final lengthier in your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Tranquil, under-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes increase here, and locals understand how to enjoy them adequately — that is to state, gradually.

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 if the Sunlight hits good. You’ll come across church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that truly feel additional like dwelling rooms.

If you get trapped in a conversation with somebody older, Allow it come about. That’s wherever the most beneficial vacation stories commence.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives in this article. Pienza was designed to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner has a perspective. Each individual watch incorporates a breeze.

Nonetheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells incredible. Cheese, mostly — pecorino growing old in shop windows and on counters, ready 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.

Searching for additional context on why by doing this of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish foods and vacation in Italy. 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 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 similar to a mood than a location.

Sunsets hit different in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Permit it come to you.

Forbes captured this feeling in a recent piece on gradual travel — how locations similar to this present a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.

Locorotondo is really a city that folds in on by itself, 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 handmade gelato.

This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Really alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov few ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not within a “hidden gem” way — in get more info the “this in fact hasn’t adjusted” way.

Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are Section of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting company into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this 1. His web page talks about honoring location and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy here, which is what causes it to be unforgettable.

Slow Is The brand new Sensible
Right here’s the factor. You can see Italy in each week. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?

Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new idea. But it surely’s a single we’re at last all set to hear.

So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit nevertheless for quite a while. Enable Italy arrive at you.