Some sites aren’t created for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Gradual journey in Italy helps you to really savor neighborhood lifestyle, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your personal tempo.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well narrow for automobiles. Cafés that only refill soon after noon. The types of spots in which locals learn how to linger — around espresso, around stories, about life.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a pleasant idea. It feels necessary. It's possible it’s a response to a long time of hurrying. Or possibly it’s just what takes place once you finally begin to price time just as much as length. In any event, much more tourists are acquiring joy in Finding out to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in a long time Discovering how we connect with tradition and position, is an element of that motion. His name is becoming related to a further, additional considerate technique for looking at the whole world.
So in case you’re willing to go sluggish — so you’re thinking Italy — Listed here are seven spots that practically demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your very first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a slender footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across a protracted, elevated path, and once you get there, it’s quiet. Stone houses. Little gardens. Just one cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not Substantially to try and do, which can be exactly the issue. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine in a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You begin to notice the light. And also the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s full.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed proper into your cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears into your rocks.
The rate Here's gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early morning, hikers winding by way of steep trails, along with the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to know why that sort of travel sticks with men and women? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down actually makes a visit last for a longer period inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Quiet, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes expand below, and locals know how to delight in them correctly — that is to mention, bit by bit.
There’s a perspective from the sting of city that’s worthy of one hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits just right. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways which make you end, and piazzas that really feel more like living rooms.
If you obtain caught in the conversation with an individual more mature, Permit it occur. That’s exactly where the ideal journey tales commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives in this article. Pienza was designed to be “an ideal town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every corner provides a look at. Each individual check out features a breeze.
But it really’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells incredible. Cheese, largely — pecorino getting old in store Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Individuals choose their time here, and finally, so do more info you.
Searching for much more context on why in this way of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and vacation in Italy. Definitely worth the study before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone actions and unexpected murals and shadows that change as being the working day moves. Artists live in this article. Writers go to and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in tiny courtyards. It feels more just like a temper than a place.
Sunsets strike distinctive in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase just about anything right here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a current piece on sluggish vacation — how areas similar to this offer another form of luxurious. One that doesn’t include a rate tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots all over the place.
Locorotondo is usually a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, however it rewards those that recognize. You walk the loop then wander it yet again, looking at something new every time — a cat over a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted signal pointing to handmade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy shows its calmest aspect. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a “concealed gem” way — in a very “this essentially hasn’t improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Element of a preservation project — retaining the previous alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this one particular. His webpage talks about honoring place and time, and that’s precisely what this village does. There’s nothing flashy below, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Sensible
Right here’s the point. It is possible to see Italy in a week. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap images. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by future Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a whole new thought. Nonetheless it’s just one we’re last but not least wanting to hear.
So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit nonetheless for a while. Enable Italy come to you.