Some places aren’t created for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy allows you to really savor nearby lifestyle, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your own tempo.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes far too slender for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill soon after midday. The forms of locations where locals know how to linger — around coffee, in excess of tales, above life.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a nice strategy. It feels vital. Possibly it’s a response to years of dashing. Or even it’s precisely what happens any time you lastly start to worth time up to distance. In either case, extra tourists are discovering joy in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested a long time exploring how we connect to society and place, is an element of that motion. His name is now connected with a deeper, extra thoughtful method of looking at the whole world.
So if you’re all set to go sluggish — and you also’re considering Italy — Listed below are 7 places that almost need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your initial effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across an extended, elevated route, and whenever you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone residences. Tiny gardens. One cat stretching in the Sunlight.
There’s not A great deal to accomplish, which happens to be precisely the level. You wander, it's possible seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. And the silence? It’s not empty. 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 built right into the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears in to the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but 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 master why that kind of vacation sticks with people today? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down actually will make a trip very last for a longer time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve right here, and locals understand how to appreciate them adequately — which can be to state, little by little.
There’s a perspective 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 Solar hits excellent. You’ll uncover church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense extra like dwelling rooms.
If you will get caught in the discussion with another person older, Allow it come about. That’s wherever the most beneficial vacation stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was designed to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each corner has a view. Each individual perspective incorporates a breeze.
Nonetheless it’s not just about aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mostly — pecorino ageing in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You received’t hurry nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Persons consider their time below, and ultimately, so does one.
Looking for far more context on why this fashion of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foodstuff and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the study before you decide to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t system your working day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill city with stone ways and sudden murals and shadows check here that shift because the day moves. Artists live right here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels a lot more like a temper than the usual place.
Sunsets hit diverse 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 current piece on gradual journey — how areas similar to this present a distinct type of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a price tag tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo can be a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, however it benefits those that see. You walk the loop after which you can walk it yet again, looking at anything new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not within a “hidden gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Component of a preservation project — 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 in this article, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Wise
Here’s the detail. You could see Italy in weekly. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap images. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you forget it by subsequent Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new idea. Nonetheless it’s 1 we’re eventually prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.