Some locations aren’t built for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Slow travel in Italy permits you to actually savor regional culture, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your very own tempo.

Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The styles of spots in which locals learn how to linger — above espresso, more than tales, over daily life.

In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels crucial. Probably it’s a reaction to many years of speeding. Or perhaps it’s exactly what occurs if you ultimately start to worth time as much as distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His name has become related to a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.

So in the event you’re prepared to go sluggish — and you simply’re pondering Italy — here are seven spots that virtually demand from customers it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your to start with effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Cars can’t get in. You stroll across an extended, elevated path, and whenever you arrive, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Little gardens. An individual cat stretching while in the Sunshine.

There’s not Significantly to perform, that is exactly the place. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You start to notice the light. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the sort of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed suitable in the cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears to the rocks.

The pace here is sluggish, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.

Want to master why that sort of vacation sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down basically helps make a visit previous longer inside your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine place. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes improve in this article, and locals understand how to get pleasure from them correctly — which happens to be to mention, slowly and gradually.

There’s a check out from the edge of town that’s truly worth one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum if the Solar hits just right. You’ll locate church buildings with unpredicted frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that sense extra like dwelling rooms.

If you have caught inside a conversation with a person older, Enable it take place. That’s in which the very best journey stories start off.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives below. click here Pienza was intended to be “an ideal town,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner features a see. Each look at contains a breeze.

But it surely’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, mostly — pecorino getting old in shop Home windows and on counters, able to sample. You gained’t rush just about anything in Pienza, click here not even purchasing lunch. Folks acquire their time right here, and finally, so do you.

On the lookout for a lot more context on why in this manner of touring matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the read 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 steps and unexpected murals and shadows website that shift as the working day moves. Artists live in this article. Writers pay a visit to and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels a lot more like a mood than the usual vacation spot.

Sunsets hit unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Enable it arrive at you.

Forbes captured this experience in a recent piece on gradual travel — how sites similar to this give a unique sort of luxury. One that doesn’t feature a selling price tag.

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

Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, but it surely benefits individuals who detect. You wander the loop after which wander it once more, looking at a thing new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to selfmade gelato.

This is when the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Pretty alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov few drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This put feels untouched. Not within a “concealed gem” way — within a “this basically hasn’t modified” way.

Santo Stefano sits within the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A number of the inns are Element of a preservation job — keeping the previous alive by inviting company into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a single. His site talks about honoring area and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy in this article, that is what causes it to be unforgettable.

Slow Is The brand new Intelligent
Right here’s the factor. You'll be able to see Italy in every week. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap images. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?

Vacation like this — sluggish, click here intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a brand new idea. But it surely’s just one we’re ultimately ready to listen to.

So go. Slowly. Go with a village. Sit continue to for a while. Let Italy come to you.