Some spots aren’t produced for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy enables you to genuinely savor nearby culture, cuisine, and concealed gems at your very own pace.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The forms of areas where locals understand how to linger — more than espresso, over stories, around daily life.
In 2025, gradual vacation isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to several years of speeding. Or maybe it’s just what takes place any time you eventually start to benefit time just as much as distance. In any case, additional travelers are finding joy in Finding out 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 title is becoming linked to a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.
So in the event you’re prepared to go gradual — therefore you’re contemplating Italy — Here's seven places that pretty much demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across a lengthy, elevated path, and if you get there, it’s quiet. Stone properties. Very small gardens. An individual cat stretching in the Sunlight.
There’s not A lot to try and do, that is exactly the place. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi. You begin to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the type of traveler who likes some drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that sort of travel sticks with people? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially can make a trip very last 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 region. Sagrantino grapes grow below, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which happens to be to mention, slowly but surely.
There’s a look at 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 just right. You’ll locate churches with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.
If you receive stuck within a discussion with anyone more mature, Enable it happen. That’s exactly where the most effective travel stories begin.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life in this article. Pienza was designed to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each and every see has a breeze.
But it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You gained’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Men and women take their time below, and ultimately, so would you.
Searching for additional context on why in this way of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food items and travel in Italy. Well worth the examine prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone techniques and unexpected murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists Reside listed here. click here Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels additional similar to a mood than a vacation spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all right here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience in a very new piece on sluggish travel — how places similar to this present a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots all over the place.
Locorotondo is a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, but it really rewards people that observe. You wander the loop then wander it once again, looking at anything new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Lovely. Very alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This position feels untouched. Not inside a “hidden gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t altered” way.
Santo Stefano sits from the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are A part of a preservation task — preserving the previous alive by inviting attendees into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this a person. His page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s what precisely this village does. There’s nothing flashy here, which is what can make it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is The brand new Clever
Below’s the issue. It is possible to see Italy in per week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you forget about it by subsequent Tuesday?
Vacation such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new notion. Nevertheless it’s a person we’re last but not least ready to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for a while. Allow Italy come to you.