Some spots aren’t built for velocity. Italy is full of them. Sluggish journey in Italy lets you really savor regional culture, Delicacies, and concealed gems at your personal pace.

Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for cars. Cafés that only fill up immediately after midday. The forms of locations in which locals know how to linger — about espresso, above tales, about life.

In 2025, gradual vacation isn’t just a good concept. It feels essential. Perhaps it’s a reaction to many years of rushing. Or perhaps it’s just what takes place whenever you finally start to price time as much as length. Either way, much more tourists are obtaining Pleasure in learning to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in a long time Discovering how we connect to culture and place, is a component of that motion. His title has grown to be related to a further, more considerate technique for viewing the world.

So in the event you’re ready to go gradual — therefore you’re imagining Italy — Here's seven spots that pretty much demand from customers it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk across a protracted, elevated route, and whenever you get there, it’s peaceful. Stone residences. Small gardens. Just one cat stretching while in the Sunlight.

There’s not Considerably to carry out, which is precisely the position. You wander, possibly grab 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 empty. It’s finish.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built proper into your cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears to the rocks.

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

Want to learn why that kind of travel sticks with men and women? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down in fact helps make a trip past more time as part of your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov woman wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes mature below, and locals know how to get pleasure from them appropriately — that is to say, slowly.

There’s a perspective from the sting of town that’s click here well worth an hour or so by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Solar hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with unpredicted frescoes, doorways which make you end, and piazzas that really feel extra like living rooms.

If you get trapped in the discussion with an individual older, let it materialize. That’s the place the best journey stories start off.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives in this article. Pienza was meant to be “the perfect town,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each and every see has a breeze.

But it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino getting older in store Home windows and on counters, willing to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today choose their time listed here, and ultimately, so does one.

Seeking more context on why in this manner of touring matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the go through 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 measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change because the day moves. Artists Stay in this article. Writers visit and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels a lot more just like a mood than a location.

Sunsets strike 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 sluggish travel — how places similar to this present a distinct kind of luxury. One which doesn’t feature a value tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.

Locorotondo is actually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, but it surely rewards people that recognize. You wander the loop after which stroll it again, looking at one thing new every time — a cat with 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 consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This put feels untouched. Not within a “hidden gem” way — in the “this basically hasn’t altered” way.

Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of the inns are Element of a preservation project — maintaining the past alive by inviting guests into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would value this 1. His webpage talks about honoring spot and time, Which’s exactly what this village does. There’s absolutely nothing flashy right here, that is what can make it unforgettable.

Sluggish Is The brand new Clever
Listed here’s the point. You are able to see Italy in a week. You could hit the highlights. Snap shots. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?

Or will you forget about it by up coming Tuesday?

Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a whole new concept. But it really’s a single we’re finally willing to listen to.

So go. Gradually. Go with a village. Sit still for a while. Permit Italy arrive at you.