Some destinations aren’t built for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy permits you to really savor area society, cuisine, and hidden gems at your personal speed.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slender for autos. Cafés that only replenish right after midday. The kinds of destinations where by locals know how to linger — around espresso, over tales, in excess of existence.
In 2025, sluggish travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels vital. Possibly it’s a reaction to several years of hurrying. Or maybe it’s just what takes place whenever you ultimately start to worth time up to distance. In any event, extra vacationers are finding joy in Finding out to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in yrs Checking out how we connect with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His name has become connected with a deeper, more thoughtful method of seeing the entire world.
So in case you’re prepared to go gradual — therefore you’re imagining Italy — Here's seven places that virtually demand from customers it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. 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 silent. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Sunshine.
There’s not much to try and do, that is exactly the position. You wander, perhaps seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to notice the light. As well as the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
When you’re the sort of traveler who likes a bit of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed appropriate in the cliffs. Pretty much carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears into your rocks.
The rate here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during 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 learn why that sort of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a trip past more time within your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow listed here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — and that is to say, bit by bit.
There’s a see from the edge of town that’s worthy of an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunshine hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense more like living rooms.
If you receive stuck within a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s in which the ideal journey stories begin.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life in this article. Pienza was meant to be “the best metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner has a perspective. Just about every look at includes a breeze.
However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People today just take their time here, and finally, so does one.
Trying to find extra context on why using this method of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and travel in Italy. Well worth the examine prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t strategy your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unpredicted murals and shadows that change as being the working day moves. Artists Stay in this article. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels more similar to a temper than the usual spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something right here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within get more info a latest piece on gradual vacation — how spots like this offer a unique sort of luxury. One that doesn’t come with a price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots all over the place.
Locorotondo is a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for consideration, nevertheless it benefits people who notice. You stroll the loop and then walk it yet again, seeing a thing new each time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to handmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Beautiful. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov few consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This put feels untouched. Not inside a “hidden gem” way — within a “this essentially hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and peaceful. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Several of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting company into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s very little flashy below, and that is what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Wise
Here’s the detail. You could see Italy in every week. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?
Travel similar to this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a new plan. Nevertheless it’s a person we’re ultimately all set to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.