Some sites aren’t created for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy allows you to really savor local society, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal rate.
Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for automobiles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of destinations exactly where locals learn how to linger — above espresso, over stories, about existence.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice notion. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about once you eventually begin to benefit time around distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are obtaining joy in Finding out to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in many years exploring how we connect to culture and place, is an element of that motion. His title is becoming linked to a deeper, much more considerate strategy for viewing the entire world.
So should you’re able to go slow — and you simply’re imagining Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand 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 a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across a long, elevated path, and after you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone residences. Small gardens. One cat stretching within the Sunshine.
There’s not much to perform, which is exactly 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. As well as the silence? It’s not empty. It’s comprehensive.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’re the kind of traveler who likes a bit of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created suitable into your cliffs. Literally carved from them. From afar, it almost disappears into the rocks.
The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that kind of journey sticks with folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially would make a trip past more time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Silent, underneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes grow listed here, and locals know how to get pleasure from them correctly — which happens to be to mention, slowly but surely.
There’s a check out from the sting of city that’s 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 come across church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that sense more like living rooms.
If you receive stuck within a discussion with an individual older, let it occur. That’s in which the top journey stories start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was intended to be “an ideal metropolis,” and Actually, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner has a perspective. Each individual watch provides a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting older in store Home windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People just take their time here, and finally, so does one.
Seeking more context on why using this method of touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and journey 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 unanticipated murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists Reside listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in very small courtyards. It feels much more similar to a temper than the usual vacation spot.
Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase something here. You Enable it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a current piece on slow journey — how spots like this present another kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a cost tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots just about everywhere.
Locorotondo is really a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for notice, nonetheless it benefits people that recognize. You wander the loop after which stroll it again, viewing something new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.
This is when the south of Italy reveals its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Pretty alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — in a “this truly hasn’t adjusted” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are A get more info part of a preservation undertaking — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this just one. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Gradual Is the New Good
Below’s the issue. You'll be able to see Italy in per week. You can hit the highlights. Snap photos. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. Nevertheless it’s a person we’re last but not least ready to hear.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Enable Italy come to you.