Some spots aren’t built for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Slow vacation in Italy means that you can truly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only refill immediately after noon. The styles of destinations the place locals learn how to linger — in excess of espresso, more than stories, around daily life.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a pleasant strategy. It feels crucial. It's possible it’s a reaction to a long time of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what comes about whenever you eventually begin to benefit time as much as distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s expended 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 if you’re wanting to go sluggish — and you also’re considering Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your to start with impact. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You stroll throughout a long, elevated path, and when 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 position. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine in a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod good day. You begin to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.
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 to the cliffs. Basically 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, plus the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to understand why that kind of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact tends to make a visit final longer in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Tranquil, under-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve here, and locals understand how to appreciate them adequately — which can be to state, little by little.
There’s a watch from the sting of city that’s well worth an hour or so by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you can get trapped in a conversation with somebody older, let it occur. That’s exactly where the top travel stories start off.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was made to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t much off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner includes a see. Every perspective contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mainly — pecorino aging in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You received’t hurry nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Men and women consider their time below, and at some point, so would you.
Searching for additional context on why by doing this of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the read through 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 Are living here. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels a lot more like a temper than the usual place.
Sunsets strike diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You Allow it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this experience in the modern piece here on slow vacation — how spots like this provide a different style of luxury. One which doesn’t include 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, but it surely rewards people that recognize. You wander the loop after which wander it again, observing some thing new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted indicator pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is where the south of Italy reveals its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Extremely alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not in a very “hidden gem” way — inside of a “this actually hasn’t changed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a single. His webpage talks about honoring area and time, and that’s precisely what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. You may see Italy in every week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap photographs. Collect ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new strategy. Nonetheless it’s one we’re eventually prepared to hear.
So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for quite a while. Allow Italy come to you.