Some spots aren’t built for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy helps you to truly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.

Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill soon after midday. The forms of locations where locals understand how to linger — over coffee, around stories, in excess of life.

In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a good concept. It feels necessary. Maybe it’s a response to several years of hurrying. Or maybe it’s just what takes place after you lastly start to worth time up to distance. In any case, more travelers are locating joy in Discovering to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His identify happens to be related to a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.

So for those who’re ready to go slow — so you’re thinking Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that almost need it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, reached only by a narrow footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You wander across a lengthy, elevated path, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Sunshine.

There’s not A lot to carry out, which can be exactly the place. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You start to notice the light. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s comprehensive.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the type of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears to the rocks.

The tempo here is gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as occasional thrill-seeker ziplining within the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.

Want to understand why that sort of journey sticks with individuals? This post by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down in fact tends to make a visit final lengthier in your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine region. Quiet, beneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes mature listed here, and locals learn how to get pleasure from them correctly — and that is to say, slowly but surely.

There’s a check out from the edge of town that’s truly worth one hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Sunlight hits good. You’ll come across church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like residing rooms.

If you can get trapped in a dialogue with an individual more mature, Allow it transpire. That’s where the most effective journey tales get started.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives listed here. Pienza was designed to be “the best city,” and Actually, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner contains a look at. Every see contains a breeze.

But it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This city smells amazing. Cheese, typically — pecorino aging in store windows and on counters, all set to sample. You won’t hurry nearly anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Persons choose their time in this article, and eventually, so does one.

Searching for more context on why by doing this of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food stuff and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the browse before you decide to go.

Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t approach your day in Apricale. You drift.

It’s a hill town with stone techniques and unforeseen murals and shadows that change as being the working day moves. Artists Are living in this article. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in very small courtyards. It feels more similar to a temper than a vacation spot.

Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Permit it come to you.

Forbes captured this emotion inside of a new piece on sluggish vacation — how sites such as this offer a special style of luxury. One which doesn’t include a cost tag.

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

Locorotondo is usually a city that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, but it really rewards individuals who recognize. You wander the loop then wander it once more, observing some thing new every time — a cat with a windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to selfmade gelato.

This is when the south of Italy shows its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Very alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This area feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside 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 Portion of a preservation task — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting friends into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this one website particular. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s nothing at all flashy below, and that is what makes it unforgettable.

Gradual Is the New Intelligent
Right here’s the matter. You could see Italy in per week. You can hit the highlights. Snap shots. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you fail to remember it by up coming Tuesday?

Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new idea. But it surely’s 1 we’re eventually able to hear.

So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.