Some destinations aren’t built for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish vacation in Italy permits you to actually savor neighborhood culture, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your very own pace.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for autos. Cafés that only fill up following noon. The types of sites wherever locals know how to linger — over coffee, about stories, about existence.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice notion. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what happens once you at last start to worth time just as much as length. In any case, extra tourists are discovering joy in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in several years Discovering how we connect to culture and spot, is part of that motion. His title has grown to be affiliated with a deeper, far more thoughtful way of looking at the world.
So if you’re ready to go gradual — and you simply’re thinking Italy — Listed here are 7 spots 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 initial effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You walk across a lengthy, elevated path, and if you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching during the sun.
There’s not Considerably to do, that's precisely the point. You wander, perhaps get a glass of wine at a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod good day. You start to note the light. As well as the silence? It’s not empty. It’s entire.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the kind of traveler who likes some drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted right into the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears into your rocks.
The rate Here's slow, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, and also the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that kind of vacation sticks with people today? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down actually makes a visit final longer in the memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Tranquil, under-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine region. Sagrantino grapes mature in this article, and locals know how to love them appropriately — that is to state, gradually.
There’s a look at from the sting of city that’s worth an hour 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 unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.
If you receive stuck inside a discussion with an individual older, Allow it come about. That’s where by the very best travel tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was built to be “the best town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner features a view. Each individual watch incorporates a breeze.
Nonetheless it’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells remarkable. Cheese, mostly — pecorino growing old in shop windows and on counters, ready to sample. You gained’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Individuals choose their time right here, and inevitably, so do you.
In search of much more context on why in this manner 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 shift given that the working day moves. Artists Reside here. Writers go to and don’t go away. Locals host concerts in small courtyards. It feels additional like a mood than a spot.
Sunsets hit diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything in this article. You Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a recent piece on gradual travel — how locations similar to this present a distinct type of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. click here Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere you go.
Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, but it rewards those who see. You walk the loop and then stroll it all over again, viewing something new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — in a very “this actually hasn’t modified” way.
Santo Stefano sits from the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A lot of the inns are part of a preservation venture — retaining the past alive by inviting visitors into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this one particular. His website page 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.
Sluggish Is the New Smart
Below’s the issue. It is possible 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 forget about it by following Tuesday?
Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a completely new notion. However it’s just one we’re ultimately all set to hear.
So go. Slowly and gradually. Opt for a village. Sit nevertheless for quite a while. Enable Italy arrive at you.