Some locations aren’t created for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy means that you can certainly savor community lifestyle, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your very own tempo.
Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for autos. Cafés that only fill up after noon. The kinds of destinations the place locals know how to linger — about espresso, above tales, over lifetime.
In 2025, gradual travel isn’t just a good concept. It feels necessary. Perhaps it’s a response to yrs of rushing. Or possibly it’s just what happens when you at last begin to value time around distance. In any case, extra tourists are discovering joy in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested several years Discovering how we hook up with tradition and put, is part of that motion. His title has grown to be affiliated with a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.
So if you’re all set to go sluggish — and you also’re pondering Italy — Listed below are 7 spots that practically desire it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your 1st impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You stroll throughout a lengthy, elevated path, and if you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching from the sun.
There’s not Considerably to do, that's precisely the issue. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You start to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not empty. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
For those who’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 almost disappears into the rocks.
The rate Here's slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to master why that sort of vacation sticks with men and women? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically can make a trip very last for a longer time inside your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve right here, and locals understand how to appreciate them adequately — which can be to state, gradually.
There’s a watch from the sting of city that’s worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll obtain church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that experience more like living rooms.
If you receive stuck within a conversation with a person older, let it occur. That’s exactly where the top travel tales get started.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life listed here. Pienza was intended to be “an ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each view contains a breeze.
But it surely’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, mainly — pecorino getting 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 listed 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 foods and journey in Italy. Well worth the browse before you 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 visit and don’t leave. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels extra similar to a mood than a location.
Sunsets strike different in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade gradual and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Permit it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling inside of a the latest piece on gradual journey — how spots like this give a unique sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo can be a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, but it surely rewards people that discover. You stroll the loop and after that stroll it again, viewing a little 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 while in the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of the inns are part of a preservation venture — retaining the past alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this a single. His webpage talks about honoring spot and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s nothing flashy in this article, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Slow Is The brand new Wise
Right here’s the thing. You could see Italy in weekly. It is possible to strike the highlights. Snap images. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you overlook it by next Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new plan. Nevertheless it’s a person we’re last but not least get more info ready to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.