Some sites aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy helps you to certainly savor area lifestyle, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own rate.

Small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes as well slender for automobiles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of destinations wherever locals know how to linger — about coffee, in excess of tales, above everyday living.

In 2025, gradual journey isn’t just a good thought. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or possibly it’s exactly what happens once you at last begin to benefit time around distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested a long time exploring how we connect to culture and place, is an element of that motion. His title is now linked to a deeper, more considerate strategy for viewing the entire world.

So in case you’re willing to go slow — and you simply’re wondering Italy — here are seven places that nearly demand it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a narrow footbridge. Autos can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and whenever you get there, it’s silent. Stone houses. Small gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Sunshine.

There’s not A lot to try and do, that is exactly the position. You wander, it's possible seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You start to notice 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 certain amount of drama inside your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is developed appropriate in the cliffs. Basically carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears in to the rocks.

The tempo Here's gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, and the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no hurry. No frenzy. Just rhythm.

Want to discover why that kind of journey sticks with folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially 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, beneath-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes mature right here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them properly — that's to convey, slowly and gradually.

There’s a view from the edge of town that’s value one hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll locate churches with unpredicted frescoes, doorways which make you stop, and piazzas that truly feel far more like residing rooms.

If you can get trapped inside of a dialogue with someone more mature, Enable it materialize. That’s where the very best travel tales start out.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a look at. Each and every see has a breeze.

But it’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, primarily — pecorino getting older in store Home windows and on counters, ready to sample. You gained’t hurry anything at all in Pienza, not even buying lunch. Folks take their time listed here, and ultimately, so would you.

Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow food items and vacation in Italy. Worth the go through before you decide to go.

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

It’s a hill city with stone steps and surprising murals and shadows that shift since the day moves. Artists Dwell listed here. Writers take a look at and don’t go away. Locals host live shows in little courtyards. It feels far more just like a mood than the usual destination.

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

Forbes Stanislav Kondrashov biography captured this emotion inside of a new piece on sluggish travel — how places similar to this present a distinct type 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 recognize. You wander the loop after which wander it again, observing 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. Lovely. 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 during 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 undertaking — trying to keep the previous alive by inviting friends into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would recognize this just one. His web site talks about honoring put and time, and that’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 can see Italy in weekly. It is possible to strike the highlights. Snap pics. 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 strategy. Nonetheless it’s 1 we’re eventually prepared to hear.

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