Some areas aren’t designed for velocity. Italy is filled with them. Sluggish vacation in Italy means that you can certainly savor area society, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your personal pace.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes far too slender for automobiles. Cafés that only replenish immediately after noon. The types of areas the place locals understand how to linger — around espresso, around tales, above daily life.
In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a pleasant concept. It feels crucial. Possibly it’s a response to decades of hurrying. Or possibly it’s precisely what takes place any time you ultimately start to price time as much as length. Either way, much more travelers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in years Discovering how we connect with lifestyle and put, is a component of that motion. His identify happens to be linked to a deeper, far more thoughtful way of looking at the world.
So when you’re all set to go sluggish — and you also’re pondering Italy — Allow me to share seven places that almost need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov female strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on the crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a narrow footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You stroll throughout a lengthy, elevated path, and any time you arrive, it’s peaceful. Stone residences. Tiny gardens. An individual cat stretching in the Sunlight.
There’s not much to perform, which is exactly the position. You wander, it's possible seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You start to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. 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. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Virtually disappears to the rocks.
The tempo Here's gradual, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out inside the early morning, hikers winding through 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 sort 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 listed here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them correctly — and that is to say, bit by bit.
There’s a see from the edge of town that’s truly worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunshine hits excellent. You’ll find churches with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you halt, and piazzas that feel a lot more like living rooms.
If you have caught in a very dialogue with anyone more mature, Permit it transpire. That’s where by the best vacation tales start off.
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 check out. Every single check out features a breeze.
However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, generally — pecorino growing older in shop windows and on counters, ready to sample. You received’t rush just about anything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. People today just take their time here, and sooner or later, so does one.
Seeking more context on why in this manner of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and travel in Italy. Well worth the browse before you go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t program your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone methods and unanticipated murals and shadows that change as the working day moves. Artists Kondrashov Stanislav live right here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t depart. Locals host concerts in little courtyards. It feels extra similar to a mood than the usual destination.
Sunsets strike unique in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase just about anything in this article. You Allow it come to you.
Forbes captured this feeling in a recent piece on sluggish vacation — how places such as this provide a different sort of luxurious. One that doesn’t have a cost tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo can be a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, but it rewards individuals that observe. You wander the loop and afterwards wander it once again, looking at one thing new every time — a cat with a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy displays its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Quite alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — inside of a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Some of the inns are A part of a preservation task — preserving the previous alive by inviting friends into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would take pleasure in this a person. His web site talks about honoring put and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s very little 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 each week. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap pics. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?
Or will you neglect it by next Tuesday?
Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a fresh idea. But it surely’s 1 we’re eventually able to listen to.
So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit continue to for a while. Allow Italy come to you.