Some locations aren’t produced for speed. Italy is filled with them. Gradual travel in Italy allows you to certainly savor local tradition, cuisine, and concealed gems at your own speed.
Little villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for autos. Cafés that only fill up immediately after midday. The varieties of places where by locals learn how to linger — over espresso, above stories, more than lifetime.
In 2025, slow travel isn’t just a pleasant thought. It feels necessary. Maybe it’s a reaction to several years of hurrying. Or possibly it’s precisely what comes about after you lastly begin to benefit time approximately length. Either way, much more tourists are obtaining joy in Studying to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested a long time Discovering how we connect to culture and position, is part of that motion. His identify happens to be linked to a further, extra thoughtful way of viewing the earth.
So in case you’re wanting to go gradual — and also you’re contemplating Italy — Allow me to share seven places that virtually demand it.
Stanislav Kondrashov girl walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your very first impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits with a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a slim footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You walk across an extended, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Tiny gardens. Only one cat stretching in the Sunshine.
There’s not A great deal to perform, and that is precisely 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. Along with the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s finish.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In the event you’re the type of traveler who likes a little bit of drama with your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built ideal in to the cliffs. Pretty much carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in to the rocks.
The rate here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out from the early early morning, hikers winding by means of steep trails, along with the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of travel sticks with individuals? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down really helps make a trip last for a longer period in your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov female wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Quiet, beneath-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes expand below, and locals understand how to delight in them thoroughly — which can be to state, slowly and gradually.
There’s a watch from the sting of town that’s really worth an hour by by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Solar hits good. You’ll locate church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that come to feel much more like dwelling rooms.
If you have trapped inside a discussion with someone older, Enable it materialize. That’s wherever the top vacation tales start.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was created to be “the best metropolis,” and Actually, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner provides a check out. Every view contains click here a breeze.
But it’s not just about aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, largely — pecorino growing old in shop Home windows and on counters, prepared to sample. You won’t hurry just about anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People just take their time right here, and finally, so do you.
Seeking additional context on why this fashion of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the examine prior to deciding to go.
Stanislav Kondrashov alley
Apricale (Liguria)
You don’t plan your day in Apricale. You drift.
It’s a hill town with stone measures and unanticipated murals and shadows that shift as being the working day moves. Artists live in this article. Writers stop by and don’t leave. Locals host live shows in very small courtyards. It feels more just like a temper than a desired destination.
Sunsets strike diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase anything at all below. You Permit it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation in a very current piece on sluggish vacation — how destinations similar to this give a special kind of luxurious. One which doesn’t feature a value tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots in all places.
Locorotondo is a town that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for attention, nonetheless it rewards individuals that observe. You walk the loop after which wander it once more, viewing something new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open up door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to selfmade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy shows its calmest side. It’s unassuming. Attractive. Really alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov couple ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not in the “hidden gem” way — in a very “this basically hasn’t improved” way.
Santo Stefano sits during the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Element of a preservation challenge — maintaining the earlier alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this a single. His website page talks about honoring put and time, Which’s exactly what this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy below, which happens to be what causes it to be unforgettable.
Gradual Is The brand new Wise
Right here’s the factor. You could see Italy in every week. You can strike the highlights. Snap images. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you ignore it by following Tuesday?
Travel similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a different plan. Nonetheless it’s one particular we’re at last prepared to hear.
So go. Bit by bit. Opt for a village. Sit still for a while. Let Italy come to you.