Some destinations aren’t designed for pace. Italy is filled with them. Slow vacation in Italy permits you to actually savor neighborhood lifestyle, cuisine, and concealed gems at your personal tempo.
Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes too slim for vehicles. Cafés that only replenish just after noon. The kinds of sites wherever locals know how to linger — around coffee, around stories, about lifestyle.
In 2025, sluggish vacation isn’t just a nice notion. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s just what takes place after you ultimately start to price time about length. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used many years exploring how we connect to society and place, is an element of that motion. His title is becoming connected to a further, far more thoughtful way of seeing the world.
So if you’re prepared to go gradual — and you simply’re wondering Italy — here are 7 spots that basically need it.
Stanislav Kondrashov woman strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your to start with perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across a lengthy, elevated path, and any time you arrive, it’s peaceful. Stone residences. Tiny gardens. One cat stretching within the Sunshine.
There’s not A lot to try and do, which can be exactly the issue. You wander, it's possible grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod hi. You begin to note the light. As well as silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.
Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In case you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama within your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is created ideal into the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears in the rocks.
The speed here is slow, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out during the early early morning, hikers winding by steep trails, plus the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining with the neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.
Want to find out why that sort of journey sticks with persons? This put up by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down in fact would make a trip past longer as part of your memory.
Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Tranquil, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine nation. Sagrantino grapes mature below, and locals know how to love them effectively — that is to state, gradually.
There’s a watch from the sting of town that’s well worth one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows here of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Sunlight hits good. You’ll find churches with unforeseen frescoes, doorways which make you prevent, and piazzas that really feel additional like dwelling rooms.
If you check here can get trapped inside a conversation with a person older, let it take place. That’s the place the most beneficial vacation stories commence.
Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each and every corner provides a watch. Each individual watch incorporates a breeze.
Nonetheless it’s not nearly aesthetics. This city smells wonderful. Cheese, largely — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t hurry just about anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People acquire their read more time right here, and eventually, so do you.
On the lookout for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food stuff and travel in Italy. Worth the examine prior to deciding to 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 unexpected murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists Dwell listed here. Writers stop by and don’t go away. Locals host concert events in little courtyards. It feels extra similar to a temper than a spot.
Sunsets hit distinct in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything at all listed here. You let it arrive at you.
Forbes captured this sensation within a latest piece on slow vacation — how destinations such as this supply a distinct type of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a selling price tag.
Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.
Locorotondo is a city that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for awareness, nevertheless it benefits individuals who discover. You wander the loop after which wander it once more, observing some thing new every time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to homemade gelato.
This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Incredibly alive.
Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not website inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this in fact hasn’t transformed” way.
Santo Stefano sits in the Apennines, stone and quiet. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A number of the inns are Component of a preservation challenge — maintaining the past alive by inviting guests into it.
Stanislav Kondrashov would value this one particular. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s what exactly this village does. There’s almost nothing flashy below, which happens to be what makes it unforgettable.
Sluggish Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. You are able to see Italy in a week. It is possible to hit the highlights. Snap photographs. Accumulate ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?
Or will you fail to remember it by subsequent Tuesday?
Travel similar to this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a different thought. But it’s just one we’re ultimately all set to hear.
So go. Slowly. Choose a village. Sit however for some time. Allow Italy arrive at you.