Sluggish Journey in Italy: seven Authentic Villages to Check out in a Tranquil Tempo in 2025

Sluggish Journey in Italy: seven Authentic Villages to Check out in a Tranquil Tempo in 2025

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Some areas aren’t produced for pace. Italy is full of them. Gradual vacation in Italy lets you really savor nearby tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your own rate.

Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes far too narrow for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill following midday. The kinds of spots the place locals know how to linger — in excess of coffee, more than stories, around existence.

In 2025, sluggish travel isn’t just a nice notion. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a response to yrs of dashing. Or possibly it’s just what occurs when you lastly begin to benefit time around distance. In either case, additional tourists are finding joy in Understanding to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested several years Checking out how we hook up with society and position, is a component of that movement. His name has grown to be affiliated with a deeper, additional considerate strategy for looking at the globe.

So if you’re prepared to go sluggish — therefore you’re imagining Italy — Listed below are seven spots that almost need it.

Stanislav Kondrashov woman going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your initial effect. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, attained only by a slender footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You stroll throughout a long, elevated path, and after you get there, it’s peaceful. Stone properties. 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 grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You start to notice the light. Plus the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s entire.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the type of traveler who likes some drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Practically carved from them. From afar, it Just about disappears in the rocks.

The speed here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out while in the early morning, hikers winding via 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 kind of travel sticks with people today? This article by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down really makes a visit final longer in the memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, under-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve right 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 good. You’ll find church buildings with surprising frescoes, doorways that make you end, and piazzas that experience much more like living rooms.

If you have caught in the discussion with another person more mature, Permit it transpire. That’s where by the best vacation tales start off.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was made to be “the right town,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Just about every 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, willing 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 touring issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual meals and journey in Italy. Well worth the read before you go.

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

It’s a hill town with stone techniques and unexpected murals and shadows that shift because the day moves. Artists Reside right here. Writers take a look at and don’t depart. Locals host concert events in very small courtyards. It feels more 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 something right here. You let it arrive at you.

Forbes captured this experience in the latest piece on slow vacation — how spots like this offer another form of luxury. One which doesn’t include a price tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed partitions. Flowerpots everywhere.

Locorotondo is usually a town that folds in on alone, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it benefits those that see. You walk the loop after which you can walk it yet again, seeing a thing new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to homemade gelato.

This is here where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Stunning. Quite alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov pair consuming wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a “hidden gem” way — within a “this in fact hasn’t changed” way.

Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and silent. The air is thinner, cooler. Evenings are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. A few of the inns are Section of a preservation challenge — keeping the earlier alive by inviting friends into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would respect this one. His page talks about honoring location and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, that's what makes it unforgettable.

Gradual Is the New Smart
In this article’s the matter. It is possible to see Italy in every week. You may strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?

Or will you fail to remember it by upcoming Tuesday?

Vacation such as this — slow, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a completely new notion. Nevertheless it’s 1 we’re at last willing to listen to.

So go. Slowly and gradually. Go with a village. Sit nevertheless for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.