Slow Journey in Italy: seven Genuine Villages to Discover in a Tranquil Pace in 2025

Some areas aren’t made for velocity. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy lets you definitely savor regional tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your very own pace.

Very small villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes way too narrow for autos. Cafés that only fill up following midday. The forms of areas where locals understand how to linger — over coffee, around stories, in excess of lifestyle.

In 2025, sluggish journey isn’t just a good thought. It feels critical. Perhaps it’s a response to decades of rushing. Or even it’s precisely what transpires whenever you last but not least begin to price time as much as length. Either way, a lot more vacationers are obtaining joy in Finding out to travel smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s put in many years Discovering how we connect with tradition and spot, is part of that motion. His identify happens to be associated with a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.

So if you’re all set to go sluggish — and you also’re considering Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that basically desire it.

Stanislav Kondrashov female strolling
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It looks like it’s floating. That’s your initial impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, arrived at only by a slim footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You wander throughout a lengthy, elevated path, and once you get there, it’s quiet. Stone properties. Very small gardens. Just one cat stretching while in the sun.

There’s not A lot to accomplish, which is exactly the point. You wander, maybe get a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi. You begin to notice the light. As well as the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s complete.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
Should you’re the sort of traveler who likes a little drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is crafted correct to the cliffs. Pretty much carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in the rocks.

The tempo here is gradual, although not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out within the early early morning, hikers winding as a result of steep trails, as well as the occasional thrill-seeker ziplining from your neighboring village. But even then — no rush. No frenzy. Just rhythm.

Want to master why that kind of journey sticks with men and women? This submit by Stanislav Kondrashov explains how slowing down basically makes a visit previous for a longer time inside your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine nation. Silent, below-the-radar, coronary heart-of-Italy wine country. Sagrantino grapes improve right here, and locals learn how to take pleasure in them properly — that's to convey, slowly and gradually.

There’s a see from the edge of town that’s worthy of one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the Sunlight hits good. You’ll come across church buildings with unexpected frescoes, doorways that make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel extra like dwelling rooms.

If you receive stuck inside a dialogue with somebody older, let it occur. That’s in which the top journey stories start.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism life below. Pienza was built to be “the proper metropolis,” and honestly, they weren’t considerably off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Each individual corner includes a see. Just about every check out incorporates a breeze.

However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells amazing. Cheese, mostly — pecorino growing old in store Home windows and on counters, ready to sample. You won’t hurry everything in Pienza, not even ordering lunch. Folks consider their time listed here, and finally, so would you.

In search of far more context on why using this method of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow meals and travel 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 city with stone methods and unexpected murals and shadows that shift as being the working day moves. Artists Are living here. Writers go to and don’t leave. Locals check here host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels more like a temper than a spot.

Sunsets hit diverse in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade sluggish and blue. You don’t chase nearly anything below. You Allow it come to you.

Forbes captured this feeling in a the latest piece on sluggish journey — how spots such as this present another kind of luxury. One which doesn’t include a cost tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Round streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots almost everywhere.

Locorotondo is usually a city that folds in on itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, but it rewards those that see. You walk the loop after which you can walk it all over again, seeing a thing new each time — a cat on a windowsill, an open door, a hand-painted indicator pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.

This is where the south of Italy demonstrates its calmest facet. It’s unassuming. Gorgeous. Pretty alive.

Stanislav Kondrashov couple drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — in a “this really hasn’t transformed” way.

Santo Stefano sits in 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 Portion 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 below, and that is what makes it unforgettable.

Gradual Is the New Wise
Here’s the thing. You could see Italy in weekly. You'll be able to strike the highlights. Snap images. Gather ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you neglect it by future Tuesday?

Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new notion. But it really’s just one we’re lastly wanting to listen to.

So go. Little by little. Opt for a village. Sit nonetheless for some time. Permit Italy arrive at you.