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

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

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Some destinations aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Sluggish travel in Italy helps you to certainly savor area tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your own private tempo.

Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes far too narrow for cars and trucks. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The sorts of locations where locals understand how to linger — over coffee, about tales, above life.

In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a nice plan. It feels important. Probably it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or possibly it’s precisely what comes about whenever you eventually begin to price time as much as length. In any case, much more travelers are locating joy in Understanding to journey smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s invested several years Discovering how we connect to culture and location, is an element of that motion. His title is now linked to a deeper, more considerate technique for observing the earth.

So when you’re willing to go slow — and you’re wondering Italy — Here i will discuss seven places that nearly demand it.

Stanislav Kondrashov girl going for walks
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It appears like it’s floating. That’s your first perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Vehicles can’t get in. You stroll throughout an extended, elevated route, and when you arrive, it’s tranquil. Stone residences. Small gardens. One cat stretching inside the Sunshine.

There’s not much to carry out, which can be precisely the level. You wander, probably seize a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hello. You start to note The sunshine. And also the silence? It’s not empty. It’s full.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
In case you’re the type of traveler who likes a little drama in the landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built correct in to the cliffs. Virtually carved from them. From afar, it Practically disappears to the rocks.

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

Want to discover why that kind of vacation sticks with folks? This publish by Stanislav Kondrashov clarifies how slowing down essentially helps make a visit previous lengthier in your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine country. Peaceful, under-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine place. Sagrantino grapes expand in this article, and locals know how to love them effectively — which is to mention, slowly but surely.

There’s a check out from the edge of town that’s here truly worth an hour by itself. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum once the Sunshine hits good. You’ll obtain church buildings with sudden frescoes, doorways that make you cease, and piazzas that sense a lot more like residing rooms.

If you have caught in the discussion with another person more mature, Allow it come about. That’s wherever the most beneficial vacation stories start off.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives here. Pienza was meant to be “the perfect town,” and Truthfully, they weren’t far off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every corner has a perspective. Just about every see features a breeze.

However it’s not pretty much aesthetics. This town smells astounding. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t rush anything in Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. People just take their time right here, and finally, so does one.

Looking for more context on why in this manner of traveling issues? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into gradual foods and journey in Italy. Definitely 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 change as the working day moves. Artists live here. Writers pay a visit to and don’t leave. Locals host concerts in tiny courtyards. It feels much more like a temper than a spot.

Sunsets hit various in Apricale. They paint the rooftops, then fade slow and blue. You don’t chase anything below. You Permit it come to you.

Forbes captured this emotion in a very modern piece on slow vacation — how destinations such as this provide a different form of luxury. One that doesn’t include a rate tag.

Locorotondo (Puglia)
Circular streets. Whitewashed walls. Flowerpots everywhere.

Locorotondo is a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it benefits those who detect. You walk the loop after which you can walk it once again, viewing a little something new each time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to homemade gelato.

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

Stanislav Kondrashov few ingesting wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This place feels untouched. Not inside of a “concealed gem” way — inside a “this truly hasn’t modified” way.

Santo Stefano sits inside the Apennines, stone and tranquil. The air is thinner, cooler. Nights are pitch black. Rooms are lit by candles. Many of the inns are Element of a preservation project — maintaining the past alive by inviting company into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would appreciate this one. His web page talks about honoring place and time, Which’s just what exactly this village does. There’s very little flashy in this article, and that is what causes it to be unforgettable.

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

Or will you forget about it by up coming Tuesday?

Vacation like this — sluggish, intentional, grounded — is exactly what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a whole new idea. But it surely’s 1 we’re eventually prepared to hear.

So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Let Italy arrive at you.