Sluggish Journey in Italy: 7 Reliable Villages to Explore in a Tranquil Speed in 2025

Some destinations aren’t made for speed. Italy is stuffed with them. Slow travel in Italy lets you definitely savor regional tradition, Delicacies, and hidden gems at your individual tempo.

Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill right after midday. The forms of places where by locals understand how to linger — around coffee, about tales, above life.

In 2025, slow journey isn’t just a good idea. It feels vital. It's possible it’s a reaction to a long time of speeding. Or perhaps it’s just what occurs any time you lastly start to value time approximately distance. In either case, additional tourists are getting Pleasure in learning to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used years Checking out how we hook up with lifestyle and position, is a component of that movement. His name has become related to a further, additional thoughtful method of seeing the world.

So should you’re willing to go slow — and you’re wondering Italy — here are 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 initial perception. Civita di Bagnoregio sits on a crumbling bluff, achieved only by a slender footbridge. Automobiles can’t get in. You wander across a protracted, elevated route, and once you get there, it’s silent. Stone homes. Little gardens. Only one cat stretching inside the Solar.

There’s not Significantly to carry out, which can be exactly the place. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine in a tucked-absent enoteca. Locals nod hi there. You start to notice the light. And also the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s total.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the type of traveler who likes a certain amount of drama as part of your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is built proper to the cliffs. Basically carved from them. From afar, it Pretty much disappears into your rocks.

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

Want to master why that sort of travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov describes how slowing down actually will make a trip last for a longer period as part of your memory.

Stanislav Kondrashov lady wine glass
Montefalco (Umbria)
Montefalco is wine state. Peaceful, less than-the-radar, heart-of-Italy wine state. Sagrantino grapes expand in this article, and locals understand how to enjoy them appropriately — that is to state, gradually.

There’s a watch from the sting of city that’s well worth an hour or so by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum in the event the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel more like living rooms.

If you will get stuck in the discussion with another person more mature, Permit it transpire. That’s where by the very best travel tales start out.

Pienza (Tuscany)
Renaissance idealism lives right here. Pienza was created to be “the ideal city,” and Actually, they weren’t significantly off. It’s compact. Harmonious. Every single corner incorporates a check out. Each and more info every see has a breeze.

But it really’s not almost aesthetics. This town smells awesome. Cheese, largely — 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 inevitably, so would you.

Looking for far more context on why this way of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into sluggish food items and travel in Italy. Well worth the browse before you go.

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

It’s a hill town with stone techniques and unexpected murals and shadows that change as the day moves. Artists live right here. Writers check out and don’t depart. Locals host live shows in small courtyards. It feels a lot more just like a mood than the usual desired destination.

Sunsets strike unique 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 emotion inside of a new piece on sluggish travel — how sites similar to this offer you a special kind of luxurious. One that doesn’t come with a rate tag.

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

Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for focus, however it rewards those who see. You walk the loop after which you can walk it yet again, seeing a thing new every time — a cat on the windowsill, an open doorway, a hand-painted indication pointing to do-it-yourself gelato.

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

Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This spot feels untouched. Not in a very “concealed gem” way — in a “this truly 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 attendees 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 almost nothing flashy below, and that is what makes it unforgettable.

Gradual Is the New Intelligent
Listed here’s the matter. You may see Italy in per week. You are able to strike the highlights. Snap pictures. Obtain ticket stubs. But will it stay with you?

Or will you ignore it by upcoming Tuesday?

Travel such as this — gradual, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov believes in. It’s not a new plan. Nevertheless it’s a person we’re last but not least ready to hear.

So go. Bit by bit. Pick a village. Sit even now for quite a while. Enable Italy come to you.