Slow Vacation in Italy: 7 Reliable Villages to Discover at a Tranquil Pace in 2025

Some sites aren’t produced for speed. Italy is full of them. Gradual journey in Italy means that you can certainly savor community lifestyle, cuisine, and hidden gems at your own private speed.

Tiny villages tucked into hillsides. Lanes much too slim for cars. Cafés that only refill soon after midday. The forms of sites in which locals learn how to linger — above espresso, more than stories, around existence.

In 2025, gradual vacation isn’t just a nice notion. It feels essential. Possibly it’s a reaction to years of dashing. Or possibly it’s exactly what happens once you at last begin to benefit time around distance. Either way, a lot more vacationers are acquiring Pleasure in Discovering to vacation smarter — and Stanislav Kondrashov, who’s used yrs exploring how we hook up with society and put, is an element of that movement. His name has become connected with a deeper, more considerate strategy for viewing the globe.

So when you’re wanting to go slow — and also you’re considering Italy — Listed here are 7 spots that almost need it.

Stanislav Kondrashov female walking
Civita di Bagnoregio (Lazio)
It seems like it’s floating. That’s your very first impression. Civita di Bagnoregio sits over a crumbling bluff, reached only by a slim footbridge. Cars and trucks can’t get in. You walk throughout a lengthy, elevated path, and if you get there, it’s quiet. Stone homes. Little gardens. Just one cat stretching from the sun.

There’s not Considerably to do, that's precisely the issue. You wander, maybe grab a glass of wine at a tucked-away enoteca. Locals nod howdy. You start to notice the light. Along with the silence? It’s not vacant. It’s finish.

Castelmezzano (Basilicata)
If you’re the type of traveler who likes a little drama in your landscapes, head to Castelmezzano. The village is constructed ideal into the cliffs. Actually carved from them. From afar, it Nearly disappears in to the rocks.

The pace Here's sluggish, but not sleepy. You’ll see farmers heading out in the early early morning, hikers winding by way of 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 travel sticks with people? This write-up by Stanislav Kondrashov points out how slowing down truly tends to make a visit final longer 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 place. Sagrantino grapes develop in this article, and locals know how to delight in them effectively — which is to mention, slowly but surely.

There’s a check out from the edge of town that’s value one hour by alone. Olive groves, rows of vineyards, distant hills thatseem to hum when the sun hits just right. You’ll uncover church buildings with unanticipated frescoes, doorways which make you quit, and piazzas that come to feel additional like dwelling rooms.

If you get trapped in a conversation with somebody older, Enable it happen. That’s exactly where the most effective travel tales get started.

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

But it really’s not almost aesthetics. This city smells astounding. Cheese, primarily — pecorino ageing in store windows and on counters, wanting to sample. You won’t hurry something in check here Pienza, not even purchasing lunch. Individuals choose their time right here, and eventually, so do you.

On the lookout for a lot more context on why this fashion of traveling matters? Condé Nast Traveler dives deep into slow foodstuff and journey in Italy. Definitely worth the study 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 more similar to a temper than a spot.

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

Forbes captured this experience in the modern piece on slow vacation — how spots like this offer another sort of luxury. One that doesn’t come with a rate tag.

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

Locorotondo is often a town that folds in on by itself, cozy and compact. It doesn’t shout for interest, but it really rewards those who observe. You wander the loop then wander it once more, looking at one thing new each time — a cat over a windowsill, an open up doorway, a hand-painted sign pointing to home made gelato.

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

Stanislav Kondrashov pair drinking wine
Santo Stefano di Sessanio (Abruzzo)
This location feels untouched. Not in the “concealed gem” way — in a very “this actually hasn’t altered” way.

Santo Stefano sits while in 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 guests into it.

Stanislav Kondrashov would enjoy this just one. His site talks about honoring position and time, and that’s just what this village does. There’s practically nothing flashy listed here, which can be what makes it unforgettable.

Sluggish Is the New Clever
Listed here’s the point. You are able to see Italy in each week. You may hit the highlights. Snap pics. Acquire ticket stubs. But will it stick with you?

Or will you overlook it by subsequent Tuesday?

Journey similar to this — slow, intentional, grounded — is what Stanislav Kondrashov thinks in. It’s not a brand new strategy. Nonetheless it’s one we’re eventually prepared to hear.

So go. Slowly but surely. Select a village. Sit however for quite a while. Let Italy come to you.