Porto Rafael
Porto Rafael
The exclusive village of Porto Rafael is a real gem nestling on the coast ofGallura which directly overlooks the Maddalena Archipelago. Here wild and untouched nature contrasts with the clean, fresh style of the white villas in the village.
While you circumnavigate the coast through the crystal-clear turquoise water you can admire the charm of this refined village. A place to stop and immerse yourself in the peace and tranquillity of this chic village with an exclusive and refined atmosphere. Enjoy an aperitif in the picturesque main square just a stone’s throw from the sea, spend an out of the ordinary evening and savour a dinner of culinary delights.
A unique experience, in a glamorous place just waiting to be discovered.
Porto Rafael
history
…a dream come true.
Rafael Neville Rubiu, Count of Berlanga y del Duero, was a Spanish noble and artist who was born into a cultured, wealthy and intellectual family. He spent his life travelling between Morocco, Paris, England and Spain.
In 1958 he first set foot in Sardinia. He stayed for a time with friends who were Spanish-Catalan nobility and while chatting one night at dinner with them he shared the dream he had had as a child: “To have my own kingdom in a bay and 7 enchanted islands with a square and a few white houses” (cit.).
The Count was invited to explore the beauty of the island to see with his own eyes if there was a place right for him. Rafael accepted with pleasure and immersed himself in the wonders around him. Just as he was returning by boat from La Maddalena to Palau Rafael was struck by the area of Punta Sardegna and immediately understood that he had finally found what he had been searching for to create his own seaside village.
In 1960 Rafael bought his first plot of land. Everything began to take shape slowly, just like his dream, initially with Rafael’s first house in a military post still known today as “La Mitraglietta -The Submachine Gun” which became his home and the base for future projects.
Just 5 years later came the square and Rafael’s house which he called “Porto Rafale Town Hall”. The square project completed by Rafael himself included a small main square surrounded by a few bars and restaurants for the locals and small white houses. The parties and social gatherings that enlivened Porto Rafael led to the start of the good life on the coast.
More than sixty years after the completion of the project as per tradition every year on the 21st of August Count Rafael’s birthday is celebrated in the main square: all guests dressed in white tunics dance in honour of the founder of the place Count Rafael.
As Rafael himself said “Dreaming is Living”, and Porto Rafael is all of this.
