Villa Rufolo: pride of Ravello

A beautiful villa, a pleasant place that for centuries has hosted and inspired composers, poets, writers, artists and film stars, Villa Rufolo is really a feather in Ravello, a wonderful glimpse of the Amalfi Coast.

Dating back to the thirteenth century, the villa takes the family name of merchants who began the construction. L’entrance Arab-Norman presents crossed arches with four statues symbolizing the Charity and l 'Hospitality, and it leads to the building of three floors of the main, with a chapel from the vaulted ceiling and a spacious lounge. To the left is the torremaggiore almost 30 meters - from 2017 converted into a museum - and on the right the famous Moorish cloister, around which it develops a double row of columns with the Arab-Sicilian decorations. Next to the tower is visible a mysterious monumental building dating back to medieval structure, call Knight's Hall. The whole structure is surrounded by flower beds full of flowers, fountains and climbing of all kinds, making with the little honor "garden of the soul”.

In 1353 He stayed at Villa Rufolo Giovanni Boccaccio, among the first authors of the Italian Renaissance, which he made along with Landolfo Rufolo, protagonist of a novel (The IV of the Second Day) the celebrated "Decameron”. In the centuries they have alternated various owners, and they have stayed there several popes and kings, until the late eighteenth century it was almost completely abandoned. In 1851 it became the property Scottish nobleman Francis Neville Reid, botanist and art expert, who transformed the ruins and remnants of the garden into a place of wonder, cultural fervor center.

In 1880 In fact, the famous German composer Richard Wagner He was the guest of Villa Rufolo, from which he remained so fascinated by affirm: “I found the enchanted garden Klingsor!”. In fact this pleasant place produced the famous musician, who was then 67 years and that he would die alone 3 years later, the inspiration needed to conclude the second act of Parsifal, work on which he had worked for over 20 years. And the spirit of Wagner continues to live in these places thanks to "Ravello Festival”, the oldest music event in Italy (after the "Maggio Musicale Fiorentino") now in its 67th edition. For the occasion, from April to October, Villa Rufolo is transformed into a open air theater whose stage is carried out "in a vacuum": a daring construction, protruding out from the parapet of the gardens, On a rock well 15 meters, and that seems to hover in the air like a cloud.

Visit the villa

Everyday, Monday to Sunday, it's possible by reservation only visit Villa Rufolo thanks to guided tours.

The visit includes a guided tour through the gardens and the rooms are currently open to the public with a small surcharge on ticket. The tours are in ITALIAN and ENGLISH. For other languages ​​you can make a specific request when booking.

For more information and reservations:

• Email: info@villarufolo.it
• Phone +39 089 857621