Portofino - picturesque harbor village in Italian Riviera

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Portofino is an Italian fishing village and vacation resort famous for its picturesque harbor and historical association with celebrity and artistic visitors. I paid a short, but very remarkable visit here at the end of 2015, during a short 7 day trip around Italy.

We arrived to Portofino from Genoa (Read my first impressions: A Little Bit From Italian Riviera (Somewhere Around Genoa)

Portofino - Italian fishing village

Portofino - Italian fishing village

According to Pliny the Elder, Portofino was founded by the Romans and named Portus Delphini, or Port of the Dolphin, because of the large number of dolphins that inhabited the Tigullian Gulf.

Portofino bay in Italy

Portofino bay in Italy

I felt so impressed with all those colors, that I just couldn't resist and made a lot of HDR images here. Learn more: Digital photography school

Fisherman at Portofino bay in Italy

Fisherman at Portofino bay in Italy

Narrow streets in Portofino

Narrow streets in Portofino

The biggest issue in those small Italian villages are parking space, we were lucky enough that we found a parking lot with enough space to place our Volkswagen Polo, but in fact - when traveling to this region of Italy - take in note - parking space is a huge issue.

National Park of Portafino

National Park of Portafino

​Turns out - Portofino is a paradise for outdoor activity lovers, as there is a Portofnio natural park located, where visitors can take a hike, for example.

The heart of the Regional Natural Park of Portofino is accessible by the many trails long over 60 Km that cross it and allow walkers to visit the various localities of the Park. Starting from Portofino, the main points of the park tour, you can take different paths with length and level of various difficulties through the various environments of the Park reaching Portofino Vetta, the highest point of the promontory. Source: Discover the Natural Park of Portofino - Italian Riviera

Tourist attractions in Portofino

Tourist attractions in Portofino

Boats at Portofino bay

Boats at Portofino bay

Boat at Portofino bay

Boat at Portofino bay

Restaurants located on Portofino promenade

Restaurants located on Portofino promenade

I did find this Italian Riviera village very similar to seaside villages in Catalonia, Spain. Read: Exploring Catalonia: from Roses to Cadaques

Portofino bay

Portofino bay

I submitted above image as day 96/365 for my 365 days photo challenge

Hiking trails at Portofino

Hiking trails at Portofino

About Portofino

Portofino is an Italian fishing village and vacation resort famous for its picturesque harbor and historical association with celebrity and artistic visitors. It is a comune located in the province of Genoa on the Italian Riviera. The town is clustered around its small harbor, and is known for the colorfully painted buildings that line the shore.

Portofino became famous in the 1950s with the song "Love In Portofino" which was written by Leo Chiosso and composed by Fred Buscaglione, and released on 12 May 1958. Fred Buscaglione was also the first singer to perform it.

There is a full scale replication, in authentic detail, of the Portofino Bay at Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando, USA, which opened in September 1999.

Location
44.303889, 9.207778