Deià Village

Deià is a village of approximately 700 permanent residents clinging to a steep ridge in the Tramuntana mountains above the northwest coast of Mallorca, and its landscape — a cascade of ochre stone houses with terracotta roof tiles set among ancient terraced olive groves plunging toward the dark blue Mediterranean — is among the most photographed in the Balearic Islands. The English poet and novelist Robert Graves arrived in 1929 and made Deià his principal home for over 50 years, drawing to the village a community of artists, writers, and musicians — among them the poet Laura Riding, sculptor Jacob Epstein, and composer William Walton — whose influence on Deià's character persists today in its density of galleries, exceptional restaurants, and creative residents. The Robert Graves Museum (Ca n'Alluny), Graves's restored home on the village edge, displays his library, writing desk, letters, and personal effects with remarkable intimacy. The village is best explored on foot: the main street climbs to a beautiful 16th-century church with a small cemetery where Graves's grave may be visited, and narrow lanes branch off to stone terraces with extraordinary sea views. Cala de Deià, accessible by a 20-minute steep descent on foot from the village, is a small pebble cove wedged between rocky headlands, one of the most romantic and uncrowded bathing spots on the island. The concentration of excellent restaurants — including Michelin-starred establishments — in such a small village is extraordinary and reflects the cultural prestige Deià has accumulated over decades.