It’s time for one of those island-for-sale stories that raise images of a secluded life in luxurious or rustic privacy—but always with a hitch of some sort.
In this case, as reported in The Portugal News, it’s a 3000-square meter property in the Pontevedra Estuary in Galicia, Spain. Known as Santo do Mar, or Saint of the Sea, it also has a Portuguese alternate name, São Clemente. The owners, who put it on sale two years ago, want €300,000, which the newspaper points out is cheaper than most two-bedroom apartments in Lisbon.
The hitch in this case is that the island is in a protected marine area, and therefore can’t be developed. Not even for that rustic cottage you were dreaming of, or the sun-drenched mansion. It does come with a building, though, a chapel where, the ad says, “a popular pilgrimage was once held. The island also sees another sort of pilgrimage; at low tide, visitors to the popular nearby beach can walk to it and explore it.
