By George Upton
For a private harbour
This four-bedroom house at the mouth of the River Dart in Devon (also pictured above) was built over a 14-year period during the 1990s and 2000s using traditional techniques and stone quarried from its site. Construction was a complicated engineering process, with the 19.5-metre deep foundations and private harbour excavated from solid rock. The ground floor features a Roman-style swimming pool with handmade pillars by De Lank Quarry in Cornwall and a glass ceiling that has views up to the living room. The house is on the market for £5mn and is offered with the original 1850s boat house.
For a Venetian palace
Ca 'Dario is an eight-bedroom palazzo on the Grand Canal in Venice and is on the market for €20mn. Remodelled at the end of the 15th century, its distinctive asymmetric facade was praised by John Ruskin and painted by Claude Monet. The palazzo can be directly accessed from the Grand Canal, with the porta d'acqua opening on to a large hall with a red marble well. A marble staircase leads to the first of two piano nobile, the second of which has a balcony with a view of the canal. A loggia on the third floor overlooks the garden at the rear of the palazzo. Carvings in the second floor dining room and Majolica stoves were added as part of a late 19th-century restoration project.
For relaxing outside
The dock of this five-bedroom house in the Cayman Islands doubles as a patio on which to sit and take in the expansive views of the North Sound lagoon. In addition to several living and dining spaces and a large kitchen on the ground floor, a veranda runs around the house, offering many other spaces to relax. The bedrooms are split between the two levels of the house, with a guest suite on the ground floor containing a kitchenette, en-suite bathroom and walk-in closet. The house is on the market for $4.25mn.
For lakeside living
This five-bedroom house, on the market for SFr6.3mn ($6.44mn), is located on the banks of Lake Lugano. The modern open plan living areas on the ground and first floors are connected through double height spaces and, as with the bedrooms on the floor above, there are floor-to-ceiling windows that look out to the lake. There is also a swimming pool and, at the end of the garden, a private dock.
For complete isolation
It takes more than two hours to reach Nantucket by ferry from the mainland and this four-bedroom property is in one of the more isolated locations on the New England island. The traditional grey shingle house — on the market for $8.25mn — is situated at the edge of a natural harbour and is connected by a 260-foot pier to one of only 15 licensed, privately owned docks on the island. The property includes an open plan kitchen and dining room, a large basement and office.
Photography: Savills; Daniel Miot/Christie’s International Real Estate; Luxury Portfolio International; Berkshire Hathaway Home Services
