Costa del Sol - €4.5m: An Irish property developer is selling Casa Escondida, his home on an acre of landscaped gardens on the Costa del Sol. It comes with a three-bedroom guest-house. Rose Doyle reports.
Casa Escondida means Hidden House and is the name of a large and elegant home belonging to an Irish property developer which is for sale at Guadalmina Baja, near Marbella on the Spanish Costa del Sol.
Located about 40 minutes from Malaga and its airport, the villa overlooks Guadalmina Baja's well-known parkland-style golf courses and, together with its nearby and more recently built guest-house, has sweeping views of the Mediterranean and beach access.
On more than an acre of mature, landscaped gardens, both houses have the grace and cool spaces typical of the Andalusian style favoured by their architect, Cesar de Leyva.
Responsible for many of the coastline's noteworthy buildings, de Leyva designed the 557sq m (6,000sq ft) main house in the 1980s. It was built in 1988 and bought by the present owner seven years ago. The 241.5sq m (2,600sq ft) guest- house, which cost €800,000 and was part of a major refurbishment of the main house, was designed and built two years ago.
Great use has been made of marble and ceramic tiling in both homes and each house has its own heated swimming pool. Neither has direct access to the golf course.
Casa Escondida and its guest house are being sold through Equity Properties; Peter Wilson is seeking €4.5 million for the two houses. They may be sold separately, with the price tag for the main house being €3.5 million and for the guest-house, €1.25 million. The additional €250,000 is to allow for the extra charges involved in separating the houses under Spanish law.
The imposing entrance hallway in the four-bedroom main house has a sweep of white marble staircase and views of the main living area and beyond it to the gardens, pool and golf course.
Other accommodation on the ground floor includes a diningroom, family/TV room, two bedrooms - one in use as a study - and a laundry room.
The first floor is taken up with the main bedroom suite and a guest suite which has a sittingroom and en suite bathroom.
A long house, Casa Escondida has a covered terrace running the length of the ground floor as well as terraces off the first floor bedrooms.
The guest-house has a kitchen/diningroom, large living area, three bedrooms and three bathrooms. It too has sheltered terraces outside .
Guadalmina Baja is an older, established part of Marbella and many of the houses neighbouring Casa Escondida are Spanish-owned homes occupied year round.
The Guadalmina Hotel and its extensive facilities is a five-minute walk away and the nearest town, San Pedro de Alcantara, has a variety of shops and restaurants as well as a lively market.
