Peace, privacy and stunning views of Killiney bay are all in the package with Ardan, a modern two-storey house on Vico Road, Dalkey.

The four-bedroom house sits among 1.5 acres of dense woodland high above the road in the lee of Dalkey Hill. Due to be auctioned by Sherry FitzGerald on May 31st, the property is expected to make £1.8 million-plus. Vico Road, which starts in Dalkey and ends in Killiney, has some of the most extravagant houses in Ireland. Its showy Victorian villas cling to the edge of the road, but some of its most interesting homes are hidden from view.

Ardan is set high among its trees, perfectly invisible except from boats in the bay, and accessed via a steep driveway that leads up from a point opposite the entrance to Whiterock beach.

The driveway is almost like a country lane, so dense are the trees on either side. The lower part of the drive is shared by a neighbour who has a small parking space at the bottom of the property.

At the top of the drive, there is a wide parking area leading to a garage. This is at a lower level to the house: a flight of steps through a rockery leads to the front door.

Built in the 1950s and virtually rebuilt by the current owners in the early 1980s, the 3,000 sq ft house has a distinctly American feel. It is basically one room deep, with the principal rooms facing the sea. Bathrooms and utilities are at the back of the house.

White walls and Scandinavian pine patio doors throughout give it a clean modern look, and new owners will need the minimum of furniture to complete the look. Most of the rooms have access to either patio or balcony space. A wide patio wraps around the front of the house and has a spiral staircase connecting it to a decked terrace at the upper level.

The hall leads through the house at an angle and takes one first into the kitchen - a bright room with a seating area at one end and the working kitchen with its white-tiled walls and units at the other.

A window into the corridor gives a glimpse all the way through the livingroom window to Bray Head.

The split level livingroom has views through an entire wall of windows. For winter evenings, seating can be grouped around a raised fireplace set in a corner.

A corridor continues past a guest lavatory and utility room to the family room, which has doors leading to the patio with the spiral staircase.

Upstairs, all four bedrooms face the sea and all have access to the decked terrace. Two bathrooms and a store room complete the space.

The woodland garden is alive with birdsong and is home to many rare species of trees, shrubs and wild flowers. Beside the house is a small chalet that children will love to call their own. At the top of the garden, a door gives access to the Green Walk, leading to Killiney Hill and Dalkey Hill.