Ibiza
What sort of service would you like at the villa?’ I pondered a while, looking out of the car window as we drove from the airport past orange and lemon groves and asked Ulf, the manager, what he meant. ‘Well, do you want to have your napkin replaced before it hits the floor or something more discreet?’
Isla Sa Ferradura sits alone on a tiny island just off the coast of Ibiza. It is the epitome of exclusivity: a billionaire’s holiday heaven.
We crossed from the mainland via a thin spit of golden sand that links the party capital of the world with this island of quiet charm. Behind a vast wooden gate, we found a Garden of Eden, filled with ancient olive trees, oleander, great drifts of chrysanthemum and trailing rosemary, as well as mastic trees, Aleppo pines and bird of paradise plants.
My two sons and their friends had been singing songs from Hamilton in the car and, by the time we had been shown to our rooms, the music was playing on speakers all around the island. The attention to detail was astonishing. The villa itself, designed by local architect Jaime Romano, is in the simple Balearic style. The oak floor throughout, polished to oyster sheen, is the perfect dancing partner to the shimmering light coming through the vast windows.
Isla Sa Ferradura was voted last year as Europe’s best private villa. It holds 12 guests; there are 23 members of staff. Further accommodation is available for larger parties —footballer Cesc Fabregas had his wedding here and Lionel Messi has stayed.
Nothing is impossible to arrange; no detail is ignored. Even the lawn, despite the wind and sea salt, is like a feather mattress, nurtured with Cynodon dactylon and Festuca Arundinaria grass seeds. There are two swimming pools, a gym and a spa built into the rock with agapanthus growing on the roof.
Denne historien er fra December 25, 2019-utgaven av Country Life UK.
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Denne historien er fra December 25, 2019-utgaven av Country Life UK.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
