Only 2 summer weeks remain, 3-10 August & 10-17 August reduced from £3,950 per wk to £3,250 per wk. 180 degree seaviews, walk to beaches, surf school, award-winning pub & the Barefoot cafe!
Recommended as 'one of the best beach villas in the world' by Conde Nast Traveller, location is everything at Halzephron House. This 17th century castellated property stands surrounded by National Trust land with stunning views on both sides down to golden beaches and blue seas. Owned by the founders of the online lifestyle company Barefoot Kitchen, designer products are scattered throughout the house.
The house has been painted white throughout and furnished with all the latest equipment, so that a group can have a relaxing beachside holiday but in contemporary style. The kitchen has the latest Aga and beachglass work surfaces, making it a dream for self-caterers (although catering can be arranged). There is a sheltered, walled garden with palm trees and a large orangery which opens out onto a terracotta sunken terrace. The front of the house looks across lawns to Mount’s Bay and St Michael's Mount. In the evening, if straying from star-gazing you can glimpse the lights of the Minack Theatre and Tater Du lighthouse.
Halzephron House has five bedrooms in the main house, all painted a cool white but each with its own individual character. The Master bedroom, for example, has an antique French bed and an ensuite travertine marble shower room. The sea views from this bedroom are magnificent. There are a further two double rooms and two twins, one of which can become a superking. The family room has a kingsize bed and a bunkbed with views over open countryside. All beds have new mattresses, down duvets and pillows, and crisp white linen and towels. In addition to the ensuite showerroom and family bathroom, there is a downstairs slate and pebble wet room, installed with a power shower. The Observatory, an ensuite guest cottage is available by arrangement, as is The Cabin a ground floor hideaway also for two.
The house has been refurbished to a very high standard, and again minimalist white throughout. The kitchen has slate floors, a new 4-oven electric Aga, large fridges and Nigella Lawson crockery and gadgets. Other rooms include a big living room with squashy leather sofas, Scan woodburner and a 32” LCD TV and DVD. The upstairs drawing room has stunning views out to sea, rich velvet sofa and Verner Panton chairs. Guests can all eat together in the dining room around the monolithic oak table designed for the house by Rozen Designs or they may prefer to eat breakfast or dine on summer evenings in the large 45 ft long orangery, refurbished in 2010 which seats up to 20. There is an integral stereo system in the hall with speakers throughout the ground floor.
Every detail has been considered by the owners, so that you can enjoy a hassle-free holiday. There’s a surfboard and wetsuit room, for example, with a washing machine and dryer leading to the wet room. Online food and wine can be ordered via Tesco and Sainsburys. The owners, who live next door, will put all your food in the larder and wine in the fridge ready for your arrival. The garden was previously used as a commercial herb garden, and the well-established plants are available for all visiting cooks to use. The walled garden adjacent to the house, which opens off the orangery, is enclosed for young children. There is table-tennis in the conservatory which opens out onto a sunken terrace, complete with large firepit. The ocean-side grounds are ideal for football and cricket. There’s also a 12 ft submerged trampoline and half-pipe skateboard ramp (but at users’ risk!) - this is shared with the owners. A visiting therapist offers a range of relaxing treatments from reflexology to holistic massage. The house is a bird-watcher’s paradise, and seals can be seen down on the rocks below. If you love walking, you can stroll onto the Cornish Coastal Footpath from the garden. Mullion Golf Course is only a 10-minute walk down the lane (two minutes in the car); non-members may play here if they belong to another club and can present their handicap card. The beaches are equally close. Dogs are welcome by arrangement and downstairs only.
Halzephron is on the edge of the village of Gunwalloe, five minutes’ walk from an award-winning gastro pub (best food in Cornwall twice - Good Pub Guide) with a popular restaurant. It’s a ten minute walk from the house to Church Cove beach with its famous St Winwalloe Church and Mullion golf course, less than five minutes to Fishing Cove which stretches all the way to Porthleven.
The Lizard peninsula is still unspoilt by tourism and is known for it's varied landscape which includes serpentine cliffs, the savannah-like Goonhilly Downs and the lush Helford River. At the bottom of the no-through lane are two beaches, Dollar Cove where silver dollars are still believed to be washed up following an ancient wreck and Church Cove which has golden sands and is perfect for buckets and spades and bathing (lifeguards during the summer). The famous beachside church of St Winwalloe is worth a visit too. The Helford River with its sailing facilities is a 15-minute drive. Helston, famous for its Floral Dance in May where elegantly dressed couples dance through the streets to welcome the coming of spring is a 10-minute drive and home to Flambards Village Theme Park and the RNAS Culdrose Air Sea Rescue Base. The Goonhilly Earth Station is also a 10-minute drive. The award-winning Maritime Museum at Falmouth is a 25-minute drive and can be combined with a lunch at one of the many excellent restaurants close by. You could easily spend a day in St Ives, a half hour drive across the Cornish peninsula from Halzephron. This is Cornwall’s pretty and very popular artists’ resort, home of the Tate Museum, numerous galleries and various surf shops and surf schools. (NB: There are many closer surf courses to the house than St Ives, such as Praa Sands. Experienced surfers use Church Cove at Gunwalloe, but Poldhu is the nearest family surfing beach with a shop hiring boards and wetsuits.) Other possible daytrips include the Eden Project, Lost Gardens of Heligan (both an hour away), Penzance (25 minutes) and Truro (half an hour). Nearest airports: Newquay 1 hour (Stansted and London Gatwick). Penzance heliport for the Isles of Scilly. Nearest train stations: Redruth, Penzance and Truro.
£3,950 per week (high season)