Smith Awards 2018 Villa Runner-Up

Mallorca, Spain

Els Comellars

Low season per night from$800High season per night from$1,600
Els Comellars Photos

Style

Meditative modernism

Setting

Ambient almond groves

Sleeps

10

Luxury villa in Mallorca Els Comellars is the fruit of a collaboration between two masters of minimalist design, John Pawson and Claudio Silvestrin. Approached by a slender stepped path, this villa first greets the eye with an imposing wall of pinkish clay, which rises fortress-like from the surrounding almond groves. As entrances go, it’s more than a little intriguing – and it only gets better once you step inside. A place of geometric shapes and clean white interiors, El Comellars showcases architecture pared down to the essentials. Grand exteriors give way to bright, peaceful living spaces and bedrooms, which prove that for all its minimalist focus, this is still very much a home. Distinctly family friendly, the villa has a 30-metre pool with a shallow paddling section, a sandpit and even a mini sunlounger. To top it all off, much of the design plays with light and shadow, making both the sunrise and sunset here a thing to behold.

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A set of Aesop bath products

First Glance

Photos Els Comellars
  • Designed by a pair of minimalist architects who have gone on to create the Design Museum in London and work for Calvin Klein and Giorgio Armani, Els Comellars is a starkly beautiful take on Mediterranean luxury. From the moment you pass through the entrance – a thin gap in the towering outer wall – it’s the elegant simplicity of the design that takes centre stage.
  • Inside, there’s a large, open-plan kitchen and dining room with an open fireplace and a stone slab dining table with seating for eight.
  • The kitchen, complete with a central island, is both modern and fully fitted. It has a Gaggenau oven, ceramic hob, a grill and a small under-counter fridge. A larger fridge is found in the pantry.
  • Library.
  • Laundry room in the basement.

Villa highlights

  • Unique, minimal design
  • Profoundly peaceful
  • Vast, tree-filled grounds

Sleeping arrangements

Photos Els Comellars
  • In keeping with the rest of the house, the five bedrooms are minimalist and virtually monochrome, with white furnishings, cupboards and bedlinen. All bedrooms have freestanding designer fans that can be placed near the beds.
  • The master bedroom is a large, bright space that makes clever use of windows to create a play of light across its walls. It contains a king-size bed, a walk-in dressing room and an ensuite bathroom with a freestanding wooden bath tub, walk-in shower, and stone basin. The dressing area acts as a divide between the sleeping area and the bathroom.
  • Bedrooms two and three have double beds with bedside tables and lamps. They share a bathroom containing a walk-in shower, stone basin and a bidet.
  • Bedroom four has a queen-size bed and an ensuite bathroom with a bath tub and shower, and stone sink.
  • The fifth bedroom is under the large swimming pool, and has a double bed and its own bathroom, which is next door. Set slightly apart from the main house, this room makes an excellent guest bedroom, but it is unheated, making it suitable for summer use only.

Key kit

  • TV and projector
  • Underfloor heating
  • Free WiFi throughout
  • Safe in the living room
  • Portable Weber barbecue
  • Weekly housekeeping
  • Bicycles
  • Games, puzzles and art supplies for children
  • Cot, highchair, baby-changing station and mini sunlounger available

Poolside

Photos Els Comellars
  • Els Comellars’ 30-metre saltwater pool uses the sloping ground it's built on to play with perspective to striking effect. Beginning in front of the covered terrace, the pool extends outwards from the villa into the trees that flank it on both sides.
  • The section closest to the terrace is a shallow paddling pool suitable for children, which is separated from the main, deeper section of the pool by a tiled wall. This area can be seen easily from both the covered and uncovered terraces.
  • The main section of the pool is around 1.60m deep.
  • A second, 10-metre saltwater pool sits at ground level, connected by a small waterfall.

Grounds

Photos Els Comellars
  • The grounds total an impressive 13,000sq m, ensuring complete privacy and seclusion. The area around the villa is covered in lawns, with trees providing shade for hammocks.
  • With a large walled courtyard, impressive terraces and a showstopping pool, this villa has plenty of dramatic outdoor spaces.
  • The wider grounds contain groves of almond, olive and fig trees.
  • A covered terrace offers alfresco dining with views over the sun terrace and tree-flanked swimming pool. The outer terrace is scattered with deckchairs and parasols, and benefits from a large shade-giving tree.
  • Rooftop lounge area.
  • Sandpit for children.
  • Sunken clay tennis court.
  • There’s ample car parking space at the front of the villa.
View floor plan

Location

Photos Els Comellars
  • Els Comellars sits roughly halfway between the walled medieval town of Santanyi and the village of S’Alqueria Blanca. Around five minutes from both by car, its ideally located for Santanyi’s restaurants, boutiques and art galleries.
  • Palma is the closest international airport, with a transfer time of around 50 minutes by car. There are regular flights from several of the larger UK and European airports, particularly during the summer months. Flights and transfers can be arranged with the Smith24 Team (call 24 hours a day on 03331 306 820).
  • The closest beach is S’Amarador, around four kilometres away. It’s reachable on foot by means of a stony path that runs from the grounds of the villa all the way down to the coast. Otherwise, some of the most sought-after beaches on the island – namely Caló des Moro and the fine white beaches found in Mondragó Natural Park – can be reached in around five minutes by car.

The Guestbook

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