Ventana al Mar

With its eye-catching façade of sleek lines and floor-to-ceiling windows this contemporary home forms a striking pose as it looks out across tree tops towards the sheltered waters of the bay of Aldán, its pretty waterside village, enticing sandy beaches and local coastal amenities.

In what has to be one of the most picturesque and natural tracts of Galicia’s Rías Baixas, the azure blue sea flows into fjord-like inlets to provide a sheltered shoreline lined with a host of idyllic sandy beaches and pretty ports.  One of these is Aldán, which sits alongside its typical port on a curved bay of golden sands amidst the scenic coastal landscape that forms such a pleasing outlook for Ventana al Mar.

The best vantage points are, of course, from the property’s first floor where smartly furnished bedrooms look out through a wall of glass windows to the coast.  In the centre, and accessed from the middle bedroom, a spacious terrace extends outwards to provide further opportunities for sitting back and soaking up the view. Just below, the sitting room is flooded with light thanks to the fully glazed walls that line three of its facades.

The contemporary use of glass fills the stylishly presented interior with light and the incorporation of shutters and blinds means that it can be kept cool even in the height of summer.  The terraced grounds are conveniently accessed from both the sitting room and kitchen and provide a pleasing choice of outdoor areas for relaxation in and around the pool, whilst a walk of just 350m downhill reveals the typically Galician village of Hio and a bar serving an appetising menu of local dishes. For days on the beach the choice is extensive. Either head out on foot and enjoy a 1.2km walk to Praia de Vilariño before continuing around the shore to the pretty port of Aldan or take the car and spend the day discovering the many sheltered beaches of Caribbean-like sand that line the meandering shoreline.