Property Description

Villa Milli – Stylish Sea-view Sicilian Villa with Swimming Pool, Green Gardens and Three Bedrooms

Just a few kilometres outside the beautiful port city of Trapani, in the lea of a huge mountainous hill topped by an ancient fortified town and within full view of the pristine Tyrrhenian Sea, the town of Valderice has long been a favoured spot for summer houses and stylish villas.

Built shortly after the turn of the century Villa Milli, is firmly in this tradition. Offering a wonderful sea view, a beautiful garden and a pristine, perfectly maintained swimming pool, it would make an ideal option for a summer home, although it is also well-located and fully prepared for year-round living.

With 240m2 of internal space on two large, easily flowing floors, the well-built construction was designed locally, by a well-known architect. The class here is evident from a first glance, with the use of colour and modern touches like the half-spiral staircase, the uneven roof and the fabulous kitchen all give it an unmistakeable exclusivity and set it apart from the ranks of mass-produced identikit holiday homes which populate some less interesting coastal regions.

The perfectly maintained garden of this sea-view Sicilian villa offers another 480m2 of space, capped by the 12m pool, with its inviting deck area. Higher up, this outdoor space has been artfully planted with a verdant lawn and ornamental olive trees. Lastly, you’ll find a picturesque covered terrace, where the glazed superstructure lets you spend your afternoons or evenings even in Sicily’s short winter months.

The Property

Built on two floors, Villa Milli is very well maintained and in superb condition inside and out.

Your first impression of the property, coming from the quiet suburban street, is a characterful drystone wall and a secure entrance gate. This leads you into a shady garden, where the trees and hedgerows offer cool temperatures and excellent privacy and quiet, broken only by birdsong from the canopy above. The enclosed terrace is to your left.

To the rear of the squarish, orange-coloured house a staircase leads you down to the swimming pool, with its little outdoor bathroom and outdoor shower. The wooden deck offers all the space you need for tables and sun loungers. In addition to the pool area and terraces, which are not overlooked by any neighbouring property. Next to this is an outdoor sink and grill, perfect for entertaining in the summer.

A separate, larger gate opens onto a driveway which lets you bring a vehicle down to the secure, off-road parking spot which is afforded shade by a large awning.

The main entrance to the house itself is a glazed door leading into a large hallway, with the living room ahead of you and the kitchen on your left. This huge, double-length space combines a lounge, dining and food preparation area, with cupboards, work surfaces and white goods running the length of the room. A huge extractor fan crowns the large oven, which is set next to a deep double sink. An orange floor adds a lively touch, and for a natural counterpoint, a window opening onto the garden offers a double view of the water – both the swimming pool and beyond, in the middle-distance, the sea.

The living room is an irregular, intriguing shape, with a corner cut diagonally off for a large open fireplace. A large glass dresser fits perfectly into an alcove on your left. The parquet floor, running through from that entrance hall, is of a slightly darker shade than you’d typically find in Sicily, which gives a feeling of history, comfort, and just a touch of understated luxury.

Beyond this you come to a guest room, with a large double bunk bed and an en-suite bathroom in mustard yellow, and a utility room with a WC.

Upstairs, a long hallway runs down the western side of the building, sections of fully glazed wall allowing for both light and heat to floor the space, and the unique touch of a section of glass floor which allows you to look directly down into the entrance hall. A cool study area with fitted bookshelves opens through double French windows onto the small terrace, which offers a fabulous view over the mountainside of Erice to the west and the long slow gulf of the coastline to the north.

Two bedrooms, a medium-sized guest and a long master with a sea view, are found at this level. The family bathroom is another statement space, with a jacuzzi spa bath and a hydromassage shower giving you not one but two options to ease aching muscles and relieve any lingering tension after a long day exploring the countryside or swimming in the sea.

A storeroom at basement level offers room to keep garden furniture and pool equipment when that’s not in use. And lastly, to guarantee your comfort when other commitments keep you elsewhere, the entire property is protected by an alarm system.

The house is provided with central heating through radiators powered by a methane boiler, which is served by the municipal supply. All you would need to do it transfer the account into your name – and we can even help with that and similar relocation tasks, though our popular Welcome to Sicily after-sales package. Water is also from the public supply, and in case of dry spells you will also be able to enjoy the peace of mind that comes from having a 24,000 litre emergency cistern. The air conditioning units present in all rooms are modern and in good condition. All windows are as new, double-glazed and fitted with external wooden shutters.

Surroundings

Valderice is a small but pretty village on a gentle hillside, just a few kilometres east of Trapani. That hillside, and around 300m of elevation above sea level, give it wonderful views of the surrounding countryside and the sea to the north. It is home to around ten thousand inhabitants, and offers all of the amenities of a small town, including restaurants, bars, supermarkets, medical practices and public transport connections.

The sea-view Sicilian villa is found in an exclusive residential area just outside the town centre or Valderice. Your will only find one and two-storey villas here, and the sea views are the best in the area. The fresh breeze that runs up from the sea offsets the subtropical latitude and warm southern winds to make this a comfortable position in which to enjoy time outdoors almost all year round.

Erice, on the hillside above you to the west, is said to be the oldest settlement to be found anywhere in Sicily. As well as the road up from Valderice, it can also be reached by a cable car from Trapani below, which offers tremendous panoramas of the peninsula beyond and the city of Trapani. Reached by 15 minutes in the car from Villa Milla, this coastal city is about seven times larger than the little town in the hills. You’ll find a sizeable hospital, two cinemas, a beautiful old town with a charming urban beach, a long seafront with bars and lidi, and a port. This last is your gateway to the wonderful Aegedian Islands, a trio which attract tourists in droves to enjoy their amazingly clear water and undeveloped coastlines.

The nearest beach is just 2.5km downhill at Bonagia, a community that grew up around the tuna fishery which is now a luxury hotel and restaurant. All of the most famous beaches of the Sicilian west can be reached in about 30 minutes: Scopello, Marsala, Castellammare del Golfo and especially the Caribbean-like San Vito lo Capo.

The motorway is only ten minutes away, and this will take you to Trapani airport in just half an hour. The larger one at Palermo is only 50 minutes’ drive, and the island’s enthralling capital city itself little more than an hour. The incredibly-preserved ancient temple and theatre at Segesta are also just 30 minutes away by car.

Potential

No work is required – Villa Milli house is ready to be lived in. And thanks to the mixed heating and cooling system, with both radiators and air conditioning, if you were to buy this stylish sea-view Sicilian villa you could comfortably make it your permanent home. This, apart from the obvious lifestyle advantages, gives you access to a raft of tax breaks and subsidies which are designed to encourage high worth individuals to make Sicily their tax residence.

The parts of the furniture which have been made to measure, including the kitchen units, are included in the asking price. The owner has told us that, if the buyer is interested in moving quickly and easily, without the need to transport furniture internationally or hunt for quality pieces locally, they would be prepared to accept a reasonable offer for all or some of the rest of the contents, as seen in our photos and video.