A luxury villa for sale
in the light of Spain.

This guide covers villas of more than a million euros, from the Costa del Sol and the Costa Blanca to Ibiza, Mallorca, the Canary Islands and the quiet country behind the coast.

When you are ready to buy, the search lets you set the location, the type of home, the floor area and your budget. Tell us what you have in mind.

Seafront villas, coast by coast

For many buyers the sea is the whole point. Each coast has a character of its own, and on the islands the water is closer still.

• Costa del Sol: Marbella, from the Golden Mile by the beach to hills that face Morocco
• Costa Blanca: Jávea beneath the Montgó, Altea on its hill of white houses
• Orihuela Costa, further south, along a shore of small coves
• Ibiza: villas above quiet coves and near the sands of Playa d'en Bossa
• Lanzarote: Playa Blanca, looking out towards Fuerteventura

Spanish-style or modern: the character of the house

A Spanish-style villa speaks a language you recognise at once. A careful renovation can bring in light without losing the soul of the house.

• Whitewashed walls, terracotta roofs and arches
• Shaded courtyards and gardens planted for the heat
• Thick walls that keep the rooms cool in summer

Modern villas

A modern villa for sale in Spain tells a different story: flat roofs, long walls of glass, pale stone and a pool that seems to run into the view.

Marbella's modern villas are among the most sought after, and in Ibiza and Jávea architects have taken the white forms of the Mediterranean somewhere new. At the ultra modern end, check how glass that faces the afternoon sun behaves in summer.

Privacy, gardens and a pool of your own

Privacy often separates a good villa from a great one. In Ibiza it might mean a long track through almond and olive trees; near Málaga or Marbella, a gated plot where mature gardens do the work of walls.

Almost every luxury villa in Spain comes with a private pool, yet not every pool feels private. Before you fall for one, notice:

• What the neighbours can see from their terraces
• Whether the land next door could one day be built on
• Where the sun sits over the pool in the late afternoon

Where to look for a luxury villa in Spain

Marbella remains the reference point, but the map is far wider than one coast. Our guide to luxury villas in Spain goes region by region.

• La Zagaleta, in the hills of Benahavís, among the most private estates on the coast
• The Golden Mile and the hills around Fuengirola
• Ibiza's Es Cubells, high above the sea, and the sheltered bay of Cala Llonga
• Mallorca, sometimes written Majorca: Son Vida above Palma, Deià in the mountains, Port d'Andratx
• Villas near Barcelona and along the Costa Brava
• The south of Tenerife, in the Canary Islands

What to check before you buy

A villa asks more of its owner than an apartment does, above all a holiday home that stands empty for part of the year. Before you commit, look beyond the rooms themselves.

• Orientation and light through the day and across the seasons
• Access: the road, the drive and how the house feels in winter
• Water, power and the upkeep of the pool and gardens
• Security, and a garden that can manage while you are away
• The legal status of every building and extension on the plot
• What might be built nearby, and what the view depends on