The Leisure of Dolce Far Niente

The Leisure of Dolce Far Niente is a double-storey house on Thornley Avenue, and one of the few places on the island where the lagoon is genuinely part of the interior. It carries through the living-room windows and again from the upper floor, out over the lawn.

A gated driveway runs in off the street past the garden, with parking on it and an entrance of your own. Inside the front door a wood-panelled stairwell and landing take you up. A covered walkway runs along the garden side of the house.

Vaulted ceilings, wood stove

There are several lounges and all of them have height. One is vaulted, with armchairs and a surf-themed painting; another has a blue sofa and a wood-burning stove; a third sits under a textured accent wall with water showing behind the sofas. The kitchen has a long wooden bar counter with stools, wood-topped cabinets, a dishwasher and a washing machine. You can eat at a round table by the kitchen or a longer one by the patio doors.

Three rooms on hardwood

Three bedrooms sleep six. One has sliding glass doors onto the garden, another a desk beneath a bright window, a third a built-in wardrobe and a patterned rug. The two bathrooms are generous: a double vanity under two round mirrors in one, a bathtub with a separate glass shower in the other, along with a wooden bench and a window.

Lawn, braai, water beyond

A paved patio with white furniture sits beside the lawn, a built-in braai at one end and a kettle braai out on the paving. There is an outdoor fireplace. The lawn runs towards a grassed strip with a tree on it, and the lagoon and headland lie past that.

Thornley Avenue and the mouth

Catamarans pull up on the beach at the lagoon mouth and an empty stretch of sand runs on towards the headland. Pets are allowed. Seventeen hectares of coastal thicket run the northern shore as Steenbok Nature Reserve, free at any hour. Our island write-up covers the rest.

Who gets the most from it

A family of six, or three couples, at least one of whom intends to sit and look at the water all week.