Vico Road: €4.5m: It's a little bit of Dalkey that is forever Italy, with sweeping views of a bay that's sparkling blue in the sun. Eivlín Roden looks at two homes linked to the magic word "Sorrento"
Sorrentoville sits high above the Vico Road looking onto unbroken views of sea and sky along the curve of Killiney Bay on one side and over Sorrento Terrace to Dalkey island on the other.
The large six-bedroom house nestling against Dalkey Hill in Dalkey, Co Dublin, with a garden stretching up behind it in terraces, is for auction through Sherry FitzGerald on May 10th with an advised minimum value (AMV) of €4.5 million.
Built around 1860, the 323sq m (3,475sq ft) house is designed to take advantage of its spectacular position, with its main rooms facing the sea and the kitchen, bathroom and utilities situated at the rear of the house.
The ground floor has two wonderful interconnecting rooms, with marble fireplaces, parquet floor and a big square bay window giving a three-sided view of the sea.
Next to these are two bedrooms, which originally would have been another reception room. It would not be difficult to convert back into a 20ft x 14ft room with two windows as well as tall French doors to the front.
A very old conservatory in need of restoration is accessed from the diningroom. The upstairs roughly repeats the downstairs layout: three rooms have even better views of the bay than downstairs.
At present two of these are used as a study and a sittingroom, while the third is a fine bedroom.
Two good double bedrooms - one en suite - are situated on the other side, and there is also a kitchen and bathroom at this level.
Although the house is not divided, there are completely separate living quarters on each floor while the return has another livingroom with two windows, a door to the back staircase and another double bedroom beyond it.
The house is accessed from the Vico Road through a shared avenue which rises fairly steeply and then opens into Sorrentoville.
It has parking for several cars and a lawned garden with summerhouse. There is a garage and a large store as well.
The terraced back garden is accessed by flights of steps. At the very top is a little paved patio surrounded by trees and with breathtaking views over the roof of the house to the bay beyond.
