Second wind for €3m Howth hilltop haven

Windgate, in Howth, has one of the most enviable vistas in Dublin. On sale through estate agent Finnegan Menton with an asking price of €3 million, the 1.4-acre site sits elevated on Howth Head with 180-degree views across Dublin Bay and the entire south Dublin coastline down to Wicklow – even as far as Wales on a clear day.

The property is accessed by dual entrances with mature trees along sweeping driveways. The main house dates from the 1930s and was built in art-deco style, with lots of windows to maximise the views.

A seamless extension was added, in 1984, in keeping with the art-deco style. It contains a second kitchen, which is modern and compact, and could be used as staff quarters or a large utility if the house is to remain one large unit. New owners could also incorporate the extension into the main dwelling.

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Including the extension, the house has four reception rooms, seven bedrooms and seven bathrooms. In 2000, the current owner replaced the original windows and installed double glazing and insulation, which means despite the large amount of glass the 450sq m (4,850sq ft) house is warm.

All but two rooms have marvellous sea views. One is a games room on the ground floor with a fireplace and an L-shaped window that makes the most of the northerly aspect. The other is the smallest of the bedrooms upstairs.

A large south-facing kitchen, which new owners may want to update, and sunroom are also additions by the current owner, with a deck running the entire southwest of the property.

Windgate has a large familyroom downstairs with narrow- strip maple flooring, new teak doors and an open fire. Upstairs, in the extension, is a second living area with a large roof-top balcony overlooking the mature gardens and the Irish Sea.

The master bedroom, with curved windows, has possibly the finest views of any bedroom in Dublin due to the elevation and aspect and looks over Dalkey Hill, to the Sugarloaf and right the way around to the Kish Lighthouse.

The property also has a one-bed chalet and a self-contained granny flat with its own access.

The gardens, thanks to the acidic soil, feature lots of mature rhododendron, heathers, gorse, magnolia, cordyline, lilac and fuchsia, and tall palms giving a tropical feel on sunny days. Wooded walks throughout the property would make it an enchanting garden for children, not to mention the Wendy house, originally a second World War shelter. The gardens even have a Parasol mushroom patch for those interested in foraging.

While new owners of Windgate will want to update the interiors, it is the breathtaking panoramic views from every window that make it so special.