We love Depeche Mode. Alcyone reminds us of one of our favorite lyrics: Words are very unnecessary; they can only do harm. Once you find yourselves inside these stone walls brimming with love for nature – it will all make sense to you.
Villa Features
This spacious estate in the heart of Hvar bears the name of Alcyone - the goddess of the sea, the moon, calm, and tranquility - for a very good reason.
Alcyone is situated between Stari Grad and Vrboska, near the villages of Basina and Mudri Dolac; you’ll reach it by following the road that leads to Basina, and at one point, you’ll turn left towards the solitary estate, in the midst of pristine nature, bordering the UNESCO-protected Stari Grad Plain.
You can read more about the Stari Grad Plain here: http://villashvar.com/en/the-island/hora-or-ager.
A long time ago, the estate had five stone houses and a fertile field, a vineyard, and an olive grove. The area where Alcyone is located is called Vrbanjske Rudine, where farmers from the nearby Vrbanj labor on their land. In the old days, farmers used to live for months in these houses while they tended to the fields.
Alcyone is about 800 meters away from the sea – the nearest bay is Oskorušica, with only a single house, so peace and quiet will be your faithful followers wherever you go. You can reach the sea by car, by bike – if you like to cycle – or on foot.
The property spreads over imposing 8500 square meters. You won’t want for space. Nor will you want for fresh air, peace, and tranquility. Privacy is fully guaranteed since there are no nearby houses or neighbors, and the road that leads to the estate is everything but crowded. Total peace and quiet on the one hand, and only a several-minute drive to civilization on the other. This type of location has been hard to find on Hvar lately…
Alcyone reminds us of Hvar zen.
In the estate, you’ll find the main or the central stone house spreading over 120 m2, three smaller stone houses covering a total of 76 m2, a pool of 28 m2, and the absolute heaven of nature surrounding all of it. You’ll see stone terraces, various Mediterranean herbs, about a hundred olive trees, lemons, pomegranates, limes, oranges, clemetines, grapefruit, pears, figs, kiwis, cherries, apples, grapevines, all kinds of vegetables… we could go on and on, but Alcyone doesn’t like to waste words.
The central or main house consists of a basement, which is literally underground – 15 stone stairs lead you to the nether regions. The main house also has a ground floor and the first floor, that is, the attic.
There is a small boiler room in the basement that is separated from the rest of the underground area, covering 10 m2. The rest of the basement spreads over 40 m2, and it is intended for a wine cellar and all the lovely things it entails – wine, prosciutto, olive oil; all the delicacies of Dalmatia that you can find in our colorful KONOBA's.
You can find out more about the KONOBA, a Dalmatian institution, under section Village of Vrbanj on our website.
In the ground floor of the main house, there is an open plan kitchen with a living room and dining room – you enter this space directly from the main entrance to the main house. The kitchen is big; the dining room can take up to 14 persons; the living room has a fireplace as a romantic winter detail, and there’s also a toilette for your visitors who won’t be staying there, but will envy your wise choice of a vacation villa. The ground floor of the main house also has two bedrooms. Each room has a matrimonial bed and its own bathroom with a shower tray.
From the ground floor, that is, the living room, 15 indoor stairs lead you to the attic, with two extra bedrooms with matrimonial beds. Each room has its own bathroom – one with a bathtub, the other with a shower tray.
It’s important to note that the villa can accommodate 4 extra persons on two extra beds and the sofa in the living room, if necessary.
The three stone houses in the block are perpendicular to the main house, but physically separated from it.
The first smaller house has a large antique stone fireplace and an old stone wood-burning stove. As you can guess, this is your gastronomical playground – you can use it to make a barbeque or home-made bread. If you don’t feel like dabbling with gastronomy on your vacation – say no more – if you wish, at all times, a person can be present at the villa and prepare whatever you want. This space also entails a fully equipped kitchen, and the dining room can house up to 10 persons.
In the second, middle house, there is a room for machinery – washing machine, ironing board, and other practical items. You’ll find a bathroom with a shower tray here, while the gallery, that is, the attic is intended for the accommodation of the help or a butler of the estate.
The third house in the row has the fifth bedroom for guests, with a matrimonial bed and its own bathroom with a shower tray.
In the L-shaped space surrounding the main house and the three-house block, there is a pool of 28 m2 and 1.5 m of depth, with additional heating of water. The pool is surrounded by stone terraces, the garden table and chairs, deck chairs, Mediterranean plants whose colors and scents will intoxicate you 24/7, many cute details befitting a rural estate, all surrounded by drywall, necessary for the final, authentic, Mediterranean touch. The exterior has an outdoor dining room and gardens from which guests will be able to pick and taste seasonal fruit. All organic, tasty, and healthy.
This estate is conceived as a self-sustainable eco-farm. The interiors of Harpocrates are modern, wonderfully equipped with all the features of modern technology and contemporary lifestyle, whereas the exterior reminds us of another time, a more relaxed, healthier time. The time of our Mediterranean forefathers.
The magic of Alcyone – apart from this blend of tradition and modernity – stems from its interesting location. Detached from everything and everyone, and close to everything and everyone.
Since we started off with lyrics – let’s end with music. We might finally say that Alcyone reminds us of a fusion jazz concert amidst a magical fairy forest. We can easily picture ourselves lying on a small island of happiness, in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by pine trees and drywalls while the intoxicating scent of lemons spreads through the air. The moon is to blame for the flickering of the pool along with the stars, and Herbie is somewhere in the back, playing Island. Not Cantaloupe, but Hvar Island.
