San Francisco Javier, Formentera, Balearic Islands, Spain

White sands, crystal-clear waters and a laid-back way of living. Formentera is the smallest of the inhabited Balearics, and also the most carefully protected. Cars are capped in high season, and much of the coastline lies within the Ses Salines Natural Park, where meadows of UNESCO-listed Posidonia seagrass keep the sea transparent. Life here moves at a slower pace than on neighbouring Ibiza, though it's only a 30-minute ferry away.

The plot sits just a short drive from Sant Francesc. Old stone walls shelter the land, and from its south-east-facing position, the view opens towards the sea. Planning has been approved for a five-bedroom villa that draws on the island's rural architecture. In the proposed design, the living, dining and kitchen spaces would have a pavilion of their own. Full-height glazing would slide back onto a covered terrace, with a pool beyond running towards the sea views. The roof is designed for a sunset terrace, with built-in daybeds looking out across the Mediterranean.

Plans place four en suite bedrooms in the main house, each opening onto the garden. A fifth would sit apart in a stone guest annex, a natural choice for visitors, older children or staff who want their own space. Below ground, space is set aside for a gym, cinema, wine cellar, laundry and storage.

As the villa is yet to be built, the details are still yours to decide, from the finishes and floors to the full specification.

*This is a plot sold with approved plans only. Images shown are CGIs of the proposed design and are for illustrative purposes only.

Location:
Formentera has long been the Balearics' quieter sibling: protected, unhurried and edged with some of the clearest water in the Mediterranean. From here, Sant Francesc's whitewashed square, Saturday market and café terraces are a few minutes' drive away. The sheltered cove of Cala Saona is close by for long swims, and the road south runs to the Cap de Barbaria lighthouse, where the island seems to end in open sea. For a lazy day on the sand, the shallow, Caribbean-clear waters of Ses Illetes are a short drive north. When the mood shifts, La Savina's ferries reach Ibiza Town in around half an hour.