Water lovely sight – pools with epic views
Sawday's Expert
5 min read
There’s a particular kind of contemplative air to a swim with a view. The water and the scenery combine to let both your mind and body drift out for miles. If you happen to be swimming in one of these, our favourite pools with views, then what they drift over could be anything from Devon hills to the sparkling waves of the Tyrrhenian Sea. Take a look at these incredible places to immerse yourself in fine design, historic landmarks, beautiful landscapes, great food and, of course, cool water.
La Maddalenda Bassa
Looking out from the Monte Argentario promontory on Tuscany’s coast, you won’t know where the pool ends and the sea begins. Once you’ve had your morning plunge, you can take a day trip to Siena, Florence or PIsa, head over to the fishing villages of Porto Santo Stefano and Porto Ercole for fabulous seafood, or discover the Feniglia, a 17-km sandy beach lined by a nature reserve. Here you can rent bicycles and breeze through the pine forest that separates the lagoon of Orbetello from the open sea, arriving at the wildest part of the beach.
Gites du Perigord
This is probably the perfect place for an evening swim, with the rosemary and truffle oaks giving the night breeze a delicious fragrance and the woods of meadows of rural France stretching away all around. The next morning, take your pick of adventures like canoeing down the Dordogne, hiking and horseback riding through the hills, or the spectacular underground boat trip through the abyss of Padirac. Nearby medieval villages and the historic caves of Lasscaux provide gentler pursuits, but you’ll still feel like you’ve more than earnt your pool time again when sunset comes round.
Villa Domus
Float high above a canyon in Sicily, surrounded by hills and sea, before you pad across the warm stone floors into your cool contemporary villa with colourful local tiles and sinks carved from lava. A ten-minute drive into the Hyblaean Mountains, this is Sicily as not many tourists see it, remote and rugged. The beautiful freshwater lakes of the Cavagrande di Cassible Nature Reserve are only a 15-minute drive away and you can explore into Syracuse, hitting the Ortigia food market before coming back to your hilltop retreat to cook, laze and swim.
Estalagem da Ponta do Sol
There’s almost no spot in this superbly stylish spa hotel that you don’t get that sea view from, but the edge of the infinity pool is probably our favourite. Tear yourself away from it briefly if you’re heading for the massage rooms, but drink it in from the funky footbridge to the bedrooms or the glass-walled restaurant. Below you, the village and Madeira offer endless possibilities for trying local food, diving with the hotel’s own school, hiking in the laurrisilva forests and plenty more. All with that pool and the endless sea to come back to.
Casale Mignola
Le Marche is Italy’s hidden treasure. Packed with medieval hilltop towns, the snow-capped peaks of the Apennines and the beaches and bays of the Adriatic, it has a lot to offer. Lago di Cingoli is only 11km from Casale Mignola and the unmissable Frasassi caves a little further off at 42km. You can also be on the coast in half an hour or stay local and explore by bike. Whatever you get up to, the stunning surrounds of the villa itself and the pool looking out to the villages on the slopes are the perfect place to end the day.
Hotel Nabia
Although you’re only a couple of hours from Madrid, Hotel Nabia feels like some kind of safari lodge in the deep wilderness. The Gredos Mountains are all around you, the countryside bustles with wildlife and the soundtrack to your stay is birdsong and waterfalls. From your perch atop the mighty Almanazor, the area’s highest peak, you look down on it all. Grab a drink from the honesty bar, slide into the saltwater pool and wonder how anything else you do is ever going to top this.
Hank’s Annexe
The “driveway” leading up to this beautiful barn conversion is almost half a mile long and takes you winding past fields and farm buildings, into the Devon countryside and away from it all. You’re in easy reach of the south coast, several Michelin-starred restaurants, River Cottage HQ and the Axe and Exe valleys where the birdwatching is spectacular. But the real draw is the place itself, with smooth style, rolltop baths and that fabulous pool to make you want to stock up at the local farm shops, hunker down and do nothing for a few wonderful days.
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Christopher Wilson-Elmes
Sawday's Expert
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