For their first vacation home, Belgian couple Cornelius Verbakel and Marina Smits wanted no work and all play. To achieve that, they looked to coastal Portugal.
The couple—based near Hasselt, Belgium—found a prime spot an hour north of Lisbon along the so-called Silver Coast, on a site overseen by the Areias do Seixo hotel.
After staying at the hotel and liking what they saw, they commissioned a package from hotel founder and CEO Gonçalo Alves to build and furnish a property. It is a four-bedroom, five-bathroom, concrete-and-copper villa, with sea views and an outdoor pool. Though based on a design inspired by the hotel’s signature blurring of rustic and industrial looks, their villa is unique, decorated with custom-made detailing and furniture.
A strip of beach near the family’s vacation home.
PHOTO: CHRISTOPH HAIDERER FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNALThe Verbakel home is part of a development adjacent to the hotel, made up of 10 villas and 10 townhouses, with eight more villas planned. Mr. Verbakel says they chose their small, well-positioned spot to allow sea views from the master bedroom.
More:Beyond Portugal’s Golden Triangle
They paid about $212,600 for the lot, about one-tenth acre. The construction of the two-story, 3,282-square-foot home, finished in 2014, cost another $1.16 million.
The couple shares the home with their two adult children, Veerle Verbakel, a 33-year-old gallery owner, and Goedele Verbakel, 30, a veterinarian.
In addition to the design, the hotel did all the planning before and during construction. It handles all the maintenance now.
"When we come here on holiday, it’s a real holiday," says Ms. Smits, 61, a retired junior-high-school math teacher. Mr. Verbakel, a 62-year-old construction engineer and real-estate developer, adds: "We don’t want to clean the pool and change light bulbs."
More:Sleepy Lisbon’s Housing Market Wakes Up
The hotel prides itself on environmentally friendly details, such as natural landscaping and an on-site organic garden. The work for the Verbakels included an air-pump heated pool, at a cost of about $50,000, and solar energy for hot water. The climate and ventilation network, with underfloor heating and ceiling-level cooling, cost about $100,700. The bespoke furnishings include the master bedroom’s mock-wood lamps, fash- ioned out of rough-hewn metal. Other bedrooms are furnished with materials salvaged and recycled from the villa’s construction phase.
The family gathers at the hotel bar. From left, daughters Veerle and Goedele Verbakel, and their parents, Marina Smits and Cornelius Verbakel.
PHOTO: CHRISTOPH HAIDERER FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNALInsulated with Portuguese cork, a favored material in sustainable architecture, the house has automatic ventilation, which the Verbakels wanted kept out of view. "The hidden ventilation system was my idea," says Mr. Verbakel. He also requested an LED system be hidden in the ceilings.
From their first stay in 2012, the couple was drawn to the hotel’s light-filled interior, artisanal furnishings and upscale but casual atmosphere. They accepted almost all the hotel’s ideas—with the exception of the living-room sofa. The hotel suggested a version of the high-backed piece in its lobby, but the couple opted for a low-rise sofa from Italy’s Living Divani.
More:A Resort-Like Villa in Portugal
They spent about $32,000 on the kitchen, but the two rarely use it, preferring to eat in the hotel restaurant or in nearby towns. Their daughters, however, who often bring friends, favor the villa’s kitchen and mounted outdoor grill.
Maintenance fees total about $672 a month, which includes visits to the hotel spa. Family members also have access to the hotel’s dune-filled grounds that lead to a dramatic stretch of coastline.
The $1.37 million home built by Cornelius Verbakel and his wife, Marina Smits, in a development by Areias do Seixo hotel on Portugal’s western coast.
PHOTO: CHRISTOPH HAIDERER FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNALThis corner of Portugal is a lure for surfers seeking some of Europe’s highest waves. Veerle Verbakel likes the surfing scene in nearby Santa Cruz, a beach community catering to an international clientele. Her parents prefer to visit area attractions such as the mountaintop resort of Sintra.
The family visits the home several times a year, for a total of about two months. They rent it out some 40 nights a year for about $1,100 a night. The hotel manages bookings and keeps a share of the income.
More:A Retreat for the Avid Golfer — on Portugal’s Southern Coast
Other than some bottles of wine and a few sundries, the Verbakels arrive and leave only with what they need. Part of the holiday feel, says Ms. Smits, is keeping the hotel ambience intact.
But that is set to change, says Veerle. Her mother has retired and her father plans to retire soon, so the family will start spending more time in the house.
In July, when they were all together, Ms. Verbakel brought books, clothes and a skateboard that she now leaves there. She’ll bring her surf gear in the future, she says, "and art pieces will follow."
More From Mansion Global: