Words: India Gladstone
They’re rich, they’re famous and they have access to the world’s most beautiful destinations. So where do the most famous faces choose to buy holiday homes, and who makes the cut for the best holiday homes in the world?
Richard Branson, Necker Island
What? Branson doesn’t just have a holiday home, he has a holiday island.
Where? Necker Island is a 74-acre island in the British Virgin Islands, just north of Virgin Gorda.
Details: Branson bought the uninhabited Neckar Island when he was 28, just 6 years after he founded the Virgin Group. It took him 3 years and roughly $10 million to turn it into a private island retreat, as it is today.
Rumoured buy price: $180,000 – a price confirmed by Branson – and a promise to turn it into a resort within 4 years.
Brad Pitt, France
Photo: Ramley
What? A sprawling château in the French countryside, complete with terraced hillsides, olive groves and its own private vineyard.
Where? A 1,200-acre estate in Correns, France.
Details: Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt purchased this incredible French château in 2008, where most of the building’s structures date back to the 17th century. The château has 35 rooms inside the main house, complete with a recording studio, an award-winning vineyard and a Romanesque chapel, where the couple were married.
Rumoured buy price: £45 million
George Clooney, Lake Como
What? A beautiful and vast lake-side mansion.
Where? Lake Como, Northern Italy.
Details: Clooney’s 18th-century villa is in Laglio, the tiny but beautiful Italian village with only 930 inhabitants. The 22-bedroom villa sits on the lake, surrounded by mountains, vineyards, olive groves and such incredible ruins that the area has become a World Heritage Site.
Rumoured buy price: $10 million
Keith Richards, Bahamas
What? A vast beachside property fit for one of the world’s most incredible rock stars.
Where? Turks and Caicos, the Bahamas.
Details: The property itself spans over 2 acres of land and has 3 huge bedrooms, all with ocean views. The villa sits amongst other private homes on the island, all of which have the same sturdy, colonial style exteriors and incredible open spaces and modern interiors.
Rumoured buy price: $10 million
Leonardo DiCaprio, Palm Springs
What? A one-storey (in keeping with the rest of Palm Springs’ architecture), vast and modern home.
Where? In the heart of Palm Springs, California.
Details: DiCaprio purchased the former home of Hollywood icon Dinah Shore in 2014, which was built by Donald Wexler in 1964 and embodies the true essence of residential design. The home is open plan, complete with stunning modern interiors and set in the heart of the California desert.
Rumoured buy price: $5.2 million
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