A 1900s Riviera Villa With Direct Sea Access on Cap d’Antibes
Listed with Home Hunts for €19,000,000, this early 20th-century villa occupies a rare pieds-dans-l’eau position along the rocky shoreline of Cap d’Antibes—an address where genuine private shoreline access has become increasingly scarce.
Built in the early 1900s as a personal residence by Émile Vaudremer, the house reflects the hand of an architect whose career was shaped by civic Paris rather than seasonal leisure architecture. Trained at the École des Beaux-Arts and later appointed Chief Architect of the City of Paris, Vaudremer was responsible for major institutional and public works, bringing a disciplined approach to proportion, planning, and structure. Those qualities distinguish the villa from more overtly decorative Riviera houses of the same era.
Architecturally restrained in appearance, the villa is organized around its relationship to the sea, with terraces and primary openings oriented toward the Mediterranean. Its early 20th-century origins are evident in scale and layout rather than stylistic display, allowing the setting to take precedence.
The property spans approximately 5,920 square feet (550 m²) across three floors, served by both staircase and lift, and includes five bedrooms in total, among them a self-contained housekeeper’s apartment. Interiors have been carefully renovated to preserve original character while upgrading systems and circulation for contemporary use. Limestone flooring, generous ceiling heights, and light-filled rooms establish a quiet, cohesive atmosphere throughout.
On the main level, the living and dining rooms open directly onto a sea-facing terrace positioned just above the waterline. A streamlined kitchen, a guest suite, and a dedicated office or television room complete this floor. Upstairs, the primary suite leads onto a panoramic terrace with Jacuzzi and outdoor living area, offering one of the most commanding vantage points on the Cap. The lower level houses an additional guest suite, a wine-tasting cellar, laundry facilities, a pool lounge, and private staff quarters.
Set within approximately 700 m² (7,535 square feet) of landscaped gardens, the villa includes around 300 m² (3,230 square feet) of terraces, a heated swimming pool, a covered garden cabana, and gated parking. From nearly every level, open views extend across the bay toward Antibes, Nice, Monaco, and—on clear days—the snow-capped peaks of the Italian Alps.
Direct shoreline villas of this kind are no longer replicable on Cap d’Antibes. Strict coastal protections, combined with decades of development controls, have effectively frozen the peninsula’s waterfront conditions. As a result, properties offering true pieds-dans-l’eau access are limited to a small number of early 20th-century houses, many of which remain in long-term private ownership.
Long associated with discreet affluence, Cap d’Antibes has drawn artists, industrialists, and international families since the early 20th century. Figures such as Picasso and F. Scott Fitzgerald once moved through its villas and gardens, while today the peninsula remains defined by preservation, privacy, and landmark properties including Hôtel du Cap-Eden-Roc—a setting where heritage and position continue to outweigh spectacle.
All photos belong to the listing agency.
