House of the Week is a clifftop treat in East Cork's Guileen

€525k Seacliff is a renovated Famine cottage with tip-top views

Seacliff, Guileen (centre)

Guileen, East Cork
€525,000
Size	93 sq m (1001 sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	B1

STAND with your back to the kitchen sink at Seacliff for a striking triptych of views: the ceaseless swell of the sea framed across three front windows. The boundary between land and sea has dissolved and it’s as though you are floating above the waves. It’s almost compelling enough to buy the property, although there’s a host of other reasons too: exceptional seaside setting, superlative views, character, convenience, modern comforts, private parking – Seacliff has it all.

Driveway and lawn to the rear of Seacliff

Horseshow bay at Guileen where the boats are blessed

As a skillfully reworked East Cork Famine cottage, it has heritage aplenty, and Paul Higgisson, the architect hired to redesign it, maintained the cottage feel. The owner says:

As my father said, there’s no point in having a dog if you do your own barking, so we left it up to him.

It’s essentially a new house from the front wall in. The original rear wall was knocked and the ceiling raised above it. 

Velux windows funnel light down from the vaulted ceiling

A trio of Veluxes funnel light down to the kitchen, which is part of the extension. It’s to the rear of a roomy open plan space that also includes dining and lounge area.

 It has a cosy feel, despite being open-plan, reinforced by a wood-burning stove.

There’s a porch to the front too, which housed a basic toilet and hand basin when the current owners bought Seacliff, but it’s now a bright, welcoming space. A bathroom was added to the rear, as were two downstairs bedrooms and a snug utility. Overhead, the main en suite bedroom was added. 

The ceiling rises into a vault above the stairs, adding volume and allowing more light in.

A door at the top of the stairs leads out to a paved suntrap terrace.

 Steps from the terrace lead to a gravel driveway and lawn and it’s here that you get the best views of Guileen’s dramatic coastline, stretching towards Roches Point, Cork Harbour, and beyond. 

Where best to sit out to soak in those views will depend on how the wind blows: Out front is a deck with glass balustrade, to the rear is the terrace and garden.

Seacliff, Guileen

You can stroll down the cliff from Seacliff to the pier in Guileen where the annual Blessing of the Boats takes place this very weekend, an ancient tradition where fishermen seek God’s blessing to bring their boats safely home. Strolling in the opposite direction takes you to a cove called The Sandies where the spinal skeleton of a 19th century shipwreck is embedded in the rocks.

Shipwrecks caused great local excitement, such as the time a steamship called Chicago ran aground on rocks off Guileen in 1868. Not all rescued passengers were treated equally. Lord Fermoy brought the cabin passengers to his home in Trabolgan, while those in steerage were looked after in the thatched cabins of local fishermen. These days, shipwrecks are largely consigned to history and on-water activity includes sailing, kayaking, paddle boarding, swimming and sea angling.

Seacliff is superbly positioned to make the most of its coastal surroundings. It’s also handy to the villages of Whitegate and Aghada, where you can shop for groceries or eat out. Interest was immediate when launched by Adrianna Hegarty of Hegarty Properties. First viewings are this week-end. “Enquiries are predominantly from the USA, but also Dublin,” the agent says.

The guide price for the 93 sq m three-bed home is €525,000.

VERDICT: Ringside seat to the ebb and flow of the East Cork coast. Turnkey holiday home.