“We wanted to create a journey within Terraza,” says Koutsoudakis. Beyond the wooden decking, steps lead down to a sandy hang-out area with seagrass beanbags, high-gloss turquoise ceramic stools, decorative glass buoys and lounge cushions. The indoor-outdoor space has a relaxed feel, with custom verde cipollino-veined marble tables and rope armchairs made by artisans in South Africa. We can’t find anyone who’s done anything like this, certainly not in Panama.”Įqually interesting are the two complex guadua bamboo structures designed by specialist Colombian architect Simón Vélez one down by the dock used as the watersports hub (there are all kinds of toys to try from e-foils and seabobs to SUPs and surfboards) and the other as the ocean-facing, cathedral-like Terraza restaurant, reached by walking along a wooden boardwalk lit by lanterns. “We’re using eucalyptus logs, both for the roof and as structural columns so it will look very unique, as if it has been here for years. “The shape of the residence has been determined by the topography,” says Matlock. “We wanted to create subtle refuges of calm, awash in tones of sage, teal, linen and white,” says Koutsoudakis, who is designing the interiors for three new, one-bedroom tented casitas.Īlso in the pipeline is a four-bedroom 647m 2 residence with a separate guest wing and a curved roof.
Maira Koutsoudakis, founder of South African design agency The Life Group of Companies, was brought in to add the texture by way of gorgeous two-tone linen bedcovers, reclaimed timber plantation chairs with duck-egg blue backs, bamboo mirrors in the bathroom and coral sculptures above the mini-bar that nod to Coiba National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage marine reserve nearby. Inside, the look is simple with floor-to-ceiling wooden shutters that can be opened to make the most of the breeze, and reclaimed teak four-poster beds designed by Tom Scheerer (he was responsible for the first phase of the interiors), made in India. “These casitas will still be here in 100 years.” Each casita is set in its own tropical garden with a plunge pool, day bed and thatched cabana for outdoor diningĮach casita is set in its own tropical garden with a plunge pool, day bed and thatched cabana for outdoor dining. “Sustainability comes from the materials but also from the quality of the building,” he explains.
Currently, there are just four red cedar and mahogany casitas – ranging in size from the one-bedroom 51m 2 Casita Mirador to the four-bedroom 207m 2 Casita Grande – designed by San Francisco-based architects Hart Howerton and developed by Jim Matlock, founder of Pacific Panama and Director of Operations, who has been living and working on the archipelago for over a decade. To start with, the decision was made to limit development to the largest island, Cavada, and leave the other 13 completely untouched. So it’s no wonder that it was snapped up by American billionaire hedge fund manager and conservation philanthropist Louis Bacon in 2009, who, from the get-go, wanted to protect the abundance of birds, plants and marine life, as well as the tranquillity he found here. It has all the ingredients of a classic castaway paradise lush islands blanketed in forest, deserted white sand beaches backed by palm trees, and turquoise water made for snorkelling. Twenty miles off the Pacific Coast of Panama in the Gulf of Chiriqui, Islas Secas is a private island archipelago that recently opened to travellers as a luxury eco resort.
A remote island hideaway and a model for sustainable tourism opens on Panama’s wild Pacific Coast, writes Emma Love.
0 kommentar(er)
