Our 3 Best Examples of Luxury Homes in Costa Rica

Built in the serene location of Peninsula Papagayo luxury resort in Guanacaste, Costa Rica, our Paraiso 354 property sets the tone for how multi-million dollar properties can be elevated.

 A tropical dream located on the edge of a bluff before a sharp downhill slope and boasting a magnificent ocean view, we wanted to ensure that the interior of this home lived up to its surroundings. To bring an element of the outside into this property, we created an outdoor room with a huge spanning roofline to provide protection from the sun and allow just the right amount of natural breeze to fill the space. 

This part of the home was designed to make a statement, with complex engineering and intricate design details combined into one vast structure. Serving as the “wow factor” for this home, we designed the type of outdoor space that is at the same time simple and stunning — exactly what great architecture should be all about! 

As our own client stated on this project: "...doing architecture that is this clean, simple, and precise—and doing it so wonderfully is so much tougher than people realize."

In this property, we created accent elements that were clad with tile slabs measuring roughly 4 feet by 10 feet. We wanted these accents to be strong statements, and we actually sized the structural elements just right so that when it came time for cladding, the huge tile slabs were a perfect and complete fit, without any cutting or fitting on-site. 

This seems like a mere exercise in waste reduction, but it was something with a completely visual and aesthetic goal, where the visual impact of the precision of this is both subdued and bold.

Carrying this sustainable theme throughout the property, we chose to place an emphasis on organic surfaces with volcanic stone and natural wood. This added another dimension to the earthly feel of this home. 

The project owner of Paraiso 354 was fascinated by our ability to take the initial brief and design a luxury home in Costa Rica that fell perfectly in line and exceeded the original vision — while simultaneously exceeding their every expectation.

Our Paraiso 354 project is about enjoying the picture-perfect environment of Peninsula Papagayo in its rawest form while still getting to enjoy the extravagance of a private, custom-built luxury home. 

Paraiso 354 is the perfect example of how less can become so much more. Balancing lavish details with the type of sophistication all multi-million dollar home owners want—anything is possible with the right design team in place.

Cielo Mar

Once again located in Peninsula Papagayo, we completed our Cielo Mar project back in 2013. This was a collaborative project, where we joined forces with the New York based firm, Barnes Coy Architects. Our client needed a local team to manage the build in Costa Rica effectively.

Before initiating the building process at the chosen location, we converted the original schematic design into a set of plans from which our team could work. This included using our local knowledge to make the project more feasible with adjustments that worked for everyone.

Despite being a collaborative project, Cielo Mar was still a project that our entire team got to work on together.

We executed, with precision, a very complex roof shape which is a curved section of something akin to a corkscrew.

We also detailed and engineered the plans for a bridge that needed to be suspended over an expansive private swimming pool — adding aesthetic and functional value to the home. 

With the suspension bridge being built in two sections in San Jose, our architecture team was responsible for the precise drawings to ensure proper fabrication, and our construction team was responsible for the logistics and coordination to ensure the safe arrival of the bridge to the site and ensuring the structural soundness of the pool area and outdoor terraces. 

The most interesting part of this project was the teetering play between two cranes to suspend the bridge sections in the air and get it right on the support structure, where we could join them and support the two sections of the bridge, and weld everything in place. 

Despite the project's magnitude, we could achieve the exact results we wanted. This 24,050-square-foot private home was built to make a statement, something we achieved.

Regardless of who creates the schematic design, we never deviate from our mission to deliver quality design to luxury homes in Costa Rica. If you want a suspension bridge over a private pool, we have the connections to make it happen.

Tip for partners: From a marketing and business perspective, working alongside the SARCO name is also a huge benefit for your project.

We’re known in Costa Rica for all the right reasons, which is how we’ve built such an extensive network of trusted partners. Get in touch with us to hear more.

Villa Avellana

For our Avellana project, the client wanted a unique and expansive home—which eventually grew to 33,000 square feet. This property needed to come fully furnished with all the touches of an exclusive home, while also having the potential to be operated as a boutique destination.

The property features 10 bedrooms with multiple living, lounging, and relaxing areas. With a private yoga deck and pavilion for massage rooms, this home is a prime example of the type of Costa Rican properties we feel privileged to design and build.

The challenge with this house was that even though it is the size of a small complex, we still needed to make it feel like a private home. This involved creating spaces that would work as living spaces while also needing special features such as:

• A bartender-staffed bar central to the outdoor living space
• Multiple places to enjoy meals, both indoor and outdoor, and for groups of varying sizes
• A commercial-level kitchen with full back-of-house areas for the proper servicing of such a high-end property as this
• Concealed access and service flow for food supply and laundry needs, out of the way of the guests
• Multitude of outdoor living and private spaces for enjoying time outdoors

Essentially, our Villa Avellana project needed to be able to function as a unique bespoke destination, while still following the relaxed flow of a well-designed Costa Rican home. 

Our client wanted to have the best of both worlds for this luxury home in Costa Rica and that’s exactly what we set out to deliver.

What Was the Key to Success for These Projects?

Even though each of these projects had different sets of goals and objectives, we always follow a design process we know works. With years of experience delivering successful projects based around luxury homes in Costa Rica — we know what works.

Building Information Modeling (BIM)

For these projects in particular, Building Information Modeling (BIM) played a key role in allowing our vision to be shared with clients and project partners. With precise and detailed 3D modeling, we can adjust designs in real-time and provide a better insight into how far our capabilities stretch.

With BIM adoption rates comparatively slower than many other cutting-edge technologies, not all architecture firms are currently taking advantage of what BIM has to offer. This is because at SARCO, we don’t wait for new technologies to become ‘popular,’ we focus on what works and what doesn’t, and we leverage technology to its fullest potential to focus on delivering ever-improving services to our clients.

Design-Build Service

Our design-build process also helps us maintain control and manage every detail of your entire project, with all resources and services required for your project coming from a single source.

When working with a firm that doesn’t use design-build, it’s easy for individual teams to lose sight of your vision, and for time, money, and resources to be wasted on correcting costly mistakes.

Using a more typical type of service usually creates a high-stress environment, loss of detail and proper execution of the design, and is not a good experience for the owner.

With specialty tradespeople and subcontractors all under our management, our project leaders are well-versed in keeping your luxury home in Costa Rica on schedule and within budget. To find out more about architect-led design-build, you can read one of our previous articles here. 

The SARCO Attention to Detail

Our attention to detail at SARCO has played a key role in the success of our projects. In Costa Rica, good design and architecture involves being able to anticipate issues and proactively find solutions throughout the entirety of your build. It's about executing the entirety of the project with a constant eye for proper fit and finish, detailing, and ensuring the correct implementation and coordination needed to always maintain a high level of detail.

As your project evolves, we continue to evaluate risks and see details that others tend to miss — keeping your project true to the original design intent without losses in the process.

Local Knowledge and Great Client Service

Knowing the local resources in Costa Rica as well as we do, we’re able to achieve what other architecture firms can only dream of. With a close network of trusted partners and a reputation for creating properties that are designed to make jaws drop — our attention to detail and great client service starts from the second you first get in touch. 

To gain a better understanding of who SARCO is as an architecture and design firm, explore our portfolio or view just some of the awards we’ve won in recent years. With extensive media coverage and client referrals we’re always humbled by, we’ve built a firm to be truly proud of.

Is Your Dream Home in Costa Rica SARCO’s Next Big Design Challenge?

As a leading architecture firm located in Costa Rica, we know the difference great design can make to a luxury property. As we’ve mentioned, our properties are about more than just an ocean view and the addition of luxury features. They’re about creating the type of lifestyle you want and the years of experiences with family and friends to be cherished for years to come— all in a way that’s engineered to perfection (though the ocean view and additional luxury details never hurt!)

Whether you want to live in the property yourself or create an investment development in Costa Rica — if you invest your trust in the right firm, your home can achieve so much more than you’ve ever imagined.

With over 350 projects successfully completed, we hope this article has provided context for how we work as an architecture solution for global clients. Wherever you’re based, we can supply the architectural and design services you need. 

If the properties discussed in this article align with your vision for a Costa Rican luxury home, we're currently taking on new clients. 

Call 1-646-712-9299  or click here to schedule one of our First Steps Calls. Your Costa Rica building project might just be our next groundbreaking moment!