Sotogrande

Sotogrande sits just over the provincial border in Cádiz, about forty minutes west of Marbella and twenty from Gibraltar. It was planned in the 1960s as a low-density residential estate and has stayed that way: large plots, mature pine and cork oak, and no high-rise anywhere.

Polo dominates the summer season at Santa María, and the golf, including Valderrama, is among the best in continental Europe. The marina is calmer than Banús and better suited to families. Outside July and August the whole estate is exceptionally quiet.

Listings here cover dining, marina and charter services, household management and the people who look after properties for owners who are away much of the year.