Are you under pressure at work? Is it time to make some changes? Mandalay Estate, David Bowie’s Balinese-style vacation home on the island of Mustique, is now available for rent. If you can afford it.
SPOILER: That’s a big if.
First, the details. The estate was built for Bowie in 1989, as a collaboration between Arne “the man who built Mustique” Hasslqvist and Robert “I have no fancy nickname” Litwiller, and was decorated in an ornate Balinese style. Its five bedroom suites are situated around a split-level koi pond with waterfalls and an infinity pool, which connects the property to the Caribbean. In addition, the property contains several reception rooms, a dining pavilion, a game room, a study, and multiple private garden decks.
Speaking of the design, Litwiller told Architectural Digest in 1992, “You’re never able to see much of the house at one time… We wanted to create different moods as you proceed through, with surprises around corners. We hit upon a formal European living room that enhances the whole ‘British retreat in the tropics’ concept.”
Which means that seeing a Javanese gaming table flanked by 19th-century planter’s chairs or a freestanding teak dining pavilion with a circa 1825 English lantern is nothing out of the ordinary in the house.
“I think Mustique is Duchampian,” Bowie said of his estate in the Architectural Digest interview. “It will always provide an endless source of delight.”
The best part in all of this is that nothing—none of the fixtures, none of the styling—has changed in the nearly 30 years since Mandalay was built. Luckily, the 6.2-acre estate was recently purchased by Bowie superfan Simon Dolan, and is now being offered up as a vacation rental.
The caveat: your pockets have to be quite deep to afford a Bowie-style vacation. For a seven-night stay—the minimum allowed rental time—you’ll pay $40,000 in low season and $70,000 in high. The good news is the rental cost includes an on-site staff of 14 “who will ensure that guests have the stay of their dreams.”
Here’s another incentive to visit: Mustique is apparently the vacation spot of choice for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, aka Will and Kate, as well as Mick Jagger and Jeremy Clarkson. Famous neighbors? Yes, please.
Need more photos before you start gathering up your posh squad for a stay on Mustique? Check out Architectural Digest’s gorgeous spread of Mandalay from 1992, featuring shots of Bowie and his then-new bride, Iman, enjoying the property.
And if you’re not sure whether Mustique is the island for you, just check out some of the Instagram shots of it.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BDQvsMGxBr8/
https://www.instagram.com/p/BDNz99YxBoq/
The answer: yes, it is. But don’t take it from us—take it from Bowie himself. “What you have to realise is that Mustique is a fantasy island.”
Fantasy, indeed—one we’d be happy to disappear into any day.
