House tour: a stacking block-inspired holiday home in Ha Long Bay

The villa is situated on a 500-square-meter plot of land on a hillside on Tuan Chau Island. The four friends bought the property to have fun with their families during holidays.

A team from IDEE architects designed the villa as a combination of four stacked blocks on a slope heading toward the sea which offers a 270-degree view of the world-famous bay.

Four blocks alternately create openings for ventilation, maximizing and diversifying views of the bay while meeting different usage needs of the homeowners.
The base of the villa is surrounded by different vegetation, including reed grass, cactus and others to make the house blends.

The villa has glass doors at both ends, making commuting an enjoyable journey for occupants.

On the side of the staircase block is a solid wall, both to support the house and create balance visual to the property.
The homeowners also plan to use this wall as an outdoor projection screen at night.

The main entrance leads directly into the common living area.

A courtyard with an infinity pool is raised above the surrounding area so that swimmers have a direct view of the sky and sea.

The common space block includes a living room, kitchen and dining room.

The indoor and outdoor spaces blend together thanks to a large glass door that opens to the fullest.
The living area feels like a porch and directly opens to the outdoors.

The master bedroom block is located by the stair and common area blocks. From the outside, it looks like a large stone slab.
The patterned wall behind blocks the sun and provides privacy and ventilation.

The bedrooms also offer ocean views and the interiors are in limestone, dark blue and earthy colors.

Thanks to Japanese paint technology, the color of the building changes depending on the viewing angle and light.
At night, when the lights are on, the house is even more impressive.
The house was built in 2020 and took seven months and more than VND10 billion ($437,000).