Cliffside house ideas

A cliffside house has one job: put the main rooms in front of the drop to the water without looking as if it might slide off. The six views below come from three houses Domusia drew on the same kind of site, one Mediterranean, one contemporary and one ultra modern.

Draw your house on a clifftop
Two-storey Mediterranean house in white lime render on a clifftop, with rows of arched windows, a bougainvillea pergola and cypress trees facing the sea
Living room of a Mediterranean cliffside house with timber ceiling beams, terracotta floor, a linen sofa and three arched doors open to the sea
Contemporary two-storey house of concrete, steel and full glazing on a cliff at blue hour, its windows lit above the sea
Double-height dark living room with glass walls looking down the coastline, a deep sofa, a fur throw and warm lamplight
Ultra modern concrete house with floor-to-ceiling glass on two levels and a long infinity pool running toward the cliff edge
Minimal living room with a concrete column, white marble floor, a low grey sofa and a glass corner looking over the cliff and the sea

Rendered with Domusia

What a house on a cliff looks like

  • A levelled terrace cut into the rock, so the house stands on flat ground and the slope is handled by the landscape, not by an extra storey.
  • Long horizontal glazing on the sea side: full-height panes in the concrete houses, two rows of tall arched windows in the Mediterranean one.
  • Roof and floor slabs that run past the glass, shading it from low sun bouncing off the water.
  • Materials that stand up to salt and wind: board-formed concrete, white lime render, steel window frames.
  • Low planting near the edge, such as cypress, shrubs and dry grasses, which frames the view instead of blocking it.
  • Living rooms turned toward the horizon, with the seating facing the glass rather than a wall or a screen.
  • An outdoor room on the sheltered side: a pergola under bougainvillea, a planted terrace, or an infinity pool running along the cliff.

Questions

Are these construction plans?

No. Domusia draws what your house looks like, inside and out, not how to build it. A house on a cliff needs a structural engineer and a ground survey before any drawing goes to permit.

Which style suits a house on a cliff?

Flat roofs work best here: they keep the house low against the skyline and let each floor overhang the view. The Mediterranean house shows that arches and white render work too, as long as the volume stays simple.

Can a cliffside house have two storeys?

All three houses on this page have two, set on a levelled terrace so that no extra floor appears below the entrance. Wide windows on both levels give the bedrooms the same view as the living room.

How do I draw my own cliffside house?

Choose On a clifftop as the setting in Domusia, then a style, a facade and a roof. You see the main elevation and the living room first, then the rest of the house room by room.

Styles for this setting

Draw your house on a clifftopSee an example houseDream house quiz