Östersidan 255

There are homes by the sea, and then there are places where the sea becomes part of the house itself.

On Gullholmen, in the heart of one of Bohuslän’s most distinctive and beloved coastal communities, stands this classic white archipelago house with an almost unparalleled relationship to the water. Here, the house meets the jetty, the jetty meets the sea, and boats pass directly outside. This is a home where the archipelago is not viewed from a distance, but experienced from the front row.

The house is known as a so-called Norway House and was most likely built around 1911. For more than a century, it has formed part of Gullholmen’s characteristic built environment and still bears clear traces of its history. Original wooden floors, traditional carpentry, beadboard panelling, doors and period details have been carefully preserved and complemented with a sensitive approach. The result is a home where authenticity has never had to give way to comfort.

The middle floor comprises the kitchen and generous reception areas, with a fireplace and windows facing several directions. The layout has the natural flow and variation characteristic of traditional archipelago houses, with rooms unfolding into one another and constantly changing views towards the island and the sea. The former veranda has been opened up, allowing more light and the surrounding landscape to become part of the interior.

Upstairs, the private quarters continue with three bedrooms, a family room, WC and an additional fireplace. Over the years, the attic has been developed with great respect for the house’s original character, with the ambition that the additional rooms should feel as though they had always been part of the house.

Yet it is perhaps when descending to water level that the property’s truly exceptional character becomes most apparent.

Beneath the residence is the former storage building, now transformed into an exceptional boathouse with an atmosphere that would be difficult to recreate. It includes a kitchen, sauna, WC and bedroom, while elements of its original character have been carefully retained. Traces of previous generations and the house’s maritime history remain present throughout the space.

When the doors are opened towards the jetty, the boundary between indoors and outdoors almost disappears. The boathouse becomes a summer room directly beside the sea, ideal for long lunches, late dinners, swimming, boat trips and quiet evenings as the light lingers across the water. This is also how the current owners describe life here: during the summer, much of their time is spent in the boathouse and out on the jetty.

The private jetty, with space for up to four boats, further reinforces the feeling of a complete archipelago lifestyle. The property lies immediately beside the main waterway, where sailing boats, motorboats and local archipelago traffic pass on their way out towards the open sea. In published articles, the setting has aptly been described as a place where boats almost seem to pass through the living room, an expression of just how remarkably close the house is to the water.

As a further rarity, the property also includes a small garden plot with lilacs and old-fashioned perennials, something highly unusual among Gullholmen’s dense and rocky surroundings.

This is therefore more than a house by the sea.

It is a place with its own rhythm and a history that can still be felt within its walls. A home where the morning can begin with a swim from the jetty, the day continue out on the water and the evening end by the fire as boats pass just outside.

A rare opportunity to acquire an authentic piece of Gullholmen, with the sea as its closest neighbour.