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A unique private island in the Venice lagoon, Isola Santa Cristina, is available for purchase for the first time in over four decades, listed by Venice Sotheby’s International Realty at €24 million ($27.7 million). The 72-acre property is situated on the northern end of the UNESCO World Heritage site.

Formerly owned by the late Austrian entrepreneur Gernot Langes-Swarovski, great-grandson of Swarovski Crystal founder Daniel Swarovski, the island offers a luxurious retreat. It includes a nine-bedroom, nine-bathroom villa, a heated saltwater swimming pool, expansive gardens, terraces, a boat house, a separate farmhouse, a chapel, a private vineyard, and orchards with apricot and plum trees.

Isola Santa Cristina is designed as a self-sustaining sanctuary, boasting its own freshwater spring that supplies a "miniature fish farm" with organic fish and various produce. Langes-Swarovski, who had a passion for agriculture and wildlife, was instrumental in introducing a vegetable garden and beehives producing saltmarsh honey. The island also features a helicopter landing pad for convenient travel.

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Through his work and that of the trust, the island has continued to flourish and contribute to the wider understanding and protection of the Lagoon, an important resource for the economic and climactic wellbeing of the region.

With a history stretching back to the 5th century when it was part of the "garden islands" of the Ammiana archipelago, Isola Santa Cristina is now the sole survivor, with rising sea levels and subsidence having claimed others. Langes-Swarovski acquired the island in 1986 when it had been abandoned since the 15th century. Following his death in 2021, a family trust has continued to invest in the island, preserving Langes-Swarovski’s vision.

Christoph Volk, chair of the trustees of the Swarovski heirs’ foundation, stated that the island has flourished under the trust's stewardship, contributing to the understanding and protection of the Lagoon. "The time is now right for stewardship of Isola Santa Cristina to pass to a new custodian, who appreciates the uniqueness of the location and whose passion for ecology and the Lagoon will ensure its future," he added.

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The time is now right for stewardship of Isola Santa Cristina to pass to a new custodian, who appreciates the uniqueness of the location and whose passion for ecology and the Lagoon will ensure its future.