Isola Santa Cristina.
The northern Venetian lagoon. A whole private island, on the market for the first time in forty years.
The take
Three lines, no brochure-speak.
Gernot Langes-Swarovski, great-grandson of the man who founded the crystal company, bought this island in 1986 and kept it for the rest of his life. His family trust is selling. First time on the market in forty years.
Seventy-two acres at the quiet north end of the lagoon, among what they call the garden islands. A nine-bedroom villa, a farmhouse, a chapel, a pool, organic orchards, a vineyard that makes the island's own wine, and five boats to go nowhere in particular.
The trust says it wants a new custodian who cares about ecology and the lagoon, which is an unusual sentence in a listing this expensive. The papers put the ask at $28.3 million. In Venice proper that buys a very nice flat. Here it buys the island.
The facts
| What | An entire private island: nine-bed villa, farmhouse, chapel, pool, orchards, vineyard, five boats |
|---|---|
| Where | Northern Venetian lagoon, the "garden islands" - a UNESCO World Heritage site |
| Size | 72 acres, about 30 hectares |
| The name | Gernot Langes-Swarovski, great-grandson of Swarovski's founder; bought 1986, died 2021 |
| The land | Makes its own wine; fish farm redeveloped with Ca' Foscari University |
| Listed | Venice Sotheby's International Realty, April 2026 |