Haven House by Salagnac Arquitectos
Haven House lands in Nosara, Costa Rica with a quiet confidence, its broad roofline throwing deep shade over a concrete plinth. Designed by Salagnac Arquitectos, the house turns a compact, roadside lot into a calm interior realm that leans on gardens, cross-ventilation, and measured openings. The project is a house with a minimalist attitude and a practical tropical toolkit, completed with warm timber surfaces drawn from the site itself.
The street is bright and hot. A broad concrete-and-wood canopy pushes forward, casting a generous shadow where a fine stair hovers above planting and gravel.
This is a compact house in Nosara by Salagnac Arquitectos, set beside a busy road and tuned to the climate. The plan privileges airflow, shade, and green buffers so daily life runs cool and quiet without retreating from light. Context guides every move.
Shade and Overhang
A deep roof slab with a timber soffit projects over the upper terrace, tempering glare while giving the entry a measured pause. Beneath it, slender rails and screens filter views to the street, and the floating stair touches down lightly onto a concrete base that reads as a sturdy windbreak. At dusk, warm points of light tuck into the soffit and trace the volume without glare.
Gardens as Buffer
The lot is tight. Planting collects along the frontage, wraps a rear courtyard with a pool, and climbs to a planted roof where the house trades noise for foliage. These green rooms set distance from traffic and guide sightlines inward, so daily life faces water and leaves rather than the road.
Open Rooms, Moving Air
Large sliders pull back along the pool terrace so cooking, lounging, and dining read as one airy sequence open on two sides. Ceiling fans, operable windows, and shaded exposures drive cross-ventilation that keeps rooms comfortable while limiting mechanical demand. The kitchen lines up long counters and tall glazing, marrying task light with a direct breeze and a clear view to the trees.
Wood Reclaimed Onsite
Material choices carry the site’s memory. Timber salvaged from a decaying tree on the property returns as ceilings, casework, and screens, its grain warming the restrained palette of concrete, plaster, and glass. Inside, fine vertical battens repeat along corridors, while a delicate stair of treads and tension rods lands above planting, tying movement to the garden below.
The arrangement stays practical and calm. Hard-wearing concrete forms the plinth and courtyard edges, taking sun and rain while the wood soffit and screens bring warmth where hands and light meet. Sliding panels tighten or open the house as the day swings.
By evening the long roof glows like a lantern—soft, not showy—and the courtyard gathers cooler air off the water. Quiet prevails. The house holds its line against the street while giving generous attention to breeze, shade, and the life of the garden.
Photography courtesy of Salagnac Arquitectos
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