Halvard Apartments at Castletown

Halvard Apartments fill Stanley House on Castle Street, a stone building of sash windows and arched openings in the middle of Castletown. The front is sober enough. What is behind it is not.

You come in past the Halvard sign at the door, into a hallway of old stonework and period railings, and each apartment has its own entrance off it.

Swirled wallpaper, velvet and oak boards

The living spaces are open plan and decorated with real nerve: a monochrome swirl paper across one wall, wide oak boards underfoot, a sofa in orange or bottle green, a rug in raspberry. Along one side of each flat runs a full kitchen with a hob, oven, dishwasher, washing machine, microwave and marble splashback, plus a dining table and a desk. That combination makes a fortnight as workable as a weekend.

Beds, black bathrooms and what the windows frame

Bedrooms repeat the pattern behind the headboard, with a lamp either side, a television on the wall and a wardrobe. The bathrooms are the surprise. Black tile runs floor to ceiling, basins are wide and sculptural, and in one a bath sits along a window with the sea filling it. Other windows look across open ground to the castle. Apartments range from a ground-floor one to a considerably larger superior.

Up on the terrace

A terrace laid with lawn sits above the street, furnished with parasols, a table and folding chairs and a run of lounge seating, looking over slate roofs to the bay.

Castle Street and the old capital

This is the heart of Castletown, the island’s former capital, so the castle, the harbour and the square are all a short walk off, and the whole town is walkable from the door.

Who these flats suit

Anyone who wants a front door and a kitchen rather than a hotel corridor, and who would rather stay somewhere with a strong opinion about colour than somewhere beige.