The $88 million Hillsborough estate has an amphitheater and a massive aquarium, and it’s aiming for a local record

In a region where scale and spectacle are practically part of the zoning code, an $88 million estate in Hillsborough is still managing to turn heads. You are looking at a property that folds an amphitheater, a massive saltwater aquarium, and resort-style grounds into a single 12 acre compound, then aims to set a new benchmark for Silicon Valley luxury. The listing is not just chasing a headline number, it is testing how far the appetite for ultra customized, experience driven homes can stretch in one of Northern California’s wealthiest enclaves.

The record-setting ambition behind an $88 million ask

If you follow high end real estate, you know that pricing is as much a statement as it is a spreadsheet exercise, and this Hillsborough estate is making a very deliberate one. At $88 million, the sellers are signaling that the property belongs in the top tier of Silicon Valley trophy homes, positioning it as a potential record setter in a town already accustomed to eight figure trades. The figure is not an accident, either, with the repeated use of $88 and $88 m tapping into a numerology that often resonates with global buyers while underscoring just how far above the local median this compound sits.

That ambition is grounded in the way the estate is being framed as a once in a generation opportunity rather than just another large house in the hills. Marketing materials describe a Hillsborough estate that aims for the stratosphere with an $88 listing Price, a pitch that leans heavily on the property’s scale, privacy, and bespoke amenities to justify the number. In a market where Silicon Valley wealth has already pushed values to rarefied levels, the owners are effectively asking you to see this as a category of one, a move that is reinforced by the way the home is presented as a singular compound at 3000 Ralston Avenue.

Villa de Verano and the Lake Como inspiration

To understand why this property is being pushed as a one off, you have to start with its identity as Villa de Verano, a name that telegraphs both European aspiration and California ease. The owners did not simply commission a large house, they set out to recreate the feeling of a grand lakeside retreat, drawing directly on their travels to Lake Como to shape the architecture and landscape. That choice matters because it explains the emphasis on long sightlines, layered terraces, and water features that feel more like a resort than a suburban estate, all of which are meant to transport you emotionally as much as physically.

The Lake Como thread is not a casual reference, it is central to how the sellers describe their vision for the property. Kruttschnitt has spoken about how repeated visits to Lake Como were always special, and how those trips informed the decision to build a California version of that experience in Hillsborough. When you walk the grounds, the intention is that you feel echoes of those Italian villas, from the way the main house sits above the landscape to the way the gardens step down toward more intimate spaces. That narrative is woven directly into the listing, which presents Villa de Verano as a Lake Como inspired estate that, in the words shared with Mansion Global, captures what Kruttschnitt and family loved about their time abroad.

A tree-lined arrival that sets the tone

Your first encounter with the property is designed to reset your expectations before you even see the front door. Beyond the tree lined driveway that winds up from the gated entrance, the approach is choreographed to build a sense of anticipation, with mature landscaping and carefully framed views that hint at the scale of what sits above. By the time you reach the cypress trees that flank the entry, you have already been nudged into thinking less about a single family home and more about a private resort, which is exactly the psychological shift a seller chasing a record price wants you to make.

That sense of arrival continues once you step through the doors and look back out over the grounds. The main house opens onto a huge lawn that is explicitly described as suitable for staging events, a detail that signals the estate is meant to function as a venue as much as a residence. If you are the kind of buyer who hosts corporate retreats, charity galas, or large family gatherings, the ability to move seamlessly from a formal interior to an expansive outdoor platform is a real asset. The listing leans into that flexibility, highlighting how the tree lined drive, cypress framed entrance, and event ready lawn together create a setting that feels purpose built for entertaining Beyond the usual suburban expectations.

Amphitheater, loggias, and a hillside built for gatherings

Once you move past the front lawn, the property reveals one of its most distinctive features, a hillside amphitheater that turns the estate into a ready made performance venue. Rather than relying solely on indoor entertaining spaces, the design carves out a dedicated outdoor bowl where you can stage concerts, talks, or film screenings against the backdrop of the hills. In a region where tech companies routinely rent out wineries and event centers for launches and offsites, having your own amphitheater on site is a powerful differentiator that helps justify the premium pricing.

The amphitheater is only one piece of a broader strategy to make the outdoors as livable as the interiors. There are soaring loggias with sweeping views that function as open air living rooms, giving you shaded vantage points over the gardens and the valley beyond. An Asian garden with a koi pond adds a quieter counterpoint, offering a meditative space that contrasts with the more theatrical amphitheater below the swimming pool. Together, these elements turn the hillside into a layered experience, where you can move from performance to contemplation without ever leaving the property, a progression that is captured in descriptions of the loggias, the Asian garden, and the amphitheater on a ridge below the pool at Villa de Verano Silicon Valley Hillsborough There.

The 2,100-gallon aquarium and resort-style interiors

Inside, the estate leans into spectacle with a feature that even seasoned luxury buyers will not see every day, a 2,100-gallon saltwater aquarium that anchors one of the main living spaces. Rather than treating art and furniture as the only focal points, the design turns living marine life into a constantly shifting centerpiece, blurring the line between architecture and exhibit. For you as a potential owner, that means the house is not just decorated, it is curated, with the aquarium functioning as both a conversation starter and a daily reminder that this is not a standard issue mansion.

The rest of the interior program is calibrated to match that level of drama while still delivering practical comfort. Across the main and guest house, the property includes six bedrooms and seven bathrooms, a layout that balances generous suites for owners and guests with enough flexibility to carve out offices, gyms, or studios as needed. The finishes and amenities are pitched at a level that aligns with the asking price, with the aquarium, the bedroom count, and the overall square footage all working together to support the narrative of a fully realized resort compound. Those specifics are spelled out in marketing that describes Villa de Verano as a Lake Como inspired estate where, across the main and guest structures, you get six bedrooms, seven bathrooms, and that signature 2,100-gallon saltwater aquarium as part of a package that has been valued at about $3.7 million per acre based on comparable data from Across the region.

Twelve acres of curated landscape above Silicon Valley

Step outside again and the scale of the land becomes the story. In the hills of Silicon Valley, where buildable parcels are finite and privacy is at a premium, controlling roughly a dozen acres in a single contiguous estate is a statement in itself. The property sits in the hills of Northern California with long views over the surrounding landscape, giving you the kind of separation from neighbors that is increasingly rare in a region defined by infill and densification. That physical buffer is part of the value proposition, especially for buyers who want to be close to the tech corridor without feeling like they are living in the middle of it.

The way those acres are used is just as important as the raw number. Rather than leaving large swaths untouched, the owners have layered in formal gardens, recreational spaces, and quiet corners that make the land feel both expansive and intentional. Marketing materials describe elegance on an epic scale, with the estate framed as one of Northern California’s most extravagant private properties, a place where you can look out over the hills and still feel anchored by the design choices immediately around you. That positioning is reinforced in promotional language that situates the home in the hills of Silicon Valley and tags it as a standout among luxuryhomes and igmansions in Hillsborough, California, a framing captured in a campaign that opens with the phrase In the hills of Silicon Valley.

How the estate is being packaged and presented

At this level, the way a property is packaged can be as influential as the bricks and mortar, and the Hillsborough estate is being marketed with the kind of cinematic flair you would expect. Video tours linger on the amphitheater, the aquarium, and the long axial views, inviting you to imagine hosting everything from intimate dinners to full scale performances without ever leaving the grounds. The listing is Presented as an ultra exclusive opportunity by Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty, with the address at 3000 Ralston Avenue in Hillsborough, California, 94010, foregrounded to remind you that this is not just any hillside but one of the most coveted pockets of the Peninsula.

Those materials also highlight the more subtle landscape features that might not register at first glance but contribute to the overall sense of place. References to an olive grove and an English spiral mound, for example, underscore the way the grounds blend Mediterranean and European garden traditions in a way that echoes the Lake Como inspiration. For a buyer, that means you are not just purchasing square footage, you are buying into a carefully composed environment that has been shaped over time to tell a specific story. The brokerage leans into that narrative in a video that showcases the $88M Villa de Verano as a 12 acre estate Presented by Golden Gate Sotheby’s International Realty at Ralston Avenue in Hillsborough, complete with shots of the olive grove and the English spiral mound that anchor the landscape design Presented.

Where this fits in the Silicon Valley luxury hierarchy

To gauge whether the $88 million ask is plausible, you have to place the estate within the broader hierarchy of Silicon Valley luxury. This is a region where tech founders and executives routinely compete for the most distinctive properties, and where the line between personal residence and corporate retreat can blur. In that context, a Hillsborough estate that combines six bedrooms, seventeen total baths across main and ancillary spaces, and multiple terraces that look out over the hills is not just a home, it is a potential stage for brand building and deal making. The amphitheater, the aquarium, and the event ready lawn all feed into that positioning, giving the property a functional edge over more conventional mansions.

Marketing language leans into that competitive framing by emphasizing that Silicon Valley is not known for understatement, and that this $88 m Hillsborough estate takes grandeur to another level. The suggestion is that if you are a buyer who has already seen the standard menu of luxury offerings, this property still has the capacity to surprise you with its scale and specificity. That pitch is echoed in promotional reels that highlight how, with six bedrooms and seventeen baths, the estate offers a level of accommodation that can support both family life and large scale entertaining, all while maintaining sightlines that look out over the hills surrounding Silicon Valley and Hillsborough Silicon Valley.

What an $88 million estate says about how you live

Strip away the spectacle for a moment and the core question becomes what kind of lifestyle a property like this is actually selling you. At its heart, the Hillsborough estate is designed for both luxury and functionality, a place where you can move from quiet family routines to full scale entertaining without feeling like you are shifting between incompatible worlds. The amphitheater, the aquarium, the loggias, and the Asian garden are not just visual flourishes, they are tools that let you curate different experiences for different audiences, whether that is a child’s birthday party on the lawn or a product launch under the stars.

That dual focus on comfort and performance is what ultimately underpins the $88 million price tag. You are not just paying for marble and acreage, you are investing in a turnkey environment that has been engineered to support a very specific vision of modern luxury living. Promotional materials for other high end homes talk about resort style backyards, high end finishes, and layouts that work for a growing family or those who love to entertain, and this estate takes that template and scales it up dramatically. The message is clear, if you see your home as both sanctuary and stage, Villa de Verano offers a version of that idea that is difficult to replicate, a point that resonates with the way another listing is described as Designed for both luxury and functionality for a family or those who love to entertain in a campaign that underscores how resort style living has become the new baseline for serious buyers Designed for.

The broader signal to Northern California’s ultra-luxury market

Finally, the Hillsborough estate’s $88 million listing sends a signal that extends beyond its own gates. In Northern California, where conversations about housing usually focus on affordability and supply, a property like this is a reminder that the market operates on multiple, often disconnected tracks. For you as an observer or participant in that market, the listing is a data point that suggests there is still confidence at the very top of the pyramid, with sellers willing to test new price ceilings and buyers expected to respond if the product feels sufficiently unique.

Whether or not the estate ultimately achieves its full asking price, its presence reshapes the conversation about what is possible in Silicon Valley and Hillsborough. It challenges other owners and developers to think more creatively about amenities, storytelling, and the integration of landscape and architecture, and it gives brokers a new benchmark to reference when pitching future projects. In a region where Silicon Valley is already synonymous with outsized ambition, the decision to bring an $88 million Hillsborough estate with an amphitheater and a massive aquarium to market, framed in promotional language that notes Silicon Valley is not known for understatement and that this $88 million property takes grandeur to another level, crystallizes just how far the definition of home has stretched at the very top of the Northern California market $88 million.

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*This article was developed with AI-powered tools and has been carefully reviewed by our editors.