The Ladies’ Villa from Season 1 of “The Bachelor”

Bachelor Ladies' Villa Season 1 (4 of 5)

Another location that I became obsessed with tracking down thanks to the Best of The Bachelor DVD that my girl Miss Pinky Lovejoy, of the Thinking Pink blog, recently gifted me was the so-called “Ladies’ Villa” – the Mediterranean-style manse where the female contestants lived during the filming of the popular reality series’ inaugural season.  And fortunately, it was quite the easy find.

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In the second episode of the series, which was titled “Week Two”, not only did The Bachelor host Chris Harrison mention that the Ladies’ Villa was a “beachfront Malibu mansion”, but aerial views of the property were also shown.

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In one of the faraway aerial views, I happened to notice two fairly large landmarks – a red-roofed condominium complex (denoted with a blue arrow below) and a beachside road (denoted with a pink arrow below).  So I began searching Bing Maps for those two landmarks and found them fairly quickly in the Point Dume Riviera section of Malibu.  From there, tracking down the huge oceanside estate, which is located at 7107 Birdview Avenue, was a snap and I ran right out to stalk it while in L.A. just a few days later.

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Sadly though, as you can see below, virtually none of the property is visible from the street.  But you can check out some fabulous interior photographs of the home on the Malibu Rents website here.  According to the website, the six-bedroom, six-bath, 5,032-square-foot mansion, which was originally built in 1996, boasts a 1.04-acre plot of land, a pool with several waterfalls, a ten-person spa, two guest houses, a tennis court, a wine cellar, and a private staircase leading down to both Westward and Zuma beaches. The estate rents for (a measly Winking smile) $4,000 per night or $28,000 per month.

Bachelor Ladies' Villa Season 1 (2 of 5)

Bachelor Ladies' Villa Season 1 (1 of 5)

The Ladies’ Villa appeared regularly throughout the first season of The Bachelor.  Areas of the property that were utilized during the filming include the front exterior;

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the rear of the residence;

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the backyard and pool and spa;

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the living room;

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the kitchen;

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a bedroom;

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a bathroom;

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and a massive custom closet that the girls went gaga over (and yeah, I would have, too!).

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Ironically enough, for over a decade Bachelor producer Mike Fleiss lived just a few doors down from the Ladies’ Villa at 7163 Birdview Ave.  He purchased the home in April 2002, shortly after the first installment of the series started airing, so while he did not live there during the filming, I am guessing that he might have discovered the place thanks to his time spent at the Villa.

Bachelor Ladies' Villa Season 1 (3 of 5)

You can find me on Facebook here and on Twitter at @IAMNOTASTALKER.  And be sure to check out my other blog, The Well-Heeled Diabetic.

Bachelor Ladies' Villa Season 1 (5 of 5)

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  Smile

Stalk It: The Ladies’ Villa from Season 1 of The Bachelor is located at 7107 Birdview Avenue in Malibu.

The Mansion from Season 1 of “The Bachelor”

The Bachelor Mansion Season 1 (6 of 7)

My girl Miss Pinky Lovejoy, of the Thinking Pink blog, recently gifted me with Best of The Bachelor, a DVD compilation of condensed episodes from the popular reality series’ first season as well as a slew of special features and not-shown-on-TV bonus footage. Well, because this stalker absolutely loves herself some The Bachelor, I just about died from excitement upon receiving it, especially since I had not seen any of Season 1 since it originally aired in early 2002, over a decade ago! (How in the heck has it been that long??) I, of course, watched the DVD the very same night that I received it and immediately became obsessed with tracking down the Mediterranean-style mansion – or “The Bachelor’s Villa” as it was called on the series – where the inaugural Bachelor, 31-year-old management consultant Alex Michel, lived. The good news is that the mansion was quite the easy find. The bad news is that it is no longer standing. But more on that later.

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Thanks to the spectacular ocean views that were visible in the episodes, I knew that The Bachelor’s Villa had to be located somewhere near the coast in Malibu.

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So I began scanning through Bing Map’s aerial views of the ‘Bu coastline looking for the property’s uniquely-shaped pool, which I figured would be easily recognizable.

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Thankfully, it was.

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When I zoomed in for a closer look, though, I was saddened to discover that the mansion had been torn down and a new dwelling was being built in its place.

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And while Bing aerial views only show the new residence mid-construction, you can catch a glimpse of what it looks like in a mostly completed state below, thanks to Google Maps.

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Even though the mansion is no longer, I figured it was still worth a stalk and a blog post being that there are most likely other stalkers out there who are curious as to its location.

The Bachelor Mansion Season 1 (4 of 7)

The Bachelor Mansion Season 1 (1 of 7)

According to Zillow, the now-defunct mansion, which was originally built in 1987, boasted four bedrooms, four baths, 6,967 square feet of living space, a 1.7-acre plot of ocean-front land, a lighted tennis court, an infinity pool with his-and-her cabanas, a 2,200-square-foot guest house, several stone fireplaces, a motor court, 22-foot-high beamed ceilings, hand-carved wooden doors, a sauna, and panoramic ocean views. Unfortunately though, aside from the top floor of the massive guest house (seriously, that thing is bigger than most homes!), no part of the property is visible from the street.

The Bachelor Mansion Season 1 (3 of 7)

The Bachelor Mansion Season 1 (2 of 7)

The manse was used extensively throughout Season 1 of The Bachelor. The dwelling was not only where Alex lived during the duration of the seven-week filming, but it was also where all of the rose ceremonies and cocktail parties took place. Areas of the property that appeared in the series include the front entrance . . .

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. . . where Alex was first introduced to the 25 women;

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the driveway;

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the huge living room, where the rose ceremonies were held;

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and the backyard, where the final rose ceremony – in which Alex rejected future Bachelorette Trista Rehn and offered his final rose (but not a ring!) to Amanda Marsh – took place. Not surprisingly, Amanda and Alex broke up less than a year later and rumor has it that he pulled the ol’ switcheroo by then (unsuccessfully) attempting to rekindle the flame with Trista. It appears, though, that Alex, who for the most part has stayed out of the spotlight since the series ended, finally found marital bliss with a woman named Carly in June 2010.

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I am unsure of how many seasons of The Bachelor were shot at the mansion, but I am guessing that it was only Alex Michel’s season. At some point after the year 2005, filming moved to an Agoura estate (which I blogged about here), where it has remained ever since.

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You can watch a great interview with Alex, thanks to the Obsessed with Samantha Ettus website, by clicking below.

You can find me on Facebook here and on Twitter at @IAMNOTASTALKER. And be sure to check out my other blog, The Well-Heeled Diabetic.

The Bachelor Mansion Season 1 (5 of 7)

Until next time, Happy Stalking! Smile

Stalk It: The former site of the mansion from the first season of The Bachelor, which has since been torn down, is located at 24834 Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.