Landlubbers need not fear the tumultuous seas to enjoy a night aboard a ship now that English boat builder John Knight has employed his craftsmen to build glamping pods. A recent downturn in traditional boatbuilding got Knight, who directs a campground Waveney River Centre near Lowestoft, United Kingdom, thinking of a new way to use his boatbuilding skills.
Great care is taken in the crafting of his cabins, using authentic boatbuilding materials like sustainable larch and pine right down to the wool insulation, which ensures a warm and pleasant slumber. The boat shaped cabins are so popular that Knight plans to add more of these ship-shape pods to create a cluster at the River Centre.
He notes that unlike other pods that don’t take advantage of a boat’s true design, his glamping pods make “the most of the available space, raising the level of the double bed and creating storage space.” The 14ft x 10ft pods are furnished with a full size double bed above two single beds (4″ mattresses linens not included), FreeView TV, LED lights, a double socket and loads of storage space, certainly providing a level of comfort that Ernest Shackleton would approve of.
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As well as marketing the pods to other resorts, he believes the public at large will be interested in buying the “boat houses” for other purposes such as garden studios, unique sheds or guest accommodation, and so is offering them for sale online at myescapepod.co.uk for £11,500 including VAT (value added tax). It’s believed that should the demand for traditional boatbuilding continue to wane, crafting these glamping pods will help preserve the art.
Tourists can find these pods at Waveney River Center at Burgh St Peter, near Beccles, just over 100 miles northeast of London, near the city of Lowestoft on the North Sea, which is the most easterly point in the United Kingdom.
If the glamping pods are booked, guests can choose to stay in one of their luxury lodges. The marina has a fleet of boats from which to choose to rent, and the Knights are expanding their on-site pub and adding a new menu with locally-sourced food.
