Escaping to the sea in a Waterlodge luxury craft

If you’ve dreamt of a holiday home by the sea but thought it was something you could never afford, our Waterlodges could be the solution. Cheaper than bricks and mortar, our luxury floating apartments are enabling people to make their dreams of a home on the water a reality, such as City worker Simon Jenkins and his partner Elizabeth Pearson.

Dreaming of a second home near the sea

Simon Jenkins' favourite place in the world is Brighton and he dreamed of buying a second home there. He could picture himself by the sea, for weekends, for holidays, maybe eventually for retirement.

The only trouble was – he couldn't afford one.

That was until he discovered that his plan could work with one adaptation – if his home was not with views of the sea but actually on it.

The City insurance worker explains: "We always dreamed of getting a place in Brighton, but the property prices were ridiculous and they just kept going up. We would have had to stretch ourselves to financial breaking point to afford a tiny one-bedroom flat that wouldn't have been all that great."

Despite his sense of resignation that his dream was simply unaffordable, Simon and his partner, Elizabeth Pearson, never quite abandoned their hobby of looking in estate agents' windows and browsing websites.

How Waterlodge’s luxury floating apartments changed everything

And one day they saw something that was to change their lives: "Elizabeth came across a mention of Waterlodge – what seemed to be a hybrid of a modern house and a boat – and suddenly found we could get a two-bedroom home for under £100,000, instead of a single bedroom for more than double that. In that moment everything changed."

Simon, 60, and IT worker Elizabeth, 59, immediately contacted the company and arranged a visit to see the lodge in situ, at Brighton Marina. As soon as they saw it, they knew it was the answer.

Within days they had agreed to buy it and were deciding on the layout and finish options, choosing to keep as much light and open-plan living space as possible.

Spending as much time as possible on their second home on water

The couple hail from Flitwick, Bedfordshire, miles from the sea, but very close to the M1, meaning they can do the journey to their new home in a shade under two hours.

And that's something they've been doing as much as possible since they took possession in September.

Simon said: "We've been down at least every other weekend and we are already trying to find ways to spend more time here – both booking a Friday off and going down on the Thursday evening or sleeping over on Sunday night and returning for work early on Monday morning."

But already that's not enough.

"Now we're looking at setting up so we can work from the lodge too – we are already planning a trial week in spring where we can both be working from home here... and clock off at 5:30 and find ourselves here, having drinks on the roof terrace looking out on the water... without using up any annual leave."

Perfectly situated – and perfect for all the family

He added: “It’s perfectly situated – you’ve got the attractions of the city on your doorstep while being just a stroll away from the beaches or the stunning South Downs.”

In the longer term, the lodge may become their full-time retirement home, something they are thinking about more seriously now as their attachment to their new base deepens.  Their children are thinking much the same – both have daughters in their twenties – and it has excited the wider family to have this new asset as a crash pad after a night out in Brighton, or for a longer stay, even a holiday.

Elizabeth explained the attraction: “It’s just a beautiful place to spend time. There are incredible views in every aspect and you can see in every direction because there is glass on three sides of the structure, so you have a constant sense of your location and the changing light moving across the building and the water. Tinted glass means you get all that but still have a sense of privacy; you’re looking outward but not like a goldfish in a bowl.”

Confident their holiday home on water will hold its value

Simon added: “The lodges are all moored together in a quiet corner of the marina, which we like, and there’s a sense of camaraderie between owners – it’s all very friendly. The wider marina though is a hive of activity and there’s always a boat moving about to draw the eye.”

And that’s something they intend to explore themselves, with Simon investigating the route to getting a power boat license and trying some jet skiing.

They have no plans to rent out their Waterlodge, they just want to enjoy it as much as they can – and are confident it will hold its value as well as, if not better than, the bricks and mortar option they couldn’t afford.

“It just ticks all our boxes,” Simon beamed. “We love it.”

Our luxury crafts provide a peaceful and tranquil life on water . Find out more about our different models here or contact us for more information or for an informal chat.