These Precious Beach Huts Have One Fatal Flaw

These Precious Beach Huts Have One Fatal Flaw

We really, really want one of these adorable, pastel-tinted beach huts, snuggled on the banks of a British estuary.

There are just a few little catches, though: They don't have plumbing. Or anywhere to sleep. And you can only access them at low tide.

But it's a small price to pay for your own personal island oasis, right?

They're meant as a unique twist on the traditional British beach hut and other over-the-water huts in tropical destinations like the Maldives. However, the "beach huts" are situated not on a beach, but rather in Osea Leisure Park, a family-run nature park on England's beautiful Blackwater Estuary.

Each one measures about 11 feet by 15 feet and comes empty, as a "blank slate" for owners to decorate, explains Colin Downie, Osea's general manager. The huts come equipped with ladders, and they hover just eight inches above the water at high tide -- so how do you get out?

"Quite simply, you don't," Downie told HuffPost in an email. "You access your beach hut at low tide to marvel at the water rising all around you, creating your own island of seclusion and privacy."

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Boats can be seen approaching the beach huts and, according to Osea's website, there are plans to build a boardwalk that will make them easier to access at any tide level -- so there are indeed ways to exit in a pinch.

But for the most part, you'll have to settle for long days of birdwatching and sailboat gawking from your hut while you wait for the tide to ebb. You can't stay in the huts overnight, and you won't want to -- well, without plumbing inside.

For about a mere $40,000 (plus about $800 per year in fees), you can own one of Osea's six remaining beach huts (the first four have been sold). Downie said he estimates they'll go for sale next spring, to vacationers who crave their "stunning views."

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Correction: A previous version of this post suggested that the huts hover eight inches above the water at low tide. In fact, that is the distance above the water at high tide.

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