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I’ve never really understood the appeal of a beach hut. To me, these sheds-by-the-sea are pretty on postcards, but pointless for anything else.
I therefore decided they were for other people.
So, imagine my surprise when the allure to spend time in one intoxicated me so much, I found myself renting a hut for a month.
Before I began exploring, I had assumed all huts were the same. That is incorrect. Choosing the right beach hut is like choosing the right house: location matters.
The beach hut I’ve rented on the north Essex coast is the most basic version on the market. It has no electricity; no running water and you can’t sleep there… but it does have mobile signal and an incredible view.
Now, the first thing to note about the view from a beach hut: they are not all made equal. Vistas, perspectives – call it what you will, vary enormously. No one beach hut is the same and every view has its own unique angle on the world.
It took me three whole days to find the perfect beach hut. That involved a lot of walking and talking and quite frankly, was a task I thoroughly enjoyed.
You may call it a Covid hangover but as someone who’s worked from home for two decades, I really fancied the idea of a commute to an “office”.
Because I was planning to use the hut like my home office, I decided against one on the front nearest the sea.
Despite my love of people watching, I didn’t want the distraction of too many people to look at and, crucially, I didn’t want too many people looking in.
The thing to understand about hut culture is if people can see you, you’re game for conversation. Nobody, it would appear, comes to the beach to do work.
Unless you are me. That is why I chose a second-row hut which has an elevated view and a huge veranda.
Like the huts, every veranda is different. This is a very serious point if you’re thinking of renting or buying a hut because not only do you need to check the vista from inside, but you also need to check the view from outside– both from a standing position and seated.
Notwithstanding checking the safety and integrity of the structure, you also need to check how many sunshine hours you get on the veranda. The positioning and angle, along with the trajectory of the sun, will determine how long you get to sit outside before you begin to shiver.
Another critical thing to look out for when you’re deciding on your hut location is facilities. Most properties have running water and toilets, but this is not the case with huts.
This means the proximity of these conveniences is paramount. I have chosen a hut right next to the fresh water tap. This has two upsides: one I am super close to water (critical when making a brew and filling up the hot water bottle), and two: it has the added bonus of acting like a water cooler and gets me in on all the hut gossip.
As to toilet locations, unlike the tap, I don’t fancy being right next to such conveniences, but I also don’t want to be too far.
When choosing my hut, I did avail myself of the stop watch gadget on my phone to determine the distance. My hut is a leisurely 1 min 35 seconds walk, but if you’re desperate, you can shave some 20 seconds off with a brisk stride.
Finally, we come to the interior décor. Huts, like properties, come in an array of different styles which reflect the owner’s personality and dreams.
I chose a twee affair (think plastic roses trailing the veranda, handmade themed curtains, matching cups etc) where the owner (I felt) had taken great care of the details.
To keep the cost down, I only rented it from Monday to Friday and paid £325 a month.
Normal peak price is £75 per day. Such frippery in hut choice may not feel so important, but the added frou-frou-ness does make you feel the owner has thought about their hut – and the needs of its visitors.
A loved and well cared for hut will feel more like an extension of the owner’s lifestyle choice, as opposed to a wooden shack rented for commercial gain.
So, how is my beach hut home office experiment going?
Well, I’m into my third week and I’m getting anxiety pangs about my leaving date. Every morning I toy with the idea of calling the owner to extend my time. My other half has told me to buy one, the caveat being… it has to wash its face.
Next time, I’ll share my top tips for buying a hut.
As ever, please email any questions to secretlandord@telegraph.co.uk and add your comments below. Do you have a beach hut? Was it the perfect purchase, or an albatross you can’t wait to be rid of?
How I fell in love with a shed by the sea
Not all beach huts are made equal – here's how to pick the right one