February 26, 2015

I’ll Take This: Canal Boat in Little Venice, London

When I was in the UK in November/December, I stayed on the most delightful canal boat. It was cozy and snug and I loved every minute of it. The canals in London are filling up, which is somewhat of a problem, because canal boats and moorings are much less expensive than any London flat. IMG_6600

I saw a listing for a canal boat in the Little Venice section of London, which is close to Maida Vale, one of the very posh areas of town. Although someone was a little too enthusiastic with the HDR setting, you can get a good idea of its location. image

Lots of bright bead-board wood in the forward berth, but I’d probably slap a coat of bright white paint on it. image

Cozy fitted kitchen. The boat where I stayed had a great Ikea kitchen.image

This looks like the aft berth. I am sure there’s a way to pull out something to make a full-size bed.image

Nice bath and shower room. image

All very ship-shape, indeed. The boat where I stayed was much larger than this. It was about 18’ wide and 50’ long, bigger than my first house! image

This looks like it’s a public canal path. The side of the canal where I stayed was private and accessible only to the residents and their guests. The other side was public. I would also check to see if this is moored two abreast, since that could be a problem.

This canal boat is £155,000 ($239,000) with a £5,320 ($8,200) mooring fee. If you lived in the country, it would make a nice pied a terre in town!

11 comments:

  1. I love the canal boats down there, that whole area is wonderful, when I was away we stayed in an airstream for two nights, when I first walked in I though oh oh but to get my head round it, I changed it to a boat - I used to sail a lot when I was younger and once I did that I felt less cramped and squished.

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    1. Boats and Airstreams are quite amazing in what they can pack into such a small amount of space. This boat looks a bit narrow to me, but the one I stayed on was quite spacious. My first house was 9.5 feet wide and 35 feet long and two floors, so I am used to smallish spaces.

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  2. What a charming way to live. How are these boats heated?

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    1. The one I stayed on had a small wood stove and then portable heaters in the cabins. It was in the 40s when I was there, and the boat was always very comfortable. I would turn on my heater for about 10 minutes to warm up the cabin, and then keep it on its lowest setting.

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  3. The images have a Monet Impressionistic look to them. I have just discovered the Time Life series of Great Cities--the Paris volume is written by a reporter that became a well known food writer. Wish I had picked up the London volume too. Now the topic of Pied-a-terre needs a treatment ala Meg Fielding,

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    1. I will have to think about doing a pied-a-terre post!

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  4. Less than $250K for a home in London?!?! That's crazytalk.

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  5. Meg I think this a very delightful way to spend some time on vacation!
    Have a great weekend!

    xoxo
    Karena
    The Arts by Karena
    Featuring:Turquerie

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  6. I'd totally do this as a vacation stay.

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