Brighton Bathing Boxes in Melbourne
One of the most instagrammable places in Melbourne Australia is without a doubt the Brighton Bathing Boxes in Melbourne. These 82 distinctive multi-colored beach huts line the shores of one of Melbournes most exclusive neighborhoods and are just a short train ride from the Central Business District. Their popularity has surged in recent years with tourists coming from around the world to see these unique and interesting beachside boxes for bathing.
If you’re wondering what they’re used for, how to get their own if you can buy one then just continue reading!
This was my first time visiting Melbourne so the bathing boxes at Brighton beach were on the top of my list of places to visit. These historically constructed beach huts exude an old-world authenticity, but despite their attractive outside appearance, most of them lack running water and electricity.
What are the bath boxes used for?
A beach cabin or bathing box is just a small wooden hut with simple facilities for preparing food and drinks while you spend the day soaking up the sun. They are usually brightly colored and should always be built above the high-tide mark. Depending on the owner, some of them can be equipped with some rather nice accommodations for cooking and relaxing. From this area of the beach, you can enjoy incredible views of Port Phillip Bay and even see the Melbourne city skyline 13km away in the distance.
Beach Box History
Despite being widely known as an interesting place to take quirky and unique photos next to these colorful beach huts, they actually have some local history and significance. These bathing boxes were built over 100 years ago and used by Australias more modest male and female beachgoers to change clothes and clean up after a day of surfing or swimming. They provide excellent cover for women in particular when they need to change into or out of their bathing suits.
It’s believed these bathing boxes have existed since the 1860s where they’ve become and well known and beloved attractions in Melbourne’s bay area. The Dendy Stree beach boxes in Brighton have survived heavy storms, disrepair and various attempts by the Brighton city council to have them removed.
How do you get to Brighton bathing boxes?
Some of the beach huts are simply colored like Easter eggs with various colors or even just two-toned. Other more creative owners or artists go as far as painting famous tsunami waves or kangaroos.
Owning A Beach Box in Brighton
It should come as no surprise that the Brighton beach property and bath box location is quite valuable. Therefore, Owners must hold a license to keep their box on the beach and this is only approved by the Brighton City Council. You can buy one of the beach boxes and licenses from an owner but they rarely ever go up for sale so when they do you can expect to pay top dollar. “Only one or two of the now 80+ beach boxes on Dendy Street Beach are sold each year”.
Another requirement for owning one of the Brighton bath boxes is that they can only be sold to locals living in the Bayside area, and there are strict rules outlining what the boxes can and can’t be used for. If you’re really serious about buying a beach hut then the costs for a simple hut can start at around £8,000 and go up to and beyond £30,000. Despite being extremely small and usually lacking basic facilities there would little depreciation on your investment.
As tempting as it sounds to own a tiny bathless bathing box on a beach crowded by thousands of tourists, I think I would rather invest that money elsewhere.
Brighton Bathing Boxes
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