Airbnbs have become a popular choice for weekend city breaks and rural staycations across the UK. Manchester now has a huge array of Airbnb rentals - ranging from stylish homes and quaint cabins to rustic loft conversions.
Not only do Airbnbs tend to offer more privacy and space than a traditional hotel would, but they often allow you to experience a unique stay that's out of the ordinary realm.
Amongst the top-rated Airbnbs in Manchester is The Vätten Hüs - a luxury ' VIP' canal boat marketed as a 'floating penthouse'. Docked on the scenic Castlefield locks next to Dukes 92, the boat is set in a prime city-centre location whilst giving guests a feel of what it's like to live on a millionaire's yacht.
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In the midst of the pandemic, best friends and business partners Harry Rix, 28 and Erin Short, 28, took the plunge when deciding to venture out into a new market.
With a boom in staycations, the friends saw a gap in the market and set out to create a rental that was unlike any other, with the aim to rival outstanding luxury city centre stays.
"Whilst everyone was staying put during Covid, we realised that staycations were becoming more of a thing. Harry and I are both entrepreneurs and so we just decided to differ into this interesting market," said Erin.
"Harry has a background in boating and as Manchester's got a lot of heritage with canals, we decided that a canal boat would tie in with the whole idea.
"I personally had no experience with any rentals before, so it started off on a bit of a whim as a fun side business for us."
The pair designed the wide beam canal boat from scratch with help from interior designer Claudia Chez to give it the utmost luxury feel.
"We went for the largest size at 70 foot, that's the biggest size you can physically put on the water," Erin explained.
"We got help with the interior design and we took a lot of inspiration from luxury apartments and five-star stays in terms of the features, colours and styling.
"We went to look at lots of boats that people lived on and and then we started adapting things to make it the best version of a narrow boat that we could.
"It's a kind of modern take on a traditional boat and I would say we completely turned what a canal boat is meant to be on its head."
The whole process from designing it to completion took almost nine months and the total cost was around £220,000. It has since been valued at around £300,000.
"We spent three months negotiating and getting all of the design elements together and then we started with the build, which took probably six months to get right," Erin said.
“We’ve got around £3,000 worth of flowers on the boat, the kitchen top cost around £5,000, the beds are almost £1,000 each and the linen is around £1,000, so everything we kitted the boat out with was expensive and done to a high standard.
"When I think of how it went from building the shell to what it is now, it’s amazing."
Once the boat was ready, Erin and Harry launched their joint venture Prestige Worldwide and listed The Vatten Hus, meaning 'water house', on Airbnb.
"We first put it on Airbnb about two years ago now and we had around 13 solid weeks of full bookings," Erin said.
"I think we really benefited from lockdown in terms of people not being able to leave. We kind of hoped it would be successful but it just got more and more popular. We came out in the top Airbnb hosts in the first year.
"Me and Harry are best friends so to do this together and it come out so successfully just makes it even sweeter. I think one of the biggest take aways for me is that everyone who stays comes back to stay again.
"I would say the Vatten Hus is the market leader for canal stays."
The Vatten Hus currently has a 4.83 rating on Airbnb and has received 5-star ratings from 90% of recent guests.
Accommodating up to six people, the canal boat has a range of guests from couples enjoying a romantic break to hen dos and birthday parties.
"We often have couples coming for a weekend break but it sleeps up to six so some people use it for a night out and they’ll hire a cocktail bartender to come onto the boat," Erin said.
"The average price per night ranges between £350 in the week and up to £700 on a weekend depending on how many guests we have.
"Our price point is based around other five-star stays in Manchester such as the Dakota hotel."
The boat boasts two luxury king-sized bedrooms and a spacious open plan kitchen, living and a VIP outdoor area.
Giving a tour around the boat, Erin described: "We find that guests expect it to be a lot smaller than it is, but it’s huge.
“When you first step onto the boat you have the outdoor deck with some seating which is lovely for drinking cocktails in the summer or hot chocolates in the winter.
"When you go down into the boat you’ve got a living kitchen area which has a large pull-out sofa bed and a smart TV. Then we have a big kitchen island which is great for socialising and celebrating.
"We have a big flower display that hangs over the island which is the show-stopping area where all of our pictures get taken from. The kitchen is fully equipped which is ideal for people that just want to stay on the boat.
Erin added: "When you start walking through the boat you’ve got the first bedroom which is the white blossom room with a king-sized bed. Then you go into the bathroom with a double sink and a shower.
"The final bedroom at the back of the boat is the pink blossom bedroom which again has a king sized bed which is super luxurious.
“You really do forget that you are on a boat when you’re on it. There are some incredible hotels in Manchester but we stand out because we’re that bit different."
Guests have access to the whole boat however the boat can't be moved from where it's docked due to insurance.
Prices vary depending on day of the week and the number of guests. You can check availability and book here.
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