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Original poster

Why is having a cabin in the woods not a thing in the U.K.?

190 replies

OutComeTheWolves · 02/06/2021 07:50

So often on movies set in the US, people head up to the cabin for a few days. And someone I follow on Instagram has recently bought an A-frame cabin 'upstate'.

I'm very envious, I'd love to just have a cheap property in the middle of nowhere that I could take the kids to at the weekend. I've googled various version of 'cabin in woods U.K.' 'cabin in forest for sale' and it seems to me that the British version is buying a static caravan on a caravan site. I don't really like other people so this isn't really what I what. Surely it could be more of a thing here, there must be some sort of market for it? Or is there just not enough forest for it to happen here?

OP posts:
Aroundtheworldin80moves · 02/06/2021 07:53

The UK doesn't have massive unpopulated forests like the US does. Population density.

Rich people have holiday cottages.

Cupcakegirl13 · 02/06/2021 07:54

It’s called Centre Parcs here 🤣

SpindleWhorl · 02/06/2021 07:55

73% of the UK's forests and woodland is privately owned, rising to 84% privately owned in England.

I don't think many private owners encourage random cabin dwellers, tbh. Too many complicated zombie scenarios I expect.

FindingMeno · 02/06/2021 07:56

I know.
My zombie apocalypse/ emp/ financial collapse plan always falls at the first hurdle on this very point Sad

whatswithtodaytoday · 02/06/2021 07:56

We don't have big enough forests/woods to allow private residences - what we have left needs to be protected.

I think I follow the same person, and I am beyond envious of her house! I've followed her for years and am so pleased she's done so well.

TroysMammy · 02/06/2021 07:56

Not one to buy but one to holiday in, National Trust property Cwm Ivy Lodge Bunkhouse Gower.

Spudlet · 02/06/2021 07:56

We don’t have enough woods! We’re a much more densely populated place than the USA. Also, movies are pretty famous for being unrealistic about people’s property ownership potential, like interns with no money having lovely apartments in New York and so on.

AppleKatie · 02/06/2021 07:56

Population density means that there isn’t space. Lack of space drives prices up and means that only the very wealthy would be able to afford a remote cabin.

Once you start paying silly money people want to get ‘more’ for it so they buy houses or cottages, costing even more.

Americans have a different attitude to driving long distance too- what would be ‘too far for a weekend regularly’ in the U.K. is not viewed in the same way in the US.

Cadburycup · 02/06/2021 07:57

It's called second holiday home here. Or Balmoral if you're the Queen.

They probably started out as cabins in woods, back in Henry VIII day, but gradually everyone wanted one, so more cabins got built and the woods got chopped down.

BikeRunSki · 02/06/2021 07:58

I have a Canadian cousin who has a “cabin”, in a forest, on a lake. It looks amazing I got and I am pretty than a bit envious. But in the UK, we don’t have that much land that is undeveloped. Where we do (national parks etc) it’s is often undevelopable (physical political, economic reasons). The place that feels like it could accommodate these types of cabins is the Scottish highlands, but land is still expensive in the UK, many estates are in private ownership and Scotland is a very long way for a weekend for many people. I think caravan parks have evolved from that need to get away in our crowded country.

Shehasadiamondinthesky · 02/06/2021 07:58

You can't buy one in the UK, I looked into it for years. Even if you buy woodland you are not allowed to put a permanent structure on it.

Erikrie · 02/06/2021 07:59

Think it's quite difficult to get permission to set up as a permanent residence sadly. There's plenty of people who would actually like to do that. It may be easier in North Wales, but there's a high bar around being sustainable ,/ eco friendly.

Iminaglasscaseofemotion · 02/06/2021 08:00

Why do people follow people on Instagram? Who could possibly be that interested in a random person's life?

Aroundtheworldin80moves · 02/06/2021 08:00

You can always go camping. That's our weekend get away...

CakesOfVersailles · 02/06/2021 08:01

I think it's the not enough forest thing, especially not enough forest within suitable weekend getaway range for major cities. Also possibly the suitable forests are protected areas that don't allow much settlement.

Then weekend cottages that do exist are quite often rented out, so you can definitely have a forest getaway (e.g. the national trust has rural cottages) but it's not the cheap, personal family holiday cabin that exists overseas.

NiceTwin · 02/06/2021 08:04

The thought of going to a cabin in the middle of nowhere, with no electricity or running water does not appeal.

How would you get enough water there to wash, flush, cook etc?

I think it is a totally romanticized view and the reality of it would be completely different.

singtanana · 02/06/2021 08:05

There is something a bit like this near Glasgow. Prices are capped as they were always designed for working people in Glasgow.

www.carbethhutters.co.uk/code/buying.html

Frazzled2207 · 02/06/2021 08:06

There just isn’t nearly enough woods!!

purplebagladylovesgin · 02/06/2021 08:07

I have a friend (UK) who has a cabin in the woods. The thing is, to get her cabin in the woods she had to buy the whole wood. It would have been cheaper to have bought a significant second home!

Not many people have the funds to do this or would want to spend out on purchasing a lot of land to have a log cabin with no facilities. She's heavily into conservation so she's doing this from an environment point of view.

I love what she's doing.

Herja · 02/06/2021 08:07

I've just been studying this at uni. I think it fundamentally comes down to a different attitude to the great outdoors. The British love of the outdoors is wrapped up in the National Trust and preservation; the US (with vastly more untouched outdoors) equivalent's focus was on exploration. This itself is tied up in ownership of land - vastly more is privately owned in the uk.

Simply, there's much less wilderness in the UK, and it's treated very differently. We view rather than explore.

JingsMahBucket · 02/06/2021 08:09

@Shehasadiamondinthesky

You can't buy one in the UK, I looked into it for years. Even if you buy woodland you are not allowed to put a permanent structure on it.
Really?? Why not? Are there ways around it like sustainable building practices?
thedevilinablackdress · 02/06/2021 08:09

If you look up 'hutting' in Scotland, it's been a thing here since the early/mid 20th century. Based on the Scandinavian tradition I believe.

JewelGarden · 02/06/2021 08:10

The Woodland Trust would probably object.

Original poster
OutComeTheWolves · 02/06/2021 08:10

@Aroundtheworldin80moves

You can always go camping. That's our weekend get away...
I'm camping right now in the lakes - just dreaming of it being more cosy I suppose!
OP posts:
Springchickpea · 02/06/2021 08:11

Even in America, there are examples where the simple ‘cabin in the woods’ idea ended up really big. Hearst Castle is the most obvious: impossibly rich newspaper magnate decided to build a remote cabin on his land and it ended up being an enormous architectural gem.

In the U.K. it’s the land issue - not enough of it, and people don’t sell little lots of it for cabin building. Even if they did there would be all sorts of issues with access and easements, and services.