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Welsh seaside favourite tops UK ranking for cheapest beach huts

24 Aug 2026 2 minute read

Barry Island beach huts. Photo Mark Mansfield

Nation.Cymru staff

A popular Welsh seaside resort has been named the cheapest place in the UK to hire a beach hut for a summer day, according to new research.

Barry Island topped the ranking with small beach huts available for £24 a day, putting it ahead of destinations including Swanage, Bournemouth and Lowestoft.

The huts are suitable for up to four people, while larger huts on Barry Island are available from £42 a day, which also placed them among the UK’s 10 cheapest options.

The findings come from an analysis of prices for more than 1,000 council-run beach huts across 19 coastal local authority areas.

Researchers found the average price of hiring a beach hut during the summer was £56 a day, meaning the cheapest Barry Island option costs less than half the average.

Swanage in Dorset was the next cheapest destination, with its Spa Beach Huts available for £26 a day.

Bournemouth followed at £30, a price matched by small huts at Crooklets Promenade in Bude, huts in Lowestoft and Felixstowe and upper-level Shore Beach Huts in Swanage.

Thanet’s coastline was next at £35, followed by Mablethorpe at £35.95.

The research, carried out by digital bank Monzo, used prices collected in July from council pricing information and official booking systems.

It found that 57% of the beach huts examined offered facilities such as electricity, kettles or running water.

For visitors planning a longer seaside break, the cheapest weekly hire was found in Lowestoft and Felixstowe in East Suffolk, where a hut could be booked for £100 for seven days.

That compared with £130 a week at both Belvedere Beach and Hornsea Beach in East Yorkshire and £151 for a Spa Beach Hut in Swanage.

The research also found significant differences between summer prices and those charged at other times of the year, with average shoulder-season rates 57% cheaper and winter rates 85% lower.

Prices were taken from official council pricing pages, published fees and charges or booking systems, with the researchers warning that rates can change and additional fees may apply in some locations.

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