The Raft at Chigborough

An exceptional way to experience life on the water, with room for four in this floating lake cabin on the Essex coast. There’s a hot tub, a boat and an inviting covered deck

  • Sleeps 4
  • 1
  • 1
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Highlights

  • Enjoy a barbecue and a glass of wine or two as you relax on deck looking out across the beautiful lake.
  • There’s room to share the experience, with a double bed upstairs and sofa-bed below.
  • The secluded location gives you all the privacy you want to make the most of the wood-fired hot tub.
  • Explore incredible countryside just 40 miles from London, with plenty of old-style village pubs nearby.
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You should know

  • Children need to be over eight-years-old to stay on The Raft.
  • Pets are not allowed here.
  • Changeover days are Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays with the minimum being a 2 night stay.
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The details

Built using pine and larch wood from the farm where it resides, The Raft at Chigborough is much more than a raft – it has a two-storey floating cabin attached. Add in a nearby hot tub on its own separate platform, and you have all you need for a luxury stay on the lake, located just outside Maldon on the Blackwater Estuary in Essex.

With only birds and fish for neighbours, The Raft at Chigborough provides plenty of peace to up to four guests. You access the raft from a floating ferry platform, and a rowing boat is supplied too, giving you full access to the lake.

Things are kept simple but cosy on the raft, with a living area featuring a sofa-bed inside, and an outdoor kitchen with a gas hob and fridge. A selection of essentials and some little luxuries await you on arrival. You have a dining area with table and chairs out on the deck and, back on the bank, a fire pit for an old-school barbecue. Be sure to grab a bean bag from the living room and chill out on the deck - you will probably want to spend a lot of time there.

There is also a lake-view shower and, up on the mezzanine level, a double bed (which can be converted to twin beds if needed). A balcony on the upper level gives you the best views over the lake – something rather nice to wake up to in the morning.

As well as spending your time soaking in the wood-fired hot tub, a pair of bikes are available for hire on the bank meaning you can explore the area on two wheels. It’s not recommended that you swim in the lake, but you can certainly fish – and possibly land your first trout with the help of a local fishing teacher.

Chigborough Farm has some places to eat or shop nearby, in the form a deli which can provide food hampers for you, and the Cart Lodge restaurant and tearoom. A couple of miles away, the village of Goldhanger is home to a couple of recommended pubs, great for real ale, fish and chips, and old-fashioned Sunday roasts.

The town of Maldon is a similar distance away and offers boat trips from picturesque Hythe Quay. A riverside park on the banks of the Blackwater is another popular place to relax, with lots to occupy the children while you do.

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£200-329
per night

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The Raft at Chigborough – a floating lake cabin for 4 in Essex - Coolstays