For an idyllic life, just add water!
IT’S well known that living by water brings benefits to both body and mind – the fresh air and the outdoor lifestyles that such areas encourage are good for us, whatever our age.
Those seeking holiday homes or places to retire to have traditionally flocked to the seaside, or to the shores of lakes and rivers. So it’s no surprise that new retirement developments and holiday parks are increasingly searching out coastal and waterside locations.
In Cornwall, Aria Resorts’ Newperran Heights development, which has sea views as well as swimming pools on site, is offering new homes. These are two- to four-bedroom lodges, some with roof terraces accessed by spiral staircases, and they start from £124,950. The park, which is near Perranporth Beach, also offers luxury caravans from £49,995. And with Aria Resorts, there is the opportunity to gain a return on a property by renting it out through lettings services.
There is a Newperran Heights open day from 12pm to 5pm next Saturday. Further details about Newperran can be found at ariaresortshomes.co.uk.
Aria also has new lodges at its Cornish lakeside development Retallack Resort and Spa. Other Aria resorts include The Bay Colwell, which is by the sea on the Isle of Wight, and Rookley Park, which has a lakeside setting on the island. Aria also has The Bay Filey, on the East Coast in Yorkshire.
Being by the sea has offered retirees Edson and Angie Chace a chance to live a very active lifestyle.
The couple, aged 76 and 68, like to power-walk and jog from their home at McCarthy & Stone’s Tudor Rose Court development on the front at Southsea in Hampshire. They also both do aerobics and lift weights, and Angie does the hula-hoop, while Edson plays cricket every week in a friendly match.
Their active lifestyle extends to the world of TV and film. The couple have joined a talent agency, which has led to them starring in television adverts for the likes of HaagenDazs, the AA, Gordon’s Gin and the Post Office. The couple were also in the coming-of-age drama film An Education and played comedian Jack Whitehall’s parents in a sketch show, which saw them walk in and surprise Jack in bed with a girlfriend.
‘Taking the decision to downsize and move from our three-bedroom bungalow to a more manageable, low-maintenance apartment with McCarthy & Stone has given us time to do all the things we enjoy,’ says Angie.
‘We spent so much time fixing things around the house, tending to our large garden, cleaning – there was nothing left at the end of it!’
One of the couple’s more adventurous endeavours has been posing nude for a photoshoot, and the picture now adorns humorous greetings cards up and down the country. Angie has also posed in a bikini for newspapers.
A recent survey from Retirement Villages Group showed that being lonely or bored in retirement is a chief worry about growing old for the young. The data showed that 60 per cent of 18- to 25-year-olds were concerned about this. But Edson and Angie’s lifestyle at Tudor Rose Court is an example of how retirement complexes – with their many events and facilities – can help allay these fears. Regular events for the holiday-homeowners, of all ages, at Park Leisure’s developments, many of which are by the sea or lakes, ensure there is never a shortage of things to do at their complexes. There are barbecues, winetasting evenings and charity auction nights, to name but a few of the social activities on offer. And every one of Park Leisure’s locations is pet-friendly, so homeowners can always walk or care for their beloved pets on site. Park Leisure have complexes around the coast in Northumberland and North Wales, and three in Cornwall. And at their Malvern View Country & Leisure Park in Herefordshire, there are exclusive rights to three freshwater fishing lakes. Just inland from some of the country’s most beautiful coastal scenery is Palstone Lodges in South Devon. There, prices start from £175,000 for lodges set in mature gardens that have been growing for decades.
We have time to do what we enjoy – and have even joined a talent agency