New lease of life for ex-coastguard tower left derelict for over a decade
Witterings couple turn historic West Sussex landmark into luxury Airbnb
A former West Sussex coastguard tower has been turned into a holiday let.
The historic tower, on Littlehampton seafront next to the harbour entrance, has been turned into an Airbnb.
Now known as The Little Lookout, it boasts incredible sea views from the third and fourth floor balconies, a luxury interior, walk-in shower and a full-sized bathtub looking out to sea and the river mouth.
Leila and Cal Leach, who live in Earnley, near the Witterings, bought the tower a couple of years ago.
It had been left derelict for more than ten years.
They started renovating it in September last year and after some Covid-related delays, they have now finished the works and are now letting it out on Airbnb, as well as using it for personal stays.
All works were completed by their family business, Grey Tree Developments, headed up by Cal and a small team.
“We thought it would be really lovely to bring it back to life,” said Leila, 37.
“Cal loves a challenge. He had seen it come up a couple of times at auction over the last few years, but it was never the right time to buy it personally. Then it came up again so we went for it.
“We were really intrigued by the history of the tower and saw the potential and thought something like that was never going to come up again.”
The tower was built in 1931 and was used sometime during the Second World War as a lookout tower. There are also some rumours that link the tower to Ian Fleming while he wrote some of the James Bond books.
The space, which was an empty shell, has been split over four floors, with each floor accessed by the new addition of a spiral staircase extension. It sleeps up to four people and has been a popular choice for couples’ getaways.
Leila said: “We have been inundated with interest. This month is already fully booked and nearly booked up for August.
“It feels really good and has absolutely validated our confidence in doing this kind of renovation in the area.”
The couple, who have two boys, Cassian, aged four, and Lowe, aged 11 months, have already received fantastic reviews.
Leila added: “Littlehampton has such a bad reputation and is definitely overlooked. But it has one of the best beaches – and to me, it is as lovely as West Wittering.”
Find out more about The LittleLookouton Instagram @thelittlelookout or visit greytreedevelopments.com