Beach carts - Beach cabins - Cabin Art
General information about Beach Trolleys - Beach Cabins - Cabin Art
Beach cabins have their origins in the "bathing machines" of the prudish Victorian era. These were built on wheels and could be wheeled into the sea so that people - especially women - could change their clothes demurely and go into the sea unseen. They were real bathing carts back then. Sometimes they were also called "bathing carriages."
With the rise of tourism in the 19th century, especially along the North Sea coast in countries such as Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and France, beach cabins became more popular. Bathing carts evolved into fixed, practical facilities symbolic of recreational beach life in Europe. They offered comfort, privacy and status - in some seaside resorts, having your own beach cabin was a sign of prestige.
Beach cabins come in all kinds of sizes and weights, with or without wheels, and so on. They are sometimes called "beach houses" although they are not. Real beach cabins can be found on Sangatte beach. Count on a budget of about 4,000 EUR if you want to buy your own new beach cabin. To that should be added the rental price of pitch on the beach. Of course, you are not obliged to purchase your own beach cabin: you can also rent them on a daily or monthly basis.
Beach operators, these are entrepreneurs who have certain beach concessions, often use bathing carts (that is, beach cabins on wheels) in which they store their beach chairs, windbreaks and umbrellas. In good weather, these are removed from the carts in the morning and displayed according to the direction of the wind. In the evening, the reverse then happens. Given the chances of bad weather, these items are never left outside.
On the Franco-Belgian coasts, they are widespread. Some seaside resorts are even known ... especially for their beach cabins! Just look at the example of Cayeux-sur-Mer, to name but one. There, hundreds of colorful beach cabins are neatly arranged along the waterline.
For a long time, beach cabins have been quite sober: mostly only cream white paint was used. Today, certain coastal municipalities impose a particular color palette (blue and white in Wimereux, for example), have them painted by Street-art artists, and so on, making them look much more attractive. We refer here to the "CollectingCabin Art" initiative of Saint-Idesbald (running from May 24 to September 14, 2025).
Photographically, they are often also very desirable objects: patterns, color combinations, interaction beach cabin - storm, art, perspectives ... so you can have fun with them photographically. 😉
To complete: we hardly see them here, but on German beaches (Ostsee) we see them all the more: the beach basket (also known as a double beach chair ) as an alternative to a fully-fledged beach cabin. Nice and romantic together.
Internet information from and about Beach Trolleys - Beach Cabins - Cabin Art
Info about beach cabins in Wikipedia: Dutch-language - French-language - English-language
Info on beach cabins in Wikipedia:Dutch-language - French-language - English-language
What does a beach cabin look like inside ? See here.
You want to rent a beach cabin on the Belgian coast ? See here.
Suppliers / Manufacturers of beach cabins:
1) Belgium: strandcabines.com (Knokke-Heist) - Coastal Service (Oostende) - Ternier (Nieuwpoort) - Beltima (Wilrijk)
2) France: les petites maisons de lisle (Isle sur la sorgue)
Our photos about Bath Carts - Beach Cabins - Beach Cabin Art
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Photos of real beach houses on Sangatte beach:
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Photos of beach cabins on De Panne beach (June 3, 2025):
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Photos from the "Cabin Art - Collecting" event in Saint Idesbald (May 29, 2025):
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Photos of beach cabins in Nieuwpoort, Belgium (May 28, 2025):
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Photos of beach cabins in Sint-Idesbald, Belgium (May 27, 2025):
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Photos of beach cabins in Nieuwpoort (April 23, 2025):
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Photos of beach cabins in De Panne (April 13, 2025):
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Photo of beach cabins at Nieuwpoort (Sept. 17, 2024):
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Photos of the beach cabins at Malo-les-Bains / Dunkirk (Aug. 29, 2023):
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Photo of beach cabins at Nieuwpoort (Sept. 29, 2020):
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Photos of the beach cabins in Cayeux-sur-Mer ( Sept. 1, 2020 ):
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