Beach hut 9

Beach Hut 9 sits among a row of painted wooden boxes on the shingle near Romney Marsh, the sort of place that makes you wonder why anyone would want to own a glorified shed by the sea until you actually stand there watching the light change across the water. It's not a destination in itself - more a stop on a coastal walk, a photo opportunity, a marker of old British seaside culture that's somehow hung on despite everything. The hut is exactly what it says: a small wooden structure painted in cheerful colours, part of a diminishing tradition of beachfront bothy life that's been going since the early 1900s. You won't spend hours here, but that's rather the point. Fifteen minutes, maybe thirty if you're inclined to sit on the pebbles and watch the light. Free to look at, obviously. Come on a grey afternoon when the wind's coming off the Channel - that's when the place earns its keep, not on some postcard-perfect summer day. It works brilliantly as a gentle focal point if you're staying at New Beach Holiday Park or Daleacres just down the coast, or as a pleasant detour while heading towards Port Lympne Safari Park with the kids. The Romney Marsh flatlands surrounding it have their own austere charm - wide skies, scattered farms, not much fuss. Beach Hut 9 won't be the reason you come to Kent, but combined with a proper seaside walk and a nearby caravan site, it slots in just right.