Aviation fans could have the holiday of their dreams after an inventor repurposed a ‘retro’ Boeing jet into a stunning Airbnb.
The plane has original seats, lockers and even a flight simulator in the cockpit.
The front half of the 737 aircraft seats four and features a double bed in the cargo area and a hot tub in a vintage jet engine.
Guests even have the opportunity to use the original onboard toilet.
Entrepreneur and university lecturer Steven Northam, 39, bought the 1960s Boeing 737-200 on eBay for £5,000 and converted it into a two-storey holiday home, accessible via the airport boarding stairs.
Steven Northam, 39, bought a plane online for £5,000 and turned it into a guest house
The remains of the Boeing 737 have been completely rebuilt and comfortably accommodate four guests
It cost him £15,000 to refurbish the plane over three months, and he named it ‘Marwell High Club’, after the nearby Marwell Zoo.
Mr Northam bought the 29ft, five tonne nose tip from Chichester College, West Sussex, where the flight crew trained on the simulator.
He spent £3,000 transporting the 14-window vehicle 50 miles with a haulage contractor and crane to a plot of land near his home near Winchester, Hampshire, on the same road as Marwell Zoo.
After that, from July to September 2022, from July to September 2022, from 07:30 to 16:00, he worked “quite diligently” on his project to make it a comfortable place to live.
The married father of two applied to Winchester City Council to fly the plane.
It has 2 single beds upstairs and a double bedroom in the loft, with a glass window letting in light from above.
Mr Northam, a senior lecturer in business administration at Winchester University, found old passenger tickets – from Monastir, Tunisia to Lyon, France – hidden between the seats and revealed that the Boeing belonged to Tunisair – Tunisia’s flagship airline.
He believes it is about 54 years old and was one of the first of its kind to be built.
He said: “It’s a very old plane. It’s one of the very first – it’s retro.”
Both the passenger deck and cargo hold have been redesigned to accommodate guests
For guest entertainment, a full flight simulator is built into the aircraft’s cockpit
A double bed is also installed in the cargo hold, with a window above it that lets in light
Mr Northam said: “I’m not an aircraft fanatic”, adding that the aircraft conversion was “just a fun project”.
Airplane seats are placed to create living space in the fuselage and free Wi-Fi is available to guests
The first Boeing 737 made its first flight in April 1967 and over the years evolved into variants that could accommodate 85 to 215 passengers.
Mr Northam, who is also a business owner, admitted he knew “absolutely nothing” about planes but found the plane browsing eBay and thought it was an “interesting” opportunity for another company.
He retained much of the original aircraft, using the interior passenger seats and signs, while installing Wi-Fi, heating, a shower and an “entertainment center”.
Mr Northam said: “It’s been sitting at Chichester College for ages and they haven’t used it for a long time. It just turned up on eBay – I have no idea what happened to the rest of the plane.
“It felt pretty cheap to me – for scrap value alone it was a steal.
“I hired a special transport company to transport it here with a huge crane – it must have been a beautiful sight on the Autobahn. I was afraid it would come in here and just flip over.
“There are a few of these Airbnb’s around the world, but only a handful.
You certainly don’t see that every day.
“It’s a nice place to stay. Enjoyment is the driving force behind it.
“I’m not an airplane fanatic – I just know they fly. It’s just a fun project.”
He added: “This is my most ridiculous purchase yet. I now need to convert an armored truck into a trailer.
It cost Mr Northam around £15,000 to convert the plane into accommodation within three months
Mr. Northam, business owner and Lecturer in Business Administration at Winchester University, sits in the cockpit of his plane
The Boeing 737 was transported 50 miles to its current location by a transport company using a large crane
The aircraft’s new passengers can continue to enjoy the original aircraft toilet on board
Mr. Northam bought what was left of the plane on Ebay and spent months restoring it himself
“I have a strange urge to buy strange things.
“I’ve got some airplane movies on the plane and cheap airplane-themed pillows on the beds—all the stuff you’d expect.”
The Airbnb has sleeping space for four people and a small kitchen as well as a shower and toilet.
The in-cabin flight simulator features a 49-inch 4K curved screen for guests to enjoy.
Mr. Northam, whom he called a “big guy,” took it a step further by installing two 42-inch HDTVs and two Xbox Series Ss.
There is parking for two cars, a gas grill and an outdoor seating area – including the hot tub and another hood that can be used as a seat.
Mr. Northam is no stranger to innovative projects – in 2017 he installed a microchip in his own hand, which serves as the key to his car, his home, his office and now the Boeing.
Mr Northam and his wife Rebecca (36) have two daughters: Poppy (6) and Lottie (4).
He said: “I’m telling you, it’s not normal.
“People who are obsessed with this stuff have contacted me to come and have a look. Parents of kids who like things like planes and trains ask me about that too.
“It’s a bit like a trailer inside – it was quite big when it was empty and all the seats were out.
“I enjoy seeing projects before and after – it’s satisfying.”
Because of its unusual shape, Mr. Northam struggled to fit furniture.
He said: “The biggest challenge I had with this was that it’s quite an unusual shape, so it was difficult to find things that would fit well inside.
“I had to cut a lot of the wood pieces to fit.
“The shape of the skirt is not quite round, so it was a bit difficult to work with.”
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James is an author and travel journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a love for exploring new cultures and discovering unique destinations, James brings his readers on a journey with him through his articles.
