An Airbnb glamping pod promises to give guests checking in the flight of the lives…and they won’t even leave the ground.
A 1970s private jet has been lovingly converted – after seven months of toil and an outlay of £90,000 – into a cosy self-catering let, where you can explore the cockpit at leisure.
The vintage 1970s Hawker – now known as Alaya Airways – is in Dolgellau in Gwynedd, Wales and has only been available to rent for less than a month but is already being snapped up by tourists seeking a mile-high stay that never leaves the ground.
Its owner Tamir Ali, 38, snapped up the vintage plane in December 2023 and decided to set about turning it into a two-bed room stay, with guests paying £170 a night.
Intrigued by its history as the staff plane of an oil company, and in use for much of the 70s and 80s, he’s strived to preserve as many original features as possible, while also ensuring all the things you’d expect from a self-catering stay are there.
There’s a kitchen with all mod cons, bathroom with shower and even space to enjoy a glass of fizz in a dedicated outdoor area – and its pet friendly to boot.
With a 70 per cent occupancy rate already, the property looks set to be booked up for the summer and is described as the perfect stay for families.
Adding in a double bedroom, via a cosy cabin, plus wood floors and modern electrics ensures the plane is a comfy retreat.
Let’s fly: Alaya Airways, a vintage private jet converted into a glamping pod has been on Airbnb less than a month but is already proving popular
The 1970s private jet, once the property of an oil company, still has its original cockpit in tact for guests checking in at the glamping pod in Dolgellau in Gwynedd, Wales
Tamir, who’s based in Leicester, said: ‘It’s awesome – when people walk in they say it’s much bigger than it seems on the outside.
‘It’s almost like you’re in a normal home. It’s a unique experience, not many people get to sit in the cockpit of a 70’s private jet.’
The plane enthusiast describes the plane when he bought it, around 35 years after it was retired, as ‘worse for wear’ but with plenty of potential: ‘There was lots of mould and moss inside – but I immediately envisioned what I wanted it to be.’
He said building the plane back up and giving it new life has made for some interesting encounters, saying: ‘I’ve always worked with eccentric people – people who deal with the weird and wonderful.
‘I know a chap in Essex, who said he had something that was up my street.’
The comfy-looking seats remain a cream leather, while the Airbnb owner has given the cabin at the back a modern look, using a bright yellow Ikea daybed and a trendy black matt sink unit.
Last month, a Dorset developer’s four year battle to turn a tiny garage into an Airbnb was thwarted for a third time.
Peter Mullins has tried and failed to get permission to redevelop his 19 foot-wide garage in Poole, Dorset, after buying the property for £600,000 in 2021.
A planning application in 2021 to add two storeys to the garage to create a pair of semi-detached houses was dismissed at appeal. Then in 2022, a conversion and extension to create two flats was also refused.
And in his latest attempt to redevelop the property, Mr Mullins had sought to demolish the garage and turn it into a dwelling to create a £1million Airbnb to ‘make his money back’ on the expensive garage.
The original body of the plane is now a cosy seating and bedroom, with a cabin tacked on the back of the aircraft housing a double bed
The £170-a-night stay sleeps four in two bedrooms
With wood flooring throughout and modern electrics, the plane conversion has everything guests need from a self-catering stay
And there’s a roomy seating area just outside the plane’s door should the Welsh sun shine
Owner Tamir Ali said the property took him seven months to transform from a ‘worse for wear’ plane to a glamping pod
Plans submitted to Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council show the home was set to be in a newly-added pitched roof and would include a double bedroom, a single bedroom, and a dining and living room.
The development would take place just a street away from the iconic Sandbanks beach, where famous residents have included Harry Redknapp, chef Rick Stein and Liam Gallagher.
But the application was rejected by planners earlier this month, who said the proposed windows would be just 1.65m from a home on Panorama Road – where houses sell for an average of £3,922,500, according to Rightmove.
Locals have previously fought against the development with the Sandbanks Neighbourhood Forum writing a letter stating that the plans are ‘unacceptable.’
