WE’VE seen hotels in former prisons and old banks – but now you can stay in a converted toilet block as well.
Stepping underneath the bustling St Giles’ road in Oxford, guests will find a stylish stay with an unusual past.
An old toilet block has been converted into an apart-hotel in Oxford, UK[/caption]
Inside there are still nods to the old loos, with Victorian toilets in the bathrooms[/caption]
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Called The Netty – the Geordie term for toilet – the former Victorian public loo has been transformed into an apart-hotel with just two rooms, each accessed via a staircase from the street.
The interior of each makes it hard to believe the rooms ever housed cisterns and sinks, with vintage florals adorning the walls.
Despite being below ground, both rooms still get natural light thanks to the frosted pavement glass above head.
Suite one features forest green and bright red, with an intricate floral tapestry draping from the ceiling to behind the headboard.
And yes, despite formerly being a loo, the suites do have toilets in them as well.
Behind a red door, guests will find a royal blue Victorian toilet, stood against tiles featuring plants.
The floor tiles are from the original public loos as well.
Suite two differs slightly, with pinky-beige walls and green features.
A similar floral tapestry hangs from the ceiling and in the bathrooms a baby pink Victorian toilet is set against more tiles with foliage on.
In each bathroom, guests will find Austin Austin toiletries – a luxury organic hair, hand and body product brand produced in the UK.
Both rooms sleep up to two people each and can be booked from £110 per night.
According to the BBC, the men’s loos originally opened in 1895 but closed in 2008 due to safety concerns as there was no direct crossing across the road to them.
The site was then advertised for £65,000 in 2014 and bought by Gwyn Harries-Jones – yet it sat untouched for 11 years, until work on the two suites eventually started.
Ana Pinheiro, the hotel’s manager, said: “I would say it’s one of the strangest places in Oxford to stay.
“We know we are not for everyone, but it is a very nice experience if you’re willing.”
The toilets were more than just a convenient spot though, as during the construction of the loos workmen found a large quantity of bones and horns, as well as a stoneware jug and two red pottery cups.
Across what is now two hotel suites, used to be four urinals and two cubicles.
The toilet block was bought back in 2014 but remained abandoned for 11 years[/caption]
Now, visitors can stay in one of the two suites, costing from £110 per night[/caption]
The site never used to have two entrances either, with the southern entrance being the original and a second entrance added at a later date.
Between the two entrances also used to be a cabmen’s shelter.
The loos weren’t always going to be converted to hotel suites though.
Gwyn Harries-Jones initially gained planning permission to change the site into underground offices, but they were never built.
This isn’t the only toilet in the UK that has found a new purpose.
A set of men’s underground loos in Fitzrovia, London, is now a lavish coffee joint known as The Attendant.
Inside the venue there are still some of the original tiles and guests can sit at the former – notably cleaned-up – urinals, to enjoy their brew.
Then at the cleverly named WC – Wine and Charcuterie, in Clapham, also in London, guests can enjoy a variety of small plates in a Victorian water closet under a tube station, dating back 100 years.
And inside, they still have loos – just more modern and less smelly[/caption]
This isn’t the first toilet block to be converted into something new[/caption]
If you do opt to stay at the new loo-hotel, then there are plenty of things to explore in Oxford.
The historic UK city is home to Oxford University, one of the world’s oldest universities and visitors can head on a historic walking tour with a student guide.
The £19-per-person tour includes seeing one of the oldest colleges at the university and the famous Bodleian Library.
History lovers may also like the Ashmolean Museum, the oldest public museum in the UK, which has over half a million years of art and archaeological artefacts and is free to visit.
Oxford is famous for its pretty boat rides too, that head along the university’s Regatta route and pass Folly Bridge, Christchurch College and Meadows and the university’s rowing houses.
Tickets for the boat rides cost around £19 per person.
There are a number of quirky hotels you can stay in across the UK, including old forts and floating destinations.
Plus, one of the UK’s biggest cathedrals is opening for overnight stays for the first time ever.
In London, there is also a coffee joint in an old toilet block and a wine bar in a water closet below a tube station[/caption]