Want to Stay in a Sandcastle Hotel?

The sands of life may be shifting, but the world has come up with innovative ways to sleep under the stars. Ice castles and underwater hotels are one novelty way to slumber, as well as sandcastle hotels. These temporary, pop-up structures usually coincide with a promotion like National Sandcastle Day to unveil a whimsical way to sleep right on the beach.

Booking.com and Coney Island unveiled the “SAND”- sion at Coney Island in 2019, where guests vied for the chance to sleep in an Instagram-worthy boutique hotel. Guests also received dinner along Coney Island Boardwalk and access to sand toys and plenty of beach towels. However, the Coney Island sandcastle wasn’t the first.

The aptly named Zand Hotel was the world’s first sand hotel. The Zand Hotel was inspired by the ice hotels in Sweden and Finland and launched as an inspired art project. Zand Hotel was made of thin walls with sand and a traditional bathroom. Prices ran around $170 a night and included perks like electricity, running water, WiFi and breakfast.

It remains to be seen whether sandcastle hotels will reopen for summer. Keep an eye out for promotions and limited-time pop-up deals that quickly disappear, just like the shifting sands.