This Insane Swiss Chalet Has Its Own Indoor Beach, Private Marina on the Thames

The latest in ultra-luxury real estate is properties that include everything the new owner might need upon moving in, so he or she can do it right away, without bothering about packing. That ranges from fully stocked kitchens and pantries, to clothes in the massive walk-in wardrobe, cars in the garage, and yachts docked in the marina—if one is included with the property.

Every once in a while, you come across a property that’s borderline scandalous. Like this apparently modest Swiss chalet-type of building that actually hides the ultimate party house for up to 200 people. It’s the property of architect and boathouse magnate Myck Djurberg, 60, and it’s situated at the Hampton Court Riviera, Hampton Court, on the Thames, in Surrey, UK.

“Insane” is an overused descriptor for a lot of things, but it’s on-point in this case. This property started out as an actual Swiss chalet that was imported, plank by plank, into the UK in 1882. Legend has it that it was put together as a party house on a piece of land that the Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, offered as payment for a gambling debt, but scholars are in disagreement over this particular aspect of the story.

However, the land came to be obtained and would later house the Swiss chalet imported and turned into a boathouse slash party house. In 2012, now in complete disrepair, it was acquired by Myck Djurberg, together with the marina, and many acres of private parkland. In 2014, the magnate was able to get plans approved to build on top of the existing structure, and so the chalet started on its journey of becoming a glorious party house again.

“It’s for someone who doesn’t need a house. He or she enjoys the high-life and wants to entertain,” Djurberg was telling the media when it was listed for the second time for sale in 2019.

And what a great place for entertainment it had been turned into. Djurberg spent £3.3 million ($4.6 million) on the building and another £1.4 million ($1.9 million) on the restoration alone. He first listed it in 2016 for £13 million ($18 million), dropping the asking price by £2 million ($2.7 million) three years later.

The five-floor building offers only four bedroom suites, with the master bedroom occupying the entire upper floor. The bottom floor is taken up by the generically-dubbed “party room,” which is, in reality, an indoor beach with a bar, a wine cellar, a concert stage, a separate spa room and gym, and a cinema accessible through a submarine door. The beach features underfloor heating to create the impression of warm sand and, why yes, holds about 40 tons of actual sand from an actual beach.

The indoor beach isn’t even the most outrageous thing about this chalet if a ranking of scandalous features were possible. The master bathroom, for instance, comes with 24-karat gold parquet (because you’re never rich enough until you walk on gold on your way to the potty), a £500,000 ($700,000) kitchen with five Gaggenau fridges and plenty of marble, and an indoor oriental garden with a grated metal floor and a Koi carp pond underneath.

The dining room features as centerpiece a Swarovski-encrusted £80,000 ($112,000) table for 18 people, with matching designer leather chairs. A Swarovski crystal glass door separates the dining area from the designer kitchen. Also here are four original Battle of Waterloo cannons.

The property comes with a marina that holds up to 25 boats and parking for some 20 cars. Djurberg once said he hosted a 120-person property in the chalet, but the number of guests can easily go all the way up to 200 if you use the marina to expand the available space.

As of the moment of press, Djurberg is broke, and his Hampton Court chalet is in danger of being repossessed, according to court filings from a case in which he was accused of assault. So, you know, if you’re on the market for something really shameless and decadent, keep your eyes peeled for this one.