Plans for five tourist lodges on Boxgrove wine estate approved

The five lodges will be built on Tinwood Estate, which is famous locally and abroad for producing sparkling English wines. Once built, the lodges will be attached to the vineyard’s tasting rooms, in order to allow tourists to stay onsite as they sample the vineyard’s product.

Ever since he took over the farm in 2006, Mr Art Tukker has converted the 95 hectare estate from agricultural land producing iceberg lettuce and other salad crops, to a bespoke vineyard, producing a range of wines.

Now, the vine crop is well and truly established, 225,000 vines over 50 hectares and a recent harvest expected to produce significantly greater yield than previous years thanks to the warm weather. Alongside all this, the site is also a popular tourist spot, with three pre-existing holiday lodges, built in 2017, and a range of wine tasting tours.

Tinwood Estate has been offering tours of the vineyard, including wine tasting, since 2012, and they remain a popular part of the producer’s business model, attracting 750 people every week of the year.

Owners hope the five new lodges, applications for which were submitted in January, will allow the business to continue its expansion. The three existing lodges are consistently booked throughout the summer, and boast high occupancy rates year-roun.

Writing in a justification statement to Chichester District Council, owners said the diversification of the business will make a positive contribution to the local economy, attracting visitors from within the district, creating more local jobs, and drawing tourism from across the country.

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