There’s nothing quite like waking up to tranquil views of the water and the sound of gently lapping waves. Ideal for those in search of a new adventure, these beautiful pocket-sized properties offer the flexibility of an untethered home that can travel wherever the wind takes you, paired with the welcome simplicity of living small. Intrigued? Click or scroll through for our pick of the world’s best floating tiny homes.

There’s living off-grid and then there’s living in a tiny floating cabin in a dam in rural New Zealand. For owners Careena and Chris, building this compact floating house, which they now rent out as holiday accommodation, was the perfect escape from city life. They moved from Auckland to Kerikeri in 2016 and they haven’t looked back since.

Upstairs, the sleeping quarters are cosy, with just enough space for a double bed. The bedroom is accessed by a staircase that drops down from the ceiling and can be shut away to maximise the available floor space below. Whether or not you think living on the water is for you, there’s no denying how idyllic this home is. 

German company Nautilus has created the perfect hybrid between a floating home and a houseboat with the Vagabund Hausboote. Offering the mobility of a boat with the appearance and layout of a home, this attractive property is perfect for keen seafarers wishing to take the leap into tiny-home living.

Go Friday’s modern waterborne pad is a sight to behold. The customisable modular interior can offer between 300 and 560 square feet of living space and up to three bedrooms depending on your needs, plus upper and lower platforms to soak up those tranquil views.

We wouldn’t mind escaping to this gorgeous houseboat – we can just imagine gazing out at a magnificent sunset through those glass walls and basking in the sunshine on that blissful upper deck.

The lodge, which was originally designed by architect Marijn Beije for visitors to national parks in the Netherlands, is intended to allow people to reconnect with nature. With a design that emphasises panoramic views and outdoor living, Beije has definitely achieved that goal. We'd jump at the chance to float away on this smart tiny home!

The sweeping, curved shape of this gorgeous modern property is what sets it apart from other floating homes. Designed by vacation home company Tiny Floats, their smallest model, Tiny One, provides 194 square feet of floor space, making it ideal for use as a holiday retreat or as a petite property for one.

Subtle design features make a huge difference to this property. For example, the house sits low on the water allowing for optimum views, while its polyurea and glass exterior gives it a slightly industrial vibe. Plus, it's got everything you could need, with a small bedroom, kitchen, dining and living areas, as well as a large terrace. 

If you're a fan of prefab buildings and you fancy living on the water, this floating tiny home – a collaboration between architecture firm Kodasema and marina solutions company Top Marine – ticks all the boxes. It's both urban yet close to nature, sustainable yet luxurious, and small yet surprisingly spacious.

A simpler life is one of the major draws of tiny living, so it's no surprise that the interior has been decked out in a streamlined, monochrome scheme. Yet with a cosy sofa, small kitchen and breakfast bar, this interior doesn't scrimp on creature comforts either.

While its vibe is more 'luxury urban getaway' than 'off-grid tiny home', there's no reason why you couldn't live in this property full-time. It's equipped with underfloor heating, an electric boiler and sewage and water connections, presenting a great way to escape busy city life.

The jewel in the crown of tiny floating homes, this futuristic-looking orb rejects the idea that living in a houseboat can't be a luxurious experience. A little larger than other aquatic homes in our roundup, it offers generous square footage plus a roof lined in solar panels to cater to all the property's energy needs.

The interior is all about sustainability, with furniture made from cardboard and recycled wooden floors, as well as micro-ventilation to ensure low energy usage. In total, the house has been constructed from 98% recycled materials, proving that you needn't compromise all the mod cons for an eco-friendly lifestyle. 

Some might argue that calling this remarkable property a tiny home is a push, but we give this innovative floating home major points for its clever use of space, impressive eco-credentials and uber-stylish design.

From cutting-edge firm Carl Turner Architects comes this sleek, streamlined floating abode. The architects wanted to create a property that could address the problem of climate change-induced flooding "at its roots", by making use of unused space across the waterways and providing a sustainable living solution for the future.

Of all the ways to escape the rat race, designing a floating wooden egg and living in it for a year probably isn’t the first thing that springs to mind. Yet that’s exactly what artist Stephen Turner decided to do when he designed the Exbury Egg.

The pared-back design of the Exbury Egg pushes the boundaries of human comfort and architectural possibility. When it comes to living off-grid and reconnecting with nature, it seems Stephen Turner has ‘cracked’ it. 

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