This millennial house designer spent 9 months constructing a reproduction of ‘The Holiday’ cottage—now it’s renting quick at $499 an evening

Home designer Lucy Small put The Holiday Cottage up for short-term leases this October after a nine-month construct—and a fan frenzy shortly ensued. The 37-year-old has spent the previous six years designing houses within the Blue Ridge Mountains; she’s labored on three dozen homes, from rest room and kitchen rebuilds to hardcore development initiatives. But nothing may have ready her for the push of consideration that got here together with her newest undertaking: replicating the comfy Rosehill Cottage featured in The Holiday, from the bottom up. After all, almost twenty years after the film’s launch, it continues to be a top-watched festive flick—in 2023, The Holiday was streamed 2.3 million instances, in keeping with an evaluation from Samba TV.

As it turned out, the home featured within the 2006 movie—owned by Kate Winslet’s character Iris, who home-swapped with Amanda’s L.A. mansion for the Christmas season—by no means truly existed in actual life. It was a giant endeavor, however Small noticed a possible hit on her fingers. 

“The Holiday Cottage was really a fun thing. I was like, ‘Hey, why don’t I do this? I have everything at my disposal to be able to do it, I know how to build, and I can find land,’” Small tells Fortune, including she’s a fan of the long-lasting film. “Honestly, it was just one of those situations where I had this wacky idea, and everyone got excited about it, and no one stopped me.”

David Cannon Photography/Courtesy of Lucy Small

Before the inspiration of the two-bedroom, two-and-a-half tub house was even constructed, Small had attracted consideration from hundreds of shoppers. She first introduced her plan to construct the cottage in 2022, and fan fervor began pouring in. The entrepreneur says they solely had digital renders of the cottage on the time, however folks have been already sending her handwritten letters about how they couldn’t wait to remain there. Around 4,000 folks left their emails on a web site Small threw collectively to replace the general public on its availability. Now, only one month after going stay available on the market, the short-term keep is absolutely booked out till March 2026. 

“People have really loved it, and every time I get one of those letters of, ‘This means so much to me, thank you so much for making it possible,’ that’s just way more worthwhile to me than anything else,” Small continues. “Anyone can build a house, have it be a good investment, and sell it to an investor. But this seems to really have meaning to people, and that makes it important.”

The nine-month course of to carry The Holiday cottage to life

It’s no simple feat bringing a chunk of cinema into the true world—particularly if you’re up in opposition to a house that’s unimaginable to copy. In reality, the Rosehill Cottage featured in The Holiday was only a little bit of film magic; the house’s weathered facade was inbuilt an open subject, whereas the inside was filmed on units. Home-makers would possibly hesitate on the concept of constructing an unbuildable house—however Small was truly excited by the premise. 

“I found out that the house never actually existed in real life, which, for me, is a big deal. Because if you can actually go visit the Brady Bunch house, or the Home Alone house, me building another one is less interesting,” she explains. “But if it never existed, if it’s a set that was torn down 20 years ago, that’s a lot more interesting, because there is literally nothing else in the world like it.”

Small put the undertaking into movement a number of years in the past, however shortly bumped into some time-consuming roadblocks. Georgia, a preferred vacationer getaway and filming location, was sluggish to challenge extra short-term rental licenses as momentary stays flooded the market. Heavy taxes and charges additionally needed to be factored into the worth, as counties wished in on the business’s rising success. Finding the proper land to construct on was a battle—however as soon as they settled on a plot in North Georgia, it was off to the races. 

David Cannon Photography/Courtesy of Lucy Small

In complete, it took 9 months to construct The Holiday Cottage, from breaking floor to placing within the remaining prospers. Small labored with an architectural designer, watching the romcom collectively “1,000 times” to attempt to get it proper. The first hurdle: they realized the home would by no means meet code. When making an attempt to construct at scale, they found the ceilings could be too low, standing at solely seven toes tall, primarily based on the place the home windows have been positioned within the film. The movie model of the cottage had solely two chimneys however featured three fireplaces; the lavatory flooring was sloped; and, in actuality, one window would lower midway by way of the kitchen cupboard. Small and her crew did the whole lot to match the identical aesthetic, even establishing faux partitions and slopes.

Replicating the house’s furnishings proved to be a bit dear, too. Despite the quaint film cottage, seemingly adorned with humble, second-hand furnishings, the kitsch decor was past Small’s funds. Using Google picture reverse search, she tracked down antiques equivalent to those within the set, which ran upwards of $30,000 every. The bamboo umbrella tree proven within the cottage entryway, for instance, was priced at over $15,000. Eventually, Small was capable of parallel the identical heat, charming environment with comparable decor. She declines to share how a lot all the construct set her again, and even when she’ll recoup on prices. Small says she rents out the house at a modest worth—$399 per night time throughout the off-season, and $499 throughout excessive season—and is adamant that The Holiday Cottage has been a worthwhile funding. 

“It’s not like we were totally surprised and totally blew the budget. We knew what it would be—we don’t charge a stupid amount,” Small says. “And so it’s still been a good investment, given that we did not like cheap out on the build at all.”

Having 4,000 keen followers lined up—and why Small is ok being a “one-hit-wonder” 

With 4,000 keen renters already ready for the pin to drop, The Holiday Cottage’s prompt success wasn’t an enormous shock. However, Small wasn’t used to her initiatives getting a lot consideration. 

“As someone who, frankly, does not know how to use social media at all, who doesn’t have it, who’s pretty private, I’m usually unable to get eyeballs on any of my projects,” she continues. “For this one, [attention has] just been pouring in completely, even though I haven’t gone out to seek it, which has been a very new position for me as a designer.”

Once The Holiday Cottage reserving website went stay on October 4, Small says dates began filling up “immediately.” And media consideration solely riled up extra curiosity; the millennial house designer says she “can’t think of a magazine” that hasn’t coated her new construct. And simply in time for the vacations, it’s proved to be the right place to get into the festive spirit. Currently, there is just one open day in March, a couple of obtainable slots in April, and only one in May. The Holiday Cottage isn’t obtainable for a multi-day reserving till June 2026—the home is almost booked out for six straight months.

David Cannon Photography/Courtesy of Lucy Small

Small’s newest undertaking has proved an enormous success, and he or she says renters have to this point been loving it. Travelers go away their tales within the house’s visitor guide; a trio of sisters introduced their mom, a giant fan of The Holiday, alongside for the last word dream keep; one other customer used to look at the film together with her mother each Christmas, and after her passing, rented the place together with her dad. For the individuals who keep there, the short-term rental is greater than a spot to crash. It’s the possibility to be immersed in romcom nostalgia and reconnect with family members. 

When requested if she is planning one other movie-related construct, Small says she’s completely pleased being the house owner of this one viral sensation. Right now, she has no different concepts—all she is aware of is she’s going to solely take initiatives like this, the place individuals are excited concerning the consequence. Plus, Small believes there’s no different house constructed that may replicate the identical magic as The Holiday Cottage. 

“Honestly, I’m fine being a one-hit-wonder,” Small says. “I don’t need it to be a big money-maker or big success, because a lot of the things that make this house—The Holiday Cottage—so special, I don’t think can be replicated.”