I’m American and couldn’t afford a nice flat in London so I moved to a tour boat – it’s the only place we’ve lived that’s big enough for our dog to run around

A TikToker has revealed why she loves living on a canal in London – saying she couldn’t afford an apartment as nice as her boat.

Maisy Dewey, 24, originally from Savannah in Georgia, lives on a narrowboat on the River Thames with her fiancé Harry and Dalmatian Kipper.

Maisy says she never planned to live on a boat, but came across this one by accident while hunting after it was advertised as a ‘riverside’ property – and didn’t realize how literal the description was .

Her boat is permanently moored, meaning they are connected to the normal sewage system and can still access utilities such as electricity and Wi-Fi, while drawing water and gas from separate tanks.

Maisie gave a tour of her boat to her 25,000 TikTok followers in a videoshowing off her cheerfully decorated and spacious boat.

Speaking to the camera, she explained: ‘I’ll give you a tour of our boat while I tell you why we love living here. First of all, looking around, we wouldn’t be able to afford a regular apartment as nice as our boat.

‘We have a beautiful kitchen, we even have an extra room as an office/cloakroom and the boat is surprisingly spacious.

‘We lived in three other apartments with our dog Kipper before boarding our boat, and this is by far the most spacious place we’ve lived. We also have a lot of storage space.’

A narrowboat is a type of tour boat, specially built for the narrow waterways of Great Britain. Most are about six feet wide and semi-permanently moored or constantly cruising.

Maisy filmed the beautiful interior of the boat, which consists of a combined living and kitchen area, a guest room for an office and wardrobe space, a large double bedroom with extra storage and a bathroom.

The couple moved aboard in November and despite an ‘extremely draughty’ winter, they are generally loving boat life.

Maisy continues: ‘Apart from generally having a nice place to live, we love being on the quay and on the river. It’s just such a great atmosphere and our neighbors are so nice.

‘We’re still getting used to the boat lifestyle, but so far we’re enjoying life on board the boat and all the nice little quirks. I love waking up every night and going to bed on the river, it’s such a dream.”

The interior of the boat is bright and cheerful – and they have a spacious double bedroom (pictured, with Kipper on the bed)

Maisy filmed the boat’s beautiful interior, which consists of a combined living and kitchen area (pictured), a guest room for an office and wardrobe space, a large double bedroom with extra storage and a bathroom

She added that the boat, which they rent, is the only living space they’ve had that’s big enough for their dog Kipper to run around in.

The boat largely manages to remain stable due to its large size, but can become rocky in windy weather or at high tide.

It has a 50-gallon water tank in the back that provides enough water for the entire boat, and it refills when it becomes empty.

They also have a gas tank, which the landlord refills.

Maisy did not reveal the exact location of the boat or how much she is paying for the rent, but says it is cheaper than apartments she has rented in the past.

Her boat trip video has now been viewed 1.8 million times as people are intrigued by the idea of ​​boat life in the capital.

One viewer said: ‘It’s beautiful!’ while another was also taken back and said: ‘It’s huge.’

Others question the safety of living on a boat, writing: ‘A trailer that can easily sink. Cool.’

Her boat trip video has now been viewed 1.8 million times as people are intrigued by the idea of ​​boat life in the capital

It comes amid a growing trend of people leaving their expensive London flats for a cheaper life on the water.

Emily Jones, 32, who is originally from Merseyside, has lived on her narrowboat called ‘Florrie’ in London for four years with her dog Beautiful.

She made the move after feeling ‘trapped’ by the London property market, and previously shared a house with five other people for £800 a month.

After her father passed away in 2020, Emily bought Florrie with a loan for £21,000.

Her rent is now the price of her bills, but she has also warned people that life on a boat is sometimes not as glamorous as it seems.

She spends around £3,000 a year on costs including driving licence, insurance and diesel, but admits she does ‘more cruising than most people in London’.

Emily added that any repairs are always more expensive than repairs to a house – and boaters are advised to always have £1,000 on hand in case of an emergency.

According to the Canal & River Trust, more than 34,000 boats navigate Britain’s 2,000-mile waterway.