Now we’ve all decided that we’re not going abroad, there’s just the one teensy-weensy little problem — where are we going instead?

According to Dorset tourism chiefs, the savvy, the chic and the downright trendy will be heading to Bournemouth, which, it promises, will have Britain’s coolest beach scene this summer.

Bournemouth? Spiritual home of the blue rinse and possibly the only place on the planet where sweet sherry remains a popular aperitif? No longer.

The town has masterminded an £11m transformation of its Boscombe suburb from hip op to hip-hop, and, on Friday, will reveal what they’re calling the world’s best beach huts (even though they’re not really huts at all) — the “super surf pods”, designed by Wayne and Geraldine Hemingway, who created the street-cred fashion brand Red or Dead.

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Wayne’s not holding back. “Boscombe is going to be the most exciting place on the south coast,” he says. “It feels like Stoke Newington or Hoxton before they were gentrified. We knew we could do something special here. It could be internationally significant.”

“Internationally significant”? Hmmm. Last weekend, I decided to put that Hemingway hyperbole under the microscope with something that can spoil a summer’s day faster than a freak thunderstorm - teenagers.

My nieces, Emily, 15, and Laura, 13, are at that adorable age where they find everything fabulously interesting... unless it involves grown-up members of their family. If the pods pass this teen test, Boscombe might just be on to something.

There are 58 of them, stacked on the top two tiers of the Overstrand, a modernist complex on Boscombe’s breezy promenade, and overlooking its share of the stunning seven-mile sweep of Bournemouth bay.

About half go on sale this week, with more than 400 people having registered an interest despite the decidedly uncrunched prices: singles will cost from £64,995, spacious penthouses £89,995.

Mere mortals can rent the rest from the council; prices start at £25 per day (0845 055 0968, bournemouth.co.uk). Those with Kevin and Perry-like progeny should find rental money well spent, even though the pods are for day use only and come with shared lavatories and showers.

Emily and Laura loved them, particularly the Punch and Judy mural that covered an entire wall (each pod has a different artwork, inspired by the Hemingways’ personal postcard collection).

They squealed with delight when they realised that the vintage images are repeated on the bespoke deck chairs and windbreak. They were even impressed by the funkily updated Formica units (where you can store the artisan foods available from the posh ground-floor deli).

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