Unique places to stay: The world's 10 most extraordinary treehouse accommodation

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This was published 5 years ago

Unique places to stay: The world's 10 most extraordinary treehouse accommodation

By Brian Johnston
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TREEHOUSE TETSU, JAPAN

Leave it to the Japanese to create an exquisite miniature teahouse and set it amid a grove of flowering cherry trees. Architecture professor Terunobu Fujimori made a name building whimsical tree houses, but this 2006 creation is arguably his most beautiful, with its rustic exterior and simple interior of sliding wooden shutters, accessed by clambering up through a hatch in the floor. You'll find it in Kiyoharu Art Village in Hokuto. See kiyoharu-art.com

DOI KHAM RESORT, THAILAND

Treehouse Tetsu in Kiyoharu Art Village in Hokuto, Japan.

Treehouse Tetsu in Kiyoharu Art Village in Hokuto, Japan.

Designed to resemble the traditional rice barns of the local Lanna people, this teak tree house outside Chiang Mai encapsulates the cosy tree house stereotype. The cabin is dramatically located in the embrace of a giant jamjuri tree and allows visitors to catch mountain views and cooling breezes. Although rustic, you can enjoy airconditioning, television and bathroom mod cons while suspended in the branches, for a Tarzan lifestyle with 21st-century comforts. See doi-kham-resort-th.book.direct

TREEHOUSE RESTAURANT, UK

One of the world's largest tree houses sits in the grounds of Alnwick Castle in Northumberland. The huge sustainable-wood structure covers 1800 square metres and is interconnected by suspended walkways and bridges. It houses classrooms and play areas for children, as well as a restaurant where trees grow through the floor and a fire roars in winter. No better place to enjoy fine seafood or a beefsteak while sitting in a tree. See alnwickgarden.com

FREE SPIRIT SPHERES, CANADA

These movable pods inspired by sailboat technology are made of laminated wood and fibreglass, have windows and skylights, and are accessed by a suspension bridge and spiral staircase wrapped around the tree trunk. They hang in the coastal rainforest of Vancouver Island, which boasts some of the world's tallest trees. Because the spheres aren't fixed, they sway gently like a rocking cradle for the perfect sleep. See freespiritspheres.com

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HAPUKU LODGE, NEW ZEALAND

This alpine holiday resort at Kaikoura features five solar-powered tree houses that have guests perched in considerable comfort 10 metres above a native manuka forest, with views over the trees towards the mountains or Pacific coastline from big windows. Rain showers open onto treetop decks, and deer crop the grass below, adding to the feel that you're surrounded by nature. Wood-burning stoves are great winter warmers. See hapukulodge.com

TREEHOTEL, SWEDEN

At Harads in northern Sweden, childhood notions of tree houses are reinvented in an extraordinary hotel that features seven different, architect-designed tree houses that provide stylish, eco-friendly accommodation. Choose from a blue box suspended in the branches, the avant-garde bird's nest, or the wonderful Mirrorcube, which reflects its surroundings and almost disappears into the forest. The Blue Cone (actually red) looks like a cabin from a Brothers Grimm fairy tale. See treehotel.se

See also: Treehotel review: Move over, IKEA - this hotel has the world's coolest rooms

STEAMPUNK TREE HOUSE, USA

Who says you need a tree for a tree house? This amazing structure is the collaborative vision of 60 Californian artists who built it using reclaimed and recycled wood and metals. The movable art installation weights eight tonnes and featured at various music festivals before finding a permanent home at a Delaware brewery. It's named for the steampunk artistic genre that draws inspiration from fantasy and science fiction works. See dogfish.com

TREECASA RESORT, NICARAGUA

Smaller canopy suites and a larger two-storey tree house feature at this resort at San Juan del Sur on the Emerald Coast, centred on a three-storey central lounge that is also lodged in the branches. Below lie organic gardens, orchards and a swimming pool. The resort is the brainchild of sustainable-living and wellness-oriented Californians, and treads lightly on its environment. Early morning yoga in the trees is a must. See treecasaresort.com

TSALA TREETOP LODGE, SOUTH AFRICA

Tsala Treetop Lodge near Plettenberg Bay is set in an ancient native forest. Huge blackwood columns support the lodges which, like the glassed-in lounge areas, perch high above the forest floor with views over the valley. Each lodge has private decks with a plunge pool and an outdoor shower so you can mingle with the 260-odd bird species that live in the surrounding forest. See tsala.hunterhotels.com

ARIAU AMAZON TOWERS, BRAZIL

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