As kids, most of us have dreamed of having a treehouse as a haven - a secret place where we could establish a top-secret clubhouse away from our pesky parents. Some of us still do. Interestingly, people in some countries don't see tree houses as exotic, but as everyday parts of their lives. In New Guinea, for example, the Korowai people live in treehouse buildings permanently. The raised homes help protect their food and belongings from animals and floods by keeping everything above ground level.
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Luckily, the treehouses for kids and adults alike have become more than just fairytale-like hideouts or an exotic living places in far-away lands. For those who seek to realize some of their greatest childhood dreams and are looking for a unique way to recharge and relax, architects and designers now offer some unbelievable treehouse hotels for holidays. These have long outgrown the traditional wooden cabin concept, featuring multiple floors or even glass and mirror elements.
Would you choose to spend a holiday or have a retreat up in one of these cool tree houses? Let us know which treehouse ideas are your favorite in the comments!
1. Three Story Treehouse (British Columbia, Canada)
Why have a single-story tree house, if you can have three? This one is said to be the tallest tree house in British Columbia, Canada. You can find it somewhere near Revelstoke. (Image credits: imgur.com)
2. Mirror Tree House (Sweden)
Almost invisible and perfect for hiding, the Mirror House is part of the Tree Hotel project in the North of Sweden. As cool as it looks, we're afraid the house may be invisible to birds. (Designed by: Tham & Videgard)
3. The Bird's Nest Tree House (Sweden)
This tree house, by the creators of the Tree Hotel, might confuse the birds even more. Although it looks like a massive nest from the outside, the house has a modern and high-standard room built inside. (Designed by: inredningsgruppen.se)
4. The HemLoft Treehouse (Whistler, Canada)
After retiring at the age of 26, software developer Joel Allen became a carpenter and fulfilled his dream of "building something cool". Kind of an understatement. He never thought this personal project would be featured in international design magazines! (Image credits: Joel Allen)
5. Treehouse in Muskoka (Ontario, Canada)
Designed by Lukasz Kos, 4Treehouse is constructed around four trees over Lake Muskoka in Ontario, Canada, and floats in the air like a big Japanese lantern on stilts. (Image credits: imgur.com)
6. Minister's Treehouse (Crossville, Tennessee, USA)
This grandiose 100-foot-tall structure is said to be the tallest tree house in world, and was built entirely out of reclaimed wood by Horace Burgess in Crossville, Tennessee. (Image credits: imgur.com)
7. Yellow Treehouse Restaurant
This restaurant in Auckland, New Zealand, offers you an amazing dining experience: the restaurant seems to be organically wrapped around the tree and is able to host up to 18 guests at a time. (Designed by: Peter Eising & Lucy Gauntlett)
8. Treehouse in Seattle (USA)
As if tree houses are not fairy tale-ish enough by themselves, this one even has a rope bridge leading to its doorstep! (Image credits: jasfitz)
9. Free Spirit Sphere Treehouses (Canada)
10. Treehouse by Takashi Kobayashi (Japan)
Designed by Takashi Kobayashi, the Tree House People seek to "break down the feeling of separation that exists between humans and nature." (Designed by: Takashi Kobayashi)
11. Senior Center Turned Treehouse (Ghent, Belgium)
This sculptural tree house in Belgium was made for the art festival TRACK: A Contemporary City Conversion, and is a miniature version of the houses behind it. (Designed by: Benjamin Verdonck)
12. O2 Treehouse (USA)
The O2 Treehouse seeks to "inspire humanity to reconsider how we can more harmlessly co-exist with nature" by creating world-wide tree house communities. (Designed by: o2treehouse.com)
13. Treehouse for Birds and People (Andu Momofuku Centre, Japan)
A modern tree house concept by Nendo offers you the possibility to peek into the private life of birds. Divided into two parts by a wall with little peek holes, it allows people to see what the birds are doing on the other side of their wall. (Designed by: nendo)
14. Eco-friendly Finca Bellavista Treehouse (Costa Rica)
This tree house is a part of the self-sustainable and eco-friendly Finca Bellavista tree house community in Costa Rica. The whole property of the community now takes up more than 600 acres, and is all connected by suspension bridges! (Image credits: Anders Birch)
15. Plane Treehouse (Costa Rica)
While not entirely a treehouse, this vintage Boeing 727 was originally bought by Joanne Ussary for $2,000.00. It cost her $4,000.00 to move the plane and $24,000.00 to renovate an turn it into this Executive Suite 727 tree house. A jacuzzi in the cockpit is just one of the intriguing ideas she had for her new home! (read more)
16. Teahouse Tetsu (Yamanashi, Japan)
Architect Terunobu Fujimori's treehouse combines both minimalism and fantasy. While the interior is simple and modern, the exterior looks like a page from a fairy tale. (Image credits: Amazon.com)
17. UFO Treehouse (Sweden)
The Swedish Tree Hotel decided to go in a totally different direction after building a Bird Nest tree house and built this UFO treehouse. (Image credits: treehotel.se)