The Appeal of Sleeping in the Trees
A treehouse slows you down. Getting there usually means a walkway, a bridge or a staircase. Once you arrive, the outside world feels far away. Windows frame branches and sky rather than other buildings. The soundtrack is wind, rain and birds. It is a place to read, nap, talk and watch the light change.
Treehouses also make memorable stories. Few couples forget the night they slept in a mirrored cube in a Swedish forest or watched the northern lights through a wall of glass above the Arctic Circle. They pair beautifully with more conventional stays too; a couple of treehouse nights can be the highlight of a longer trip that includes a beach or city.
Northern Lights From the Treetops
In Lapland, treehouses double as aurora observatories. Treehotel in Harads, Swedish Lapland, is a design pilgrimage, with about ten individually designed tree rooms by leading Scandinavian architects. The Mirrorcube reflects the forest so perfectly it almost vanishes and the Bird's Nest is wrapped in branches and reached by ladder. The 7th Room has a netted terrace for gazing up at the sky.
Arctic TreeHouse Hotel in Rovaniemi, Finnish Lapland, offers a more polished hotel experience, with suites raised among the pines, floor-to-ceiling windows and, in the Glasshouse and ArcticScene suites, private saunas. It is about five minutes from Rovaniemi Airport, which makes it one of the easiest Arctic honeymoon bases to reach.
North America: Cedars, Spheres and Big Sur
Two of our favorite treehouse stays in this collection are in the Pacific Northwest and kid-free. TreeHouse Point near Issaquah, Washington, about 30 minutes from Seattle, has handcrafted treehouses by Pete Nelson in a mossy riverside forest, with homemade breakfast included. Free Spirit Spheres on Vancouver Island has just three hand-built spherical treehouses suspended in coastal rainforest; the Luna sphere even has a bed that folds away by day.
In California, Post Ranch Inn adds a luxury twist with triangular Tree Houses lifted among the oaks and redwoods above Big Sur, each with a skylight over the bed for stargazing. They are a cozier, often more attainable alternative to the inn's famous Cliff Houses.
Tropical Treehouses: Mexico, Thailand and the Maldives
In Tulum, Azulik Tulum is a kid-free collection of organic villas raised on wood and vine above the jungle and the Caribbean. Oceanfront villas have hanging beds, Maya tubs and plunge pools. The Kin Toh restaurant places diners in woven nests above the canopy. On Mexico's Pacific coast, Imanta Punta de Mita has a two-bedroom Treehouse villa with a granite hot tub and waterfall-fed pools on a private jungle reserve.
In Phuket, Keemala offers Tree Pool Houses and Bird's Nest Pool Villas on a rainforest hillside above Kamala, each with its own pool. And in the Maldives, Soneva Fushi brings a treetop spirit to a jungle island, with villas that peek over the canopy, a dining platform above the organic gardens and Flying Sauces, where you zip-line through the trees to reach your table.
How to Choose Your Treehouse
- Check the bathroom. At TreeHouse Point, setups vary from plumbed bathrooms to composting toilets and shared bathhouses. Ask before booking if an en suite matters to you.
- Consider access. The Bird's Nest at Treehotel is reached by ladder; other rooms use ramps or bridges. Pack light and ask about access if mobility is a concern.
- Decide on service level. Arctic TreeHouse Hotel, Post Ranch Inn and Keemala are full-service hotels. Free Spirit Spheres and TreeHouse Point are rustic-luxe, with limited or no restaurant service.
- Think about size. Some treehouses, such as the smaller jungle villas at Azulik Tulum, are compact. For a long stay, size up.
When to Go and Booking Tips
For aurora viewing at Treehotel and Arctic TreeHouse Hotel, aim for roughly late August through early April, with clear, dark nights. Summer brings the midnight sun instead, which is its own kind of magic. The Pacific Northwest is typically driest from about June to September, although rain is part of the charm the rest of the year. Tulum and Punta Mita are at their best from roughly November to April; Phuket's drier season runs from about November to April.
Book early. Most treehouse properties have very few rooms. The showpieces, such as the Mirrorcube or TreeHouse Point weekends, sell out fast. TreeHouse Point releases reservations on a set schedule, while Free Spirit Spheres takes bookings directly by phone or email, so read their policies carefully.
