Remember the good old days when a tree house was a rough assemblage of two-by-fours and plywood wedged into the crook of your backyard oak tree? These days, tree houses are more than just hideaways. Source: USA Today
They represent a creative challenge to visionary architects in every corner of the globe.
Firms like Germany’s baumraum, which specializes in offbeat projects, and designers like Pete Nelson, a Washington State-based genius of the form, have made it their mission to bring this humble concept into the future.
These tree houses were the subject of a photo book, Tree Houses: Fairy Tale Castles in the Air, by Philip Jodidio (Taschen). But this is a list of tree houses not featured in the book.
Tetsu Teahouse, Hokuto City, Japan
This whimsical tree-top teahouse was designed by architect Terunobu Fujimori and sits perched among cherry trees in the Kiyoharu Shirakaba Museum, in Hokuto City, Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan.
The UFO, Harads, Sweden
Located in the Swedish village of Harads,Treehotel offers a unique experience: its “rooms” are tree houses designed by top Swedish architects.
Treehouse Brewing Company, Glenmont, Ohio
Located near Mohican State Park in central Ohio’s rolling hills, Treehouse Brewing Company is a tree house where small-batch beer is brewed and served.
Between Alder and Oak, Germany
A two-level design on private property in Northern Germany is built upon both an alder and oak tree. It was designed by Andreas Wenning at the German firm baumraum, which specializes in tree houses. It has two decks, a bed with chest of drawers, and windows overlooking a meadow.
Free Spirit Spheres, Vancouver Island, Canada
Vancouver’s coastal rainforest is home to a small resort called Free Spirit Spheres, which consists of spherical tree houses “suspended like pendants from a web of rope”. Designed by owner Tom Chudleigh, these three spheres are impressively outfitted with electricity, plumbing, dining areas and beds.
Dogfish Head Steampunk Tree House, Milton, Delaware USA
Although not strictly a tree house, this 40-foot-tall sculpture on the grounds of Delaware’s Dogfish Head brewery is made to look like one, sitting in a metal tree with metal branches. Although it’s viewable by all visitors to the brewery, the interior is only open to employees for use as a creative space.
Bialsky Tree House, Bridgehampton, New York USA
Looking something like a deconstructed cuckoo clock, with a rope swing instead of a pendulum, this recycled-wood tree house was designed by artist Michael Ince of Brookhaven, Long Island.
The Alnwick Garden Treehouse, Alnwick, Northumberland, England
This huge, multi-story tree house looks like something straight out of Middle Earth, but inside it has a restaurant complete with roaring log fireplace and locally sourced food. It’s built into a copse of lime trees on the grounds of Alnwick Castle, built in the 11th century.
Hapuku Lodge, Kaikoura, New Zealand
Nestled between snow-capped mountains and the South Pacific on New Zealand’s South Island, the town of Kaikoura is home to the Hapuku Lodge, which offers luxury hotel rooms built into the canopy of a natural tea tree grove.
Tree Cabin in, Andalucia Spain
This is set in a nature park near the base of southern Spain’s Sierra Nevada, is accessible by rope bridge and sleeps two.
Mirrorcube, Harads, Sweden
You have to look closely to see this tree house in Sweden’s Treehotel. Its outer walls are made of reflective glass offering panoramic views of the countryside.
The Eagle’s Nest, Calvados, Lower Normandy, France
Those afraid of heights had best stay elsewhere. Perched 72 feet above the ground, the Eagle’s Nest is the highest in a France-wide network of roughly 200 tree houses-for-rent, called La Cabane en l’Air.
