Hotel of the Week: Want to get in on the latest trend?

Saturday, February 20th, 2010 / TracyGallagher

I’ve seen a lot of hotels raising the bar – and the rooms – on their properties lately. Staying in a treehouse adds a different twist to a vacation -and one kids really like. (Keep reading because there are treehouses just for adults also…)

The treehouse pictured above is one of the 20 or so treehouse accommodations at “Out n About Tree-sort” located near Cave Junction in Oregon. All the tree-houses here are different – some can accommodate families with four or more, and others hold only couples.

This one is Swiss Family Robinson style…

If it is important to you, and especially if you have young children who may need to go to the bathroom at night, make sure you ask for treehouses with an indoor restroom. Some treehouses use bathrooms and showers on the ground.

In addition to staying in the treehouses, guests can zip line, fish, horseback ride – all kinds of outdoor activities.

The tree-sort itself isn’t located in a highly visited area, so make it part of another trip nearby.

www.treehouses.com

If the typical treehouse is not up your alley, how about sleeping in a sphere floating among the trees? That’s exactly what you can do in 5 acres of Vancouver Island rain forest.

According to some reviews on the company website, previous guests have loved falling asleep to the swaying of the sphere when the wind blows the trees. The spheres literally dangle…and as you see there is a spiral staircase to get up and in. Perfect for the ecologically minded – you’ll feel one with nature.

www.freespiritspheres.com

At Treehouse Point, you can sleep suspended partway up a 300 year old Sitka spruce…relaxing below a canopy of green. Pretty nice amenities for a treehouse too – built in cedar bed, leather reading chairs, and handmade quilts.

Treehouse Point is about 22miles out of Seattle in Fall City, WA…and it even caters weddings! The couple who own Treehouse Point are friends of the environment – implementing green practices whenever they can. The food is made with organic ingredients. A stay in one of the treehouses comes with breakfast

www.treehousepoint.com

Lastly – the most luxurious treehouse I have ever seen. It might even be a stretch to qualify it as a bonafide treehouse .This one, by the way, is for adults (or older children.) At the Shangri-La Villingili Resort and Spa in the Maldives, you will have a gorgeous view of the beach and nature below from one of the “treehouse villas.” Or swim to the edge of your infinity pool and soak up the scenery in addition to the sun….

The Maldives are a part of Asia..comprising 1200 islands and islets located in and around 26 atolls. The new Shangri-La is on Addu Atoll. It is a far away destination, but the pristine beaches clearly reflect it’s isolation and uncrowded landscape.