Our luxury treehouse weekend in Machynlleth, Wales

A review of our amazing weekend in a treehouse in Machynlleth, Wales.

Have you ever considered a holiday in a treehouse?  If not, I highly recommend it.   It’s a magical experience, which can fulfil your childhood dreams.   However, a weekend in a treehouse is not just for kids.  Our luxury glamping experience in Wales was just as much fun for the adults!

Nestled in the trees of a woodland valley in Powys, mid-Wales, you’ll find 6 cosy eco-retreats.  The Living-Room treehouses of Machynlleth are part of the 250-acre private estate attached to the Bryn Meurig Farm.  These are unique accommodation, each with their own design and have featured in some of the top travel magazines in the world.

At half-term we had the treat of staying in one of them.  In fact, we’d booked the treehouse nearly three years ago, but the trip had been postponed because of lockdown and travel restrictions.  So after such a long wait, we set off with great anticipation and excitement for our luxury treehouse weekend in Machynlleth, Wales.

Read on for our review of a stay in a Living-Room treehouse.

Our treehouse adventure started at 3pm on arrival at the car park.  We were met by the creative mind behind the treehouses who gave us some pull-along trolleys and accompanied us to the edge of the field.  He pointed us in the right direction and off we set, following the markers on the way.

Two fields and a wobbly rope bridge later, we arrived at our treehouse, Lofty.

Lofty was the first of the six “Living-Room Treehouses.”  Each treehouse has its own unique style which blends naturally with its woodland environment.  A wooden, spiral staircase leads to the top of the canopy, where the treehouse is nestled amongst the branches.  A moss roof helps with the organic camouflage.

We knew the views from the treehouse would be lovely, but I was blown away by the interior too.  The style is rustic chic and the thoughtful interior design and décor blend seamlessly with the treehouse.

There’s a comfortable double bed, bunks, a lounge area, kitchen, and dining area all within one open space.  You really do need to get on with the people you’re going with!

Outside, you’ll find a balcony, with small dining area.   In a separate cabin is a compost toilet (a luxury hole), but this was fine and had a basin with running water for washing.

The treehouse has a log burner to keep you warm, which also heats the water for the shower which was on the first level on the way up to the house.  There’s no electricity, but at night the treehouse is lit with fairy tea lights, which makes it look super cosy.   It could be a very romantic getaway (if I hadn’t brought two teenagers along!)

The treehouses blend naturally into the forest landscape, so we didn’t even get a glimpse of the other five.  In fact, we didn’t see any other treetop visitors until we left 2 days after.  Well, apart from one very friendly squirrel!

The best thing to do on a treehouse holiday is switch off and relax.  It really is the perfect time to connect with nature and shut away from the outdoor world.  Read a book, sit in the hot tub, or go for a walk.

Or you could just do absolutely nothing.   With no electricity at the treehouse, it’s a weekend of screen-free fun for the kids.

There’s a rope swing at the base of the treehouse.  The children also found an area behind the house which is perfect for den-building.

One of the highlights of our minibreak in the treehouse was the hot tub.  I had mistakenly assumed it would be in the tree, which I soon realised makes absolutely no sense at all!

I had also needlessly worried that the water might not be warm enough.  How very wrong I was!

The water is heated by a wood-burner on the side of the hot tub.  You do need to plan if you want to go in the hot tub, as it takes a couple of hours to heat.  However, this wasn’t a problem, as the boys loved chopping wood.  You’ll find a large wood stack with plenty of logs, but you do need to chop for kindling.

Quite honestly, I didn’t believe it was possible to overheat a hot tub, but it is.  We could have boiled an egg in it.  In fact, the heating system is so efficient it took a couple of hours for it to cool down.

However, once we were in it was amazing.  You can gaze up at the trees and listen to the sounds of the woodland, which was far noisier than you’d think.  Those birds!

Obviously one of the best things to do on a weekend at the Living Room treehouse is walking.  After all, it is just on the edge of the Snowdonia National Park.  Luckily, there are two walks directly from the farm, so we tried both.

Our first walk, to the Top of the World, is a circular route which leads you up the hillside behind the woods.  From the top you’ll have spectacular views over the Dyfi Valley and if it’s clear, you can see the Cadair Idris mountain in the distance.  This walk is family-friendly and takes just over an hour.

The second hike from the treehouse will lead you to the summit of Mynydd y Cemmaes (1450 ft).  You’ll pass the Cemmaes Wind Farm on the way, with its magnificent 66-metre wind turbines. It is a simple route which follows the service road to the turbines.  However, it is all uphill and quite exhausting.

From the wind farm you can follow a level, grass track across to the Trig Point.  You’ll see plenty of sheep en route and we saw some beautiful Highland cows too.

For a more challenging walk you could try Cadair Idris, which is as tall as Mount Snowdon.  The start is just a few miles from the Living Room treehouses.

If you need any essentials, there is an honesty shop at the car park next to the farm.  They offer a range of local organic and vegan products that you could use in the treehouse, plus a small collection of souvenirs.

If you can stay up late enough, the Machynlleth treehouse offers the perfect spot for stargazing.  The lack of artificial light pollution means the stars are far more visible to the naked eye than in town.  Once the sun had gone down, we could see thousands.

You can’t stay at the Living Room treehouse without a visit to the nearby market town of Machynlleth.  This historic town was once the ancient capital of Wales and the stronghold of Welsh legendary Prince Owain Glyndwr in 1404.

Machynlleth is a charming town, famous for its alternative lifestyle vibe.  You’ll find several eco-friendly shops, antique stores, and galleries.  It even has its own Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) at the top of the High Street.

A beautiful Victorian clock tower stands at the head of the High Street.  There’s a good choice of places to eat, but we stopped at the White Lion Hotel, a pub with a beer garden.

If we had more time, we would have visited the Alternative Centre for Technology, which is just outside Machynlleth.

Alternatively, if you are a nature-lover, there are several nature reserves in the vicinity,  where you can spot kites, buzzards and osprey.

If it is a sunny day, you could head to the seaside, as the stunning Borth beach is only 30 minutes from the treehouse.

• Check-in is at 3pm and check-out is at 11am.
• You can book direct throught the Living Room Teehouse website
• The treehouse is self-catering.  It has a hob with 2 gas rings.
• You have a cool box style fridge on the balcony.
• In the evenings, the treehouse wasn’t cold at all.  In fact it was super toastie with the log burner on!
• There are no locks on the doors, but you don’t see anyone.
• The postcode for the Machynlleth treehouse is SY20 9PZ.

Would you like to spend a weekend in a treehouse?  We would love to hear your comments below.

You may also like:

• 15 very best things to do near Cardigan, West Wales
• 12 reasons why you need to visit Pembrokeshire Coast National Park
• 12 best things to do in the Gower Peninsula

Pin for later: A luxury weekend in a treehouse in Machynlleth, Wales