A bonkers idea!

spaceboyted

I think I may be going crazy but I had this brainwave (if you can call it that) to create a treehouse hotel. Yes, I know...crazy idea! But when I researched it, the concept exists. What suprised me was how crap their attempts were and it got me thinkng about creating a high class resort in a UK forrest that was a bit more than a wooden shack. I just wanted to know what you guys think and whether I really have lost the plot. Thanks

FatVonD

Were you watching the One Show last night by any chance, with the woman with the £35,000 tree house?

It sounds a lovely idea but would cost a fortune, land, planning permission, laying services and I imagine health and safety would be a nightmare!

spaceboyted

hahaha no I didn't, I will have to watch that later.

InsideInsurance

So you thinking like Treetops in Kenya? Or are you more thinking individual tree houses for each room/ suite?

In theory its ok but not sure why someone would want to pay luxury prices for this in the UK? At Treetops in Kenya it is obviously the views of the watering hole and night time animals - plus I imagine for some the Queen connection.

pitkin2020

Have to agree with the above, you would need something spectacular to view from the tree house to make it worth while. A view with a large housing estate or the M25 isn't going to be all that great.

Plus you have the fact of planning permission, which you aren't likely to get in UK forest plus the access to the hotel that would need to be installed. This wouldn't be a cheap project by any stretch of the imagination. Then you have to factor in the over reactive H&S hoops to would have to jump through doesn't make it an attractive proposition.

stephenni1971

How much money have you got to invest in the idea?

spaceboyted

well none because I have just finished uni, but I imagine at least £250,000+. The plan would be to have individual suites assigned to each tree. I would like the structure to really blend into the forrest but I also recognise the need to create a strong structure, so the use of steal gurders in the construction would be a must I reckon. Obviously a solution to hide them would be required. I'm not deadly serious about it, I'm just throwing ideas out there to get peoples reactions. From what I've got back so far, people seem to be intrigued by the concept...which is a good start. Making it a viable business is another thing all together.

motorguy

spaceboyted wrote: »

well none because I have just finished uni, but I imagine at least £250,000+. The plan would be to have individual suites assigned to each tree. I would like the structure to really blend into the forrest but I also recognise the need to create a strong structure, so the use of steal gurders in the construction would be a must I reckon. Obviously a solution to hide them would be required. I'm not deadly serious about it, I'm just throwing ideas out there to get peoples reactions. From what I've got back so far, people seem to be intrigued by the concept...which is a good start. Making it a viable business is another thing all together.

I would say you would need several million to get it up and running. By the time you acquire the land, build the hotel, fit it out, lay out the grounds etc, etc.

On top of that that you'd probably need another million to get it going once you had it finished.

A friend of mine bought a hotel recently of decent standard and it cost him £7 million. I dont think it could have been built for much less.

pitkin2020

spaceboyted wrote: »

well none because I have just finished uni, but I imagine at least £250,000+. The plan would be to have individual suites assigned to each tree. I would like the structure to really blend into the forrest but I also recognise the need to create a strong structure, so the use of steal gurders in the construction would be a must I reckon. Obviously a solution to hide them would be required. I'm not deadly serious about it, I'm just throwing ideas out there to get peoples reactions. From what I've got back so far, people seem to be intrigued by the concept...which is a good start. Making it a viable business is another thing all together.

I nearly fell off my chair reading that lol, £250k would be gone well before you even considered building. If you priced the cost of building a normal hotel to the spec you want then you could atleast double if not triple it for this idea.

worried_jim

Have a look at - http://www.thewoodstreehouses.com/ for ideas.

pitkin2020

worried_jim wrote: »

Have a look at - http://www.thewoodstreehouses.com/ for ideas.

not quite the same as what the OP was suggesting though as they are all built on the ground from what i can see on that website.