Have you ever heard of a Tree Tent? A tent. Hanging suspended in a tree. You did in fact read that right and before we stumbled across the Red Kite Tree Tents in Wales whilst looking out for a half term experience to remember, we hadn’t either. But it is very much a (very clever) thing.
Turns out there may be good reason why you haven’t heard of it because this is the site of the very first erected tree tent in the UK. From 2005, after renovating the Red Kite Barn to stay in, Chillderness have opened 4 glamping pods. There are now two Tree Tents here and quite rightly have been featured on programmes and in print all over including Grand Designs, This Morning and too many print and digital magazines to list. Not to mention having The Hoff himself enjoy an off grid adventure.
If’s its good enough for the Hoff, it’s good enough for us!
Camping!?
Now before you panic at the word tent, I am definitely no camper. Though glamping I have had great experience of (a fair weather glamper mind) and I am all about those unique experiences where I can. To show the children, and myself, that life is there for living and the world is far too big to do the same things on repeat. For us that is, you do you!
I had originally contacted Chillderness about their very cool ‘Conker’ with it’s unique copper look, outdoor baths and views to die for (fingers crossed we’ll get there too one day, just me & Eddy this time) but with that booked up they offered the alternative Dragons Egg Tree Tent. The tents do ordinarily sleep two however the owner very kindly let me take both girls as to be honest with the amount they are growing up I welcome the double bed snuggles which we fit in just nicely.
Location
The Red Kite Tree Tents are located on a private conservation estate in Powys, near Builth Wells and Newbridge-on-Wye in Mid Wales. As you drive the single track private road approaching the site you would be forgiven for thinking you had in fact taken a very wrong turn. You are quite literally driving deep into the woodland with only the red kites, trees and babbling brook for company, oh and sheep, plenty of sheep.
When drawing nearer through the gates to keep said sheep contained the tranquility and peace hits you in the best way possible. It actually takes your breath away, like the still at the end of a rollercoaster or walking out of a city for the first time and you can feel the stresses of modern life falling away as far as the road you’ve left behind.
After parking up and seeing just a tiny glimpse of red peeking through the trees as if to entice us in we didn’t hesitate to take the downhill ramble before even emptying the car.
It was all very exciting.
Accommodation
Over a whimsical wooden bridge we were greeted with the beautiful sight of our secluded home for 2 nights. A stream and walkway carrying on from the bridge looking down over the decking and fire pit with steps onto each level passing the stocked wood store up to the outdoor kitchen, long table and al fresco shower. Then of course the pièce de résistance; the tent. Our own little slice of the wilderness.
There are two suspended tents, Ynys Affalon and Dragons Egg which was where we stayed. The red tent which contrary to what you would think, somehow seamlessly complimented the forest.
The tree tent itself, accessed by a wooden bridge from the outside living space, is covered with thick canvas, fully insulated and the bijou space inside is equipped with a double foam mattress which folds into a sofa during the day with storageunderneath, a cosy wood-burning stove and games too. The decor I would describe as having a gentle hippie vibe. I say that as it had a distinct resemblance to what my own Mums house was like.
It is worth noting that naturally with a round tent canvas and a level floor there is a small gap around the edge. We did lose a shoe and a phone through said gap followed by a wonderfully giggly time as I ventured to capture it from the home it had found in the material, rather than from the forest floor below luckily!
On arrival you will find fresh bed linen, towels, dry wood and kindling for the stove.
There is a stripped back but well equipped outdoor kitchen where the cool box included some welsh cakes (which is a lovely personal touch – or would be if you like them…apologies to Welsh people and my own Welsh family but that is most definitely not me!) and a supply of tea, ground coffee, milk, salt, pepper and marshmallows for the fire pit too.
Covered by a canopy the cooking and dining area, with gas hob and satisfying whistling kettle, is usable in all of the good old british weather and cooking overlooking the tranquility of the children playing really was a treat.
A flushing toilet can be found in a cabin a short but steep uphill walk at the top of the forest. I have never had a more scenic wee in my life. A torch is a must for this walk should nature call outside of daylight hours.
The outdoor hot water shower is surreal but oddly freeing.
Now to the question that most came up on my Instagram. Did the tent move? Does it feel safe?
So it did take some getting used to when your brain is telling you no, especially for cautious children. There is a slight bit of swing/movement to the tree tent especially when you first walk into it from the bridge, not unlike when you walk onto a roundabout type of feeling. Once you are in there is a slight sway when someone moves but we didn’t feel like we were always moving or that we were unsafe. An in depth look at the structure of it and pep talk before bedtime seemed to do the trick and it was just a real great adventure, there was no motion sickness in sight!
With the other tent is just down the stream a couple of hundred metres away from each other you have your own private bit of forest with your own private track, though could easily book both for a lovely break with friends.
Outside Area
The private area around the tent is next to the babbling brook, has a fire pit perfect for relaxing, warming and of course toasting marshmallows, we levelled up and took some rich tea and chocolate for the ultimate s’mores treat.
Adventuring around the brook was wonderful, it is such a fairytale location. Unless of course you are trying to sleep and if you are hearing sensitive like me, you suddenly realise how noisy water running across rocks really can be. Maybe a niche issue there.
Unfortunately the hammock stated wasn’t up which was a shame, we all love a hammock and it would definitely be the perfect place to rest and snuggle with a book or appreciating the lack of light pollution and star gaze as darkness falls. Or indeed as the name suggests, spotting the many red kites that frequent the skies.
Facilities & Things To Do
The nature of the tent is of course to relax in the surroundings and it is perfectly set up to do just that. To purely sit back and enjoy the simple things in life in splendid isolation. A digital detox for sure. For phone signal reasons aswell as by choice.
We spent time in the tent with the wood fired stove on reading books, making s’mores, slow cooking, playing games, star gazing, bird watching, chopping wood (SO therapeutic) and solely connecting together.
Then we took our wellies to explore the brook and the area into the woods and along the fields. You can access acres and acres of woodland and hills if you want to venture further. We simply walked until we wanted to turn around. There’s something beautiful about this freedom and the children adored that. It is also where there were plenty of sheep remains to be found, to the delight of my children who (if you have read here before you will know) have curious minds and aren’t afraid of some animal skeleton exploration, namely at the beach but it seems that translates to countryside too. Who knew.
I saved you from seeing a photo of this particular activity!
You can walk straight up into the hills behind the forest: the Chillderness Red Kite Estate lies on the edge of the remote Elenydd region of mid-Wales’ Cambrian Mountains. You can walk straight into the green mountains of the Elenydd, right behind the estate. I think if we came back a long hike followed by a cup of tea around the fire or a sit in the hammock would be utter perfection.
Civilisation
We came fully prepared for an off grid adventure and had all the supplies we needed happy to see no-one but each other for the entirety of our stay. I would go so far as to say that was the reason for our stay and what I was very much looking forward to.
However if you do require; or would just like some company or supplies (maybe the squirrels ate everything you brought, true story and I’ll get onto that later and why it cut our stay short!) then you could head to Newbridge-on-Wye just a 10 minute drive away. It’s a small village with post office, shop, butcher, and a pub. Or a larger supermarket in Llandrindod Wells.
Squirrels!
So as I eluded to above, our trip was cut short and we did not in fact stay the second night. It was what I like to say…..an experience. Let me explain
We had planned for a couple of days just connecting together and had taken everything we would need with us. In fact exactly the amount we needed. Smart, or so I thought. We filled the cool box with what we could and kept the dry ingredients in a closed bag next to it. When we were in the tent on our first evening we heard a kerfuffle in the kitchen and the bin (a plastic black bag filled bin with a lid) had been knocked over everywhere and squirrels had gone through it for food scraps.
No sooner had I cleared that up and calmed the scared cautious child to sleep, than we were awoken very early to more noise and the very brash grey bushy tailed creatures had savaged their way into and through all of the bags to annihilate our bread and pasta stock. Not only did that leave the children scarred, it left us with not enough food that hadn’t either been eaten or touched by the squirrels and left us with scraps.
We therefore regretfully decided to leave on the last day and not stay the night which was a real shame and of course made the trip that little more expensive for one night and 3 hours each way!
I’m sharing because I wish I would have known that possibility (maybe that’s hopeful naivety on my part that I didn’t think of it) so I could plan or decide with full knowledge. I love to research travel and I actually found very little reviews so here is your warning guys to be prepared of the wild in the wildlife!
How To Book & Prices
We paid £320 in June 2021 for 2 nights in the Dragons Egg Tree Tent (For the same midweek 2 night half term in 2024 booking directly the price is £340)
You can book through sites such as CoolStays which I love and HostUnusual or book directly with Chillderness. I do always try to book direct if I can and the communication was brilliant.
Overview – Pros & Cons
I am all for the reality and not gatekeeping so here goes.
The babbling brook IS noisy if that’s a concern for you. The squirrels that are not shy and are hungry are something to be mindful of. Taking your own very hardy and secure food storage is a must and may solve this issue. It’s also very shaded so can be cold, even in the summer as the surrounding trees can prevent the sun from getting through, and lastly it is most definitely not for people with issues of mobility.
That being said it was, for us, a beautiful, affordable, off grid stay and I would not hesitate to return.
