Nayara Bocas del Toro, a private island resort in Panama, made waves last year when it introduced the world’s first elevated beach. Now, the property is literally taking its accommodations to greater heights.
Instead of opting for the luxe eco lodge’s overwater villas, the resort recently unveiled two, one-bedroom treehouses where you can sleep atop the lush tropical rainforest. The 50-foot suites are the first of five to debut and were designed by Ibuku, a Bali-based architecture firm founded by Elora Hardy. The studio is best known for building sustainable, bamboo structures throughout Indonesia; however, this project marks the firm’s first project in Central America.
“A recent guest marveled at our varied architectural designs throughout the resort,” Scott Dinsmore, general manager of Nayara Bocas del Toro, said in a release. “Every design has our guest experience in mind and our new treehouse is no exception.” Measuring 50 feet tall, the treehouses are made from locally harvested bamboo, in addition to nearly 20 varieties of reclaimed, 500-year-old hardwoods. The latter was sourced from the forests that were flooded during the construction of the Panama Canal. “When you submerge wood in water for that long, it gets stronger, and it weathers in beautiful ways,”