Our last few days in the Philippines was spent in the most perfect tree house just outside of Manila. After weeks of incredible experiences diving in Palawan, kayaking at El Nido paradise island and exploring Boracay beach, this was a very different kind of adventure.

Let me explain how we ended up staying in a tree house…after several days exploring Manila, we decided to escape the city and hike up the well-known Taal volcano, 50km away from Manila.

After getting down from the volcano, back on a little boat and off the island, we realised how we were covered in a layer of dirt (the path is extremely dusty). As it was also getting late, it became apparent we would have to book in to a hotel before heading back to Manila.

We grabbed our old Lonely Planet guide book and was immediately drawn to the ‘top pick’ accommodation. It was a brilliant description of a quirky tree house run by a man who lived there, who supposedly also cooks exquisite food. We decided to give him a call, and the conversation went something like this:

Me: “Hi there, I found your tree house through Lonely Planet and was wondering if you have an available room for two people tonight?”

Tree house man: “Ah. No one has stayed here for years, you must have an old Lonely Planet book. But if you give me an hour I can buy some food and have everything ready for you.”

Me: “Oh we didn’t realise, thank you so much! We’re intrigued to know what the rooms are like. Is there a bathroom?”

Tree house man: “Well there’s a bathroom that I’ll share with you on the branch below your room. Your room is on the top branch above the dining area branch where my room is.”

At this point we both looked up at each other, wide-eyed and intrigued. 

Me: “Perfect. We’ll be there soon.”

I was so excited to see what this place was like! I just couldn’t imagine how a whole house could be built in a tree. Kitchen, bathroom, bedrooms and dining area? All I could think of was my favourite childhood book, The Enchanted Wood by Enid Blyton.

As we arrived we were greeted by an eccentric man with long, dark hair flowing down his back. He showed us around his tree house, through a little makeshift kitchen and up some rickety stairs towards our ‘room’ on the top branch. It was absolutely brilliant!

The place was amazing and perfectly quaint. I loved sleeping in our cosy tent, filled with a big duvet and plenty of cushions laid out for us.

When we asked what the rate was for staying, he said, “Oh I don’t charge for the room, I only charge for the feast that I cook, which is however much you think it’s worth.”

Damn did he have confidence in his cooking skills.

I was pretty freaking excited to see what he was going to create from his little kitchen cut out from a tree branch!

The next morning our breakfast completely blew me away. It’s still one of the most lavish breakfasts I’ve ever had.

We had fluffy red velvet pancakes with homemade hibiscus jam, a huge platter of fruit, the most delicious marinated pork and an unlimited supply of fresh juice and coffee. I couldn’t believe it. Just how!?

And as you can see, the layout was perfection. I was beyond impressed that such a lavish breakfast feast could be prepared in the tiniest of teeny kitchens.

We even had homemade nutella! I didn’t want the breakfast to ever end.

The presentation was immaculate. Every little detail was thought through. It was also very touching that he had woken up at 5am to prepare the meal!

We chatted for hours about his life, how he ended up building his own tree house and what it was like to live there by himself. He then kindly introduced us to his driver who was happy to give us a tour of the nearby sights.

We had an incredible time hiking through a valley thick with luscious green trees, caves and flowing water.

We were then taken down a spiritual cave, filled with dozens of Jesus and Mary statues glimmering from our candle light. We crept further down into the cave through a maze of winding pitch black tunnels. The further we approached inside, the deeper the pool of water became that we had to wade through. At this point it started to feel a bit too spooky for comfort.

We all jolted to a standstill as we arrived at a junction, faced with 3 narrow tunnels branching off in different directions. Typically, at this point our candles blew out. As my eyes gradually adjusted to the dark, I saw a dozen bats shoot towards us, narrowly missing out heads by about a millimetre. The cold draft they left behind sent a shiver down my spine.

Of course our guide directed us to start heading down the tunnel that the bats flew out of. It was so narrow we had to take off our backpacks and crouch down as low as we could, wading through a meter of warm, murky water. Praying there wasn’t another flurry of bats heading in our direction.

We emerged out of the cave grateful for fresh air and natural light, laughing at the experience we just had. And just very relieved we didn’t have a bat fly into our face!

We hiked further down the valley towards a large waterfall, gladly jumping in to cool off. The whole day was such a fun adventure. It improved even further when we arrived back at the tree house to be welcomed by delicious smells wafting down from the kitchen… Another feast?!

Ohhhh yes. I was genuinely amazed and so so happy to see another incredible feast laid out on the table for us. This time there was another couple who were invited to join us.

The effort put in to our meal was inspiring. Each plate was full of colour, edible flowers and plants. Not to mention excellent, creamy mushroom risotto, chicken kiev and some tropical-looking salad I didn’t even know was edible.

As soon as I scraped my dish clean, almost seamlessly in swept scrumptious homemade vanilla ice cream with more home-made hibiscus jam.

Feeling utterly stuffed, we lay down in our tent feeling completely content, wishing our stay was longer.

Stumbling across this unexpected tree house was definitely one of the highlights of our trip. 

The Philippines is without a doubt one of the most exciting, special places I’ve traveled to. Not only because of the warmth and kindness of the people, but the variety of adventures and beautiful places to visit and learn from. I hope I’ll return one day soon! xx