There’s nothing like disappearing into the countryside for a weekend, especially when it’s the Lake District, and especially when your escape is taking place in a multi-storey, luxury treehouse.
Three huge bedrooms, two bathrooms, a hot tub, a full kitchen, three balconies, a cosy lounge, and a slide that will zip you down to your very own den filled with games and a bar.
Welcome to Silva Treehouse, a beautiful bolthole near Penrith that might be one of the most well-designed pads we’ve ever been blessed to clap eyes upon.
The whole ‘digital detox’, screen-free movement has become a bit of a thing in recent years, with a whole company dedicated to making cabins where you lock your phones away for the weekend.
Silva Treehouse offers no such novelty lockbox – but one look out of those gigantic windows at the rolling countryside and you’ll drop your phone willingly.
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There’s no telly, no Wi-Fi. In fact, there’s only about four buttons in the entire building. It’s just a radio, a few board games and those staggering views, and you won’t want anything else.
From sitting on a plush sofa with the log burner kicking out heat, watching the sun set over the fields, to getting up early and watching deer and hare frolicking in the dawn mist, there’s way more to soothe your soul here that you could ever get from Netflix.
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The layout of the treehouse itself is remarkable. Guests head up a short flight of stairs to a huge deck, which is home to a large dining table and the hot tub.
The stunning views from the Silva Treehouse loungeThe master bedroom in the Lake District treehouseThe hot tub with countryside views
Inside on this level is an open-plan kitchen/dining room/living space, kitted out with all the equipment you need to keep yourself fed and not having to leave the house for days (the hosts also left us dozens of eggs from their chickens).
Up another short flight of stairs you’ll find the master bedroom, with a four-poster bed and its own whimsical balcony, plus the smallest (but still double) bedroom, where you’ll wake up to one of the best views in the place.
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Then in the very rafters of the treehouse is bedroom number three, a huge mezzanine space where you can sleep surrounded by wood.
This is a very grown-up and sophisticated treehouse, but whoever said that can’t be loads of fun too? This place has got all sorts of entertainment to help you switch off, relax, and be a bit silly too.
And that’s where the coolest feature comes in, accessed via the second deck – a metal slide that plummets you back down to ground level, and to your very own den.
A bar, a ping-pong table, a dart board, a fire pit (complete with marshmallows for toasting), a pizza oven, hammocks, an extra bathroom, and loads of seating too, all tucked down beneath the main accommodation.
The bar in the denThe den beneath Silva Treehouse
If you can get down that slide without squealing “Weeeeee!” and regressing back to your childhood, we don’t want to know you (there is a door if you don’t want to brave the slide).
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If you can tear yourself away, there’s prime countryside on your doorstep, from the Lake District itself to the SSSI of the River Eden, including sandstone caves, hidden waterfalls, mountain views and riverside strolls.
It’s taken the family behind Silva Treehouse 15 years to painstakingly construct it from homegrown timber amongst the trees, with the ambitious project growing bigger as the couple behind it, Lucy and Grant, had more ideas.
It’s really, really been worth the wait.
See more pictures below and book your stay with Canopy & Stars HERE.
Silva Treehouse in the Lake District
The firepit beside Silva TreehouseEnjoying the viewsSilva Treehouse has a slideThe smallest of the three bedroomsThe living room at Silva TreehouseThe balcony off the master bedroomThe wood-fired hot tub in actionThe mezzanine bedroomEnjoying the viewsA log burnerBathroomSilva Treehouse has a slideSilva TreehouseSilva Treehouse kitchenThose views again…The log burner in actionSilva Treehouse comes with binocularsLooking up at the balcony
Featured image: The Manc Group
Travel & Tourism
No trams to run on major Metrolink line as ‘essential’ work to repair Victorian-era tunnel starts this weekend
Emily Sergeant
Travel disruption is expected across the next couple of weeks as ‘essential engineering’ work begins on a major Metrolink line.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has confirmed that a reduced service will run on the Bury line this weekend, as work to replace ‘defective’ beams supporting the roof at Whitefield Tunnel means that no trams will run between Crumpsall and Bury on Saturday (10 May), or between Whitefield and Bury on Sunday (11 May).
Some weekend and overnight working is said to be ‘necessary’ to secure and protect the overhead line equipment, so that the beam replacement work can be completed as ‘safely and quickly as possible’, according to TfGM.
A crane is planned to be in use for the beam replacement work at times.
Closures on the line from this weekend come after the successful completion of preparatory work at the site, following the discovery of a defective beam.
No trams will run on a major Metrolink line as ‘essential’ work to repair Victorian-era tunnel starts this weekend / Credit: TfGM
As well as the suspension on services this weekend, as mentioned above, several other chances throughout this month and into the next on the Bury line are also to be expected.
No tram services will operate between Crumpsall and Bury on Sunday 25 May, and no again from Friday 30 May to Sunday 1 June, while no trams will run between Whitefield and Bury from Monday 26 to Thursday 29 May.
For the duration of all closures, replacement bus services will run between the affected stops on all the above dates.
Any so-called ‘noisier’ work is set to take place during daytime and evening working hours where possible, and several noise reduction measures – such as acoustic blankets and enclosures – also to be put in place during this.
Essential upgrade work to protect the historic Whitefield Tunnel means no trams will run between Crumpsall–Bury (Sat 10 May) and Whitefield–Bury (Sun 11 May).
We're replacing a defective beam to keep the line safe and reliable.
As always, the Greater Manchester public is being advised to ‘plan ahead’ if they are travelling.
“Whitefield Tunnel dates back to the 19th century,” explained Ian Davies, who is TfGM’s Network Director for Metrolink, “and this essential work will ensure tram services can continue to safely pass through it for decades to come.
“This is a complex job, but we will do everything we can to minimise disruption to passengers, residents and businesses.”
He added: “I would encourage people who use the Bury line to plan ahead and check the Bee Network website, app, and social media channels for the most up-to-date travel information.”
But it arguably doesn’t get much better than a title like this.
For a long time now, the city has been cementing itself as a tourist hotspot, with new hotels popping up left, right, and centre, and integrated transport systems being introduced to make it easier to get around.
And it looks like all that has paid off, as Manchester has now been named one of the best cities in the whole of Europe for 2025, thanks to a new ranking by Resonance Co.
Manchester has been named one of Europe’s ‘best’ cities / Credit: Josh Taylor | Chris Curry (via Unsplash)
This year, the global placemaking company’s research encompassed 128 cities across Europe with metropolitan area populations of 500,000 or more, and evaluated each of them based on 30 performance indicators and perception metrics derived from surveys of more than 7,500 respondents across 10 European countries.
Once each of these performance indictors had been evaluated, every city was given its own ‘Place Power Score’ to determine its ranking.
A city’s ‘Place Power Score’ examines three core dimensions – liveability, which takes into account things like housing affordability, healthcare access, green space, air quality, and cycling infrastructure; loveability, which encompasses culture, nightlife, culinary scenes, and more; and prosperity, which includes business environment, talent density, GDP per capita, airport connectivity, and more.
While Manchester may have missed out on both the top 10 and top 20, considering it’s a top 100 list, our city has claimed the respectable 36th spot, beating out mega cities such as Venice, Nice, Athens, and loads more.
In fact, 18 British cities are included in the top 100.
Our city has ranked alongside 17 other British places / Credit: Mangopear Creative
Explaining why Manchester has been ranked, Resonance Co said in its city description: “You’ll be hearing a lot more about Manchester this decade, as the historic engine of English industry shifts into high gear across both culture and development.
“While the UNESCO City of Literature continues to shape global music – with 2024’s opening of the 23,500-seat Co-op Live arena, and a festival lineup that includes Beyond the Music and Worldwide Music Expo – Greater Manchester is also writing a new chapter in urban reinvention.
“A newly centralised ‘single pipeline for growth’ coordinates £1 billion of planned annual investment across six targeted Growth Locations, aiming to deliver tens of thousands of homes and jobs at a pace unmatched in the UK since the 2012 London Olympics. Among the boldest is the Western Gateway, anchored by the regeneration of Old Trafford around Manchester United’s stadium, projected to generate over 90,000 jobs.
“The Central Growth Cluster includes innovation districts like Crescent Salford and Victoria North. These ambitions build on an £80-billion economy that’s grown 50% since 2000 and now leads the nation in FDI outside London.
“Add a mature devolved governance model and transformative transit investments – like bringing commuter rail into the Bee Network – and the city’s Top 10-ranked airport and 15th-most Instagram Hashtags start making sense.”
Which city took the title of the best city in Europe though? Well unfortunately, we have to give it to the southerners on this one, as London took the top spot.
But at least it’s an impressive win for the UK, if nothing else.
Daisy Jackson -
19th March 2025 
