MADRID, Iowa — Iowa's only Treehouse Village is now open in Boone County in the central part of the state.
The Iowa Arboretum and Gardens unveiled the Adele and Dean Bowden Treehouse Village in early September. The $2 million project has taken four years to dream up, design and construct.
Built for all ages, it features gazebos, wooden treehouses, a large suspension bridge, rope nets and climbing walls. There's also adaptive equipment, including a ground-level zipline and wheelchair swings. All of it is tucked into the area's old oak forest.
You can reserve your tickets here. General admission is $12 for adults, $7 for children three to 12 years old, and free to arboretum members.
The arboretum says there's nothing like this is the rest of Iowa.
"It's really a wonderful experience for families that come to the Arboretum," Mark Schneider, the executive director of the arboretum said.
He says rural Boone County has a lot of attractions to offer, but visitor numbers at the arboretum weren't as high as the organization would like.
"And we came up with the idea that we should build tree houses," Schneider said.
The goal is to get more people, particularly young families, outdoors and exploring the arboretum.
"It's a wonderful place to get outdoors, to experience tree houses and see wonderful things in nature," Schneider said.
It took just seven months to raise $1.7 million of the total project cost. Construction on the tree houses began in May 2023 and wrapped up that same November. The rest of the project was finished days before opening.
The arboretum says it will keep the Treehouse Village open through mid-November and then hopes to reopen in mid-March.
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