Les Hauts de Ribeauvillé

The Hauts de Ribeauvillé, an innovative 6.5-acre tourist resort with an eye toward sustainable development, combines luxury cabins, tree houses and wood trailers. Located in Aubure (Alsace), in a pine and beech forest 9 km away from the local wine route, this car-free site is an ideal place to recharge one's batteries. It provides a variety of activities (mountain bike, climbing, hikes, Christmas market, ski...). A woodsman by trade, I built two cosy 100-sq m log cabins, for holiday rentals (three more are on the way), ideal for parties of four to six people. I used hemp for isolation and the roofs are vegetalised with sedum, a moss-like plant which acts as a natural AC system, keeping the temperature down in the summer and up in the winter. One truly feels at one with nature, especially when a stag wanders around in the wee hours... By next summer, three tree houses will also be available, all connected by a bridge leading to a 15-m high platform for a night under the stars. http://www.gites-hauts-de-ribeauville.fr

© Julien Kauffmann