World's Wildest Houses: Vacation Edition

Would You Live in Any of These Wild Houses? Over the years, we've shown you houses shaped like elephants, toilets, pickle barrels, dogs, and UFOs, to name a few. You've seen cave houses, tree houses, and floating houses. There were houses made of bottles, beer cans, tea cups—you name it! Here's our latest top 5 round up of the world's wildest houses! Who needs an expensive family vacation to see the new wonders of the world when you can see them all right here? -Karen Ziga and Tabitha Sukhai Don't miss the all our picks for the world's wild houses on thisoldhouse.com!

• 1. The Bird's Nest

  

  Village of Harads, Sweden Here at TOH, we love a good tree house. That's probably why there has been an elevated abode in just about every installment of World's Wildest Houses. We've taken you over to Sweden's Tree Hotel complex to see their modern Mirrorcube tree house in World's Wildest Houses VII. But, if you'd prefer something a bit more rugged, check out the nearby Bird's Nest. Designed by architect Bertil Harstrom and built in 2010, you enter the structure by retractable staircase.  Check out the surprisingly modern decor inside the Bird's Nest Treehotel! MORE: The KEG Apartments in Athens, Greece are the next wave in shipping container houses.

• 2. Aura Villa

  

  Larnaca, Cyprus This futuristic oceanside villa, designed by Andreas Trisveis of Mobius Design Group, is equipped with six bedrooms, a media room, two Jacuzzis - and even a hammam, or Turkish bath. The most breathtaking feature of the exterior, especially from a bird's eye view, is the metal-and-glass lattice roof canopy.  See the inside of this luxurious seaside villa! MORE: The Pyramid-Shaped House in Hiroshima, Japan is a modern throw-back to Japan's earliest architecture!

• 3. The Klein Bottle House

  

  Rye, Australia Math geeks rejoice! This house is described as "a descriptive model of a surface developed by topological mathematicians" to be a residential representation of the Klein Bottle concept. Whatever that means. Either way, the origami-looking building (with an exterior of concrete sheeting) makes for an interesting vacation house near Melbourne. It was designed by architect McBride Charles Ryan.  Don't miss the inside of the Klein Bottle House and the dramatic staircase! MORE: The Velux Sunlighthouse in Pressbaum, Austria is the first zero-energy, carbon-neutral single-family house in Austria.

• 4. Egg House

  

  Beijing, China Architect Dai Haifei was tired of high rents. So the recent grad built this egg house to stick it to the man and live rent-free. The eco-friendly apartment is made of sacks filled with wood chippings and grass seeds (which will grow to insulate the egg) on a bamboo frame.  See the inside of the rent-free Egg House and what actually fits inside! MORE: Casa Paz in Rio Coffio, Spain is designed to hang off a cliff!

• 5. Neverwas Haul

  

  Berkeley, California This whimsical take on the mobile home was built by a few DIY-minded fans of steampunk design. Calling themselves the Neverwas Project, the group of tinkerers created this self-propelled, 3-story Victorian house out of 75-percent recycled materials. The vehicle was originally built to carry the group as they explored Black Rock Desert and, of course, attended Burning Man festivals.  Check out inside the Neverwas Haul and see how they honor the steampunk aesthetic! See all the world's wildest houses inside and out on thisoldhouse.com!