It seems that when it comes to staycations, Americans are swapping the tried and tested for something a little different.
That’s according to Airbnb and its 2025 list of the most wishlisted homes in every state.
The rental platform notes that it contains “one-of-a-kind stays that offer completely immersive experiences” – and as our pick of the bunch below shows, it’s a fair assessment.
Scroll down to behold 10 incredible rentals guaranteed to enshrine your next vacation as unforgettable, from a fairytale tower to a train caboose, and from a “flowerpot home” to a refurbished bus with aurora views.
Flowerpot home in Burley, Idaho
A “blooming good time” is always on the cards at the “flowerpot” home in Burley, Idaho, according to the hosts.
The rental offers views of their neighboring flower farm, while inside is a sleeping loft accessed by a spiral staircase and, on the ground floor, a modish sofabed and kitchenette.
The reviews for the property are overwhelmingly positive, with one visitor describing it as “cute and perfect”.
Sleeps four. Cost per night from around $340. Airbnb
The Copper Fox Treehouse, Maine
If you feel like you’re in a dream while staying in this fox-shaped abode, say the hosts, “it’s because you are”.
They explain: “This fox-shaped home came to the owner/designer/builder in a dream and slowly came to life over a four-and-a-half-year time period.”
The rental is the guest house to the owner’s private home, which nestles in six acres of land next to Bradbury Mountain State Park.
Reviewer Edward said: “The natural smell of wood welcomes you as soon as you open the door, and you wake up to tree-speckled sunlight. Definitely our favorite place to stay in more than 10 years of Airbnb-ing.”
Sleeps four – best for a couple or a family with one to two kids. Cost per night from around $450. Airbnb
‘Park bus’, Fairbanks, Alaska
This former Denali National Park shuttle bus has been refurbished to “provide a comfortable and memorable place to stay”.
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It’s permanently parked on a knoll between Fairbanks and Chena Hot Springs Resort – the “perfect” place for aurora viewing, with guests able to use nearby foot trails for snowshoeing, skiing and berry picking.
Other activity options for the itinerary include ATV, snowmobile, and rafting tours; plus reindeer farm visits.
In the evenings, the bus offers a “magical and romantic” place to bed down for the night, according to one reviewer.
It sleeps five, courtesy of a king-sized bed, a fold-down couch and a convertible bench – and there’s a farmhouse-style kitchen for rustling up meals.
Calls of nature can be answered in the outhouse, but guests need to purchase showers, which can be taken in a nearby unit.
Cost per night from around $170. Airbnb
Train caboose in Lynchburg, Virginia
All aboard for a truly unique Airbnb experience – a train caboose that the owners bought on Facebook Marketplace and converted into a stunning rental for three guests.
It’s called James Station and sits on a section of railway track above the James River, a railway line and a pipe-making plant on the north-east side of Lynchburg.
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The owners describe the area as a “beautiful, historic front-porch neighborhood” where “everyone knows everyone and watches out for each other”.
Read more:
They list sitting on the porch swing and watching the trains and “factory action” as a recommended activity, but warn that the “industrial experience will not be for everyone”.
The caboose interior, however, is likely to be universally adored – it comes with hammocks and voguish furniture fit for a magazine cover.
Guests are generally extremely impressed, describing it variously as “beautiful”, “fun”, and “cozy”.
Stays cost from $220 a night. Airbnb
Chinook helicopter, Brooksville, Florida
Book into this “meticulously transformed” Chinook, located on a “serene” compound inside the Withlacoochee State Forest, and your vacation is bound to take off.
The incredible former army helicopter, which was used in military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, features a bedroom in the cockpit.
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A further bedroom is positioned by the loading ramp, where cargo would have been loaded and unloaded during missions.
“You can almost feel the aura of the hard-working veterans,” says the listing.
It adds that there is a full kitchen, bath and living area that have been custom-designed for the space, “with every design detail poured over”.
Sleeps six. Stays from $286. Airbnb
‘Spectacular Spyglass Treehouse’, Sonoma County, California
If Bilbo Baggins built a treehouse, it might look something like the “Spyglass Treehouse”, a cylindrical haven nestling among the giant redwoods of Sonoma County.
The listing urges you to “immerse yourself in the serenity” of the forest, and to explore nearby “rugged cliffs and pristine beaches”.
Once that’s ticked off, you can relax in the outdoor cedar hot tub and curl up in the king-sized bed.
“Come, experience the extraordinary,” teases the owner.
Hyperbole? Reviewers don’t think so. They describe it as “so romantic” and the “perfect escape”.
Sleeps two. Stays from $776. Airbnb
Elevation 40 Zion cabin, Apple Valley, Utah
City dweller fed up with gridlocked traffic and crowded malls?
This captivating cabin in South Zion may be just what you need to decompress.
The listing beckons you to a “realm where untamed beauty meets modern comfort, where the vastness of the desert landscape becomes your personal sanctuary”.
Your neighbors here will be bighorn sheep, squirrels, chipmunks, desert hares, eagles and coyotes.
And some might invite themselves in, with the listing warning that mountain mice and woodrats “may find their way into the vicinity”. But rest assured, they’re visits that “are part of the wilderness experience”.
A quick glance at the reviews and it’s clear that this is one of Airbnb’s most-loved properties, with past guests breathlessly describing it as “amazing”, “magical” and a “true hidden gem”.
Sleeps seven. Stays from $965. Airbnb
Still Bend by Frank Lloyd Wright, Two Rivers, Wisconsin
A true masterpiece, Still Bend is the real-life version of a “dream home” that renowned architect Frank Lloyd Wright submitted in 1938 to LIFE magazine for an article called “Eight Houses for Modern Living”.
It was commissioned by Two Rivers businessman Bernard Schwartz – and the rest is, as they so often say, history.
Today, the property, smothered in red brick, is a chance for vacationers to “experience the genius of Frank Lloyd Wright’s vision for American family life”.
Describing the design in LIFE, he wrote: “American family life is unlike any other in the world and I think this plan recognizes it for pretty much what it is – a little private club, with special privacies, ultra conveniences and style all the while.”
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The listing adds: “Every turn will reveal a new detail that reaffirms Wright’s genius.”
There are enticements in Two Rivers as well, a historic fishing town with museums, town-square concerts and a 120-year-old department store.
Sleeps eight. Stays from around $700. Airbnb
The Glade Top Fire Tower treehouse, Bradleyville, Missouri
Deep in the Mark Twain National Forest is this one-of-a-kind rental with a “lookout tower” vibe.
There’s a first-floor deck area with a swinging bed and a grilling station, and a luxurious bedroom, kitchenette and outdoor shower above this on the second floor – at a height of 40ft.
Don’t worry about hauling luggage up there – there’s a basket/winch system that’ll take the strain.
“If you’re looking for a unique experience and to get away from it all, this is the place to book,” says reviewer Hailey. “It’s extremely secluded with beautiful scenery and unmatched unique architecture.”
Sleeps two. Stays from $265. Airbnb
Gingerbread House tower, Tyringham, Massachusetts
Step into a fairytale with a stay in the tower of the “Gingerbread House”, located on the Santarella Estate in the Berkshires.
The listing reveals that there’s a sofa, a hanging chair, and a “huge walk-in shower”.
Plus, windows offer views out into the gardens, where you’ll discover a lily pond, stone bridges and a wooded area.
“A storybook experience,” the owners add.
And past guests agree, hailing it as “enchanting” and “as magical as the photos suggest”.
Sleeps four. Stays from $300. Airbnb
