Amazon Unveils Two-Story Tiny Home in the Amazon Rainforest
- 🞛 This publication is a summary or evaluation of another publication
- 🞛 This publication contains editorial commentary or bias from the source
Amazon’s Two‑Story Tiny Home with a Terrace: A Glimpse Into Sustainable Living in the Heart of the Amazon
Travel + Leisure’s recent feature on Amazon’s newest architectural experiment— a two‑story, terrace‑adorned tiny home perched in the depths of the Amazon rainforest – takes readers on a journey from concept to reality. The article, published in the December 2025 edition of the magazine, showcases how the tech giant is expanding its footprint beyond e‑commerce into sustainable design, offering a fresh perspective on how “tiny” can be a bold statement about our relationship with nature.
From Dream to Design
The tiny house, dubbed Rainforest Terrace by its creators, was born from Amazon’s long‑standing commitment to “environmental stewardship.” The company has pledged to reach net‑zero carbon emissions by 2040, and the project is an embodiment of that ambition. Amazon partnered with Bamboo Build Co., a boutique Brazilian firm specializing in low‑impact, high‑performance construction, to turn the vision into a living, breathing reality.
The design brief was clear: keep the footprint minimal, use locally sourced materials, and integrate the structure into the forest rather than against it. The result is a 400‑square‑foot, two‑storey home that blends seamlessly with the surrounding canopy. According to the article, the building’s outer shell is constructed from reclaimed bamboo panels and sustainably harvested teak, while the interior is furnished with modular furniture that can be repurposed or recycled at the end of its life cycle.
The Terrace: A Living View
Perhaps the most striking feature is the second‑story terrace, which extends outwards like a leaf, giving residents a 360‑degree view of the rainforest. The terrace is not just a decorative flourish; it serves multiple environmental functions. A rain‑water harvesting system channels the downpour into a filtration unit that supplies the home’s kitchen and bathroom. Solar panels, discreetly embedded in the terrace’s railings, provide the bulk of the house’s electricity. The combination of these systems reduces the home’s reliance on fossil fuels and showcases a “closed‑loop” approach to sustainable living.
The article’s accompanying photo gallery offers a bird’s‑eye view of the terrace, with the dense foliage framing the structure and the sky visible beyond the treetops. In a particularly evocative image, a silhouette of a child sits on the terrace’s edge, looking up at the canopy, underscoring the home’s role as both shelter and educational platform.
Inside the Tiny House
Inside, the space is ingeniously efficient. A compact kitchenette occupies one corner, complete with a composting stove that turns food scraps into nutrient‑rich fertilizer for the small indoor herb garden. The living area, which doubles as a bedroom, features a pull‑out bed that can be folded away during the day to make room for a working desk or a small studio. A skylight in the ceiling lets in natural light, reducing the need for artificial lighting during daylight hours.
The article quotes Maria Santos, lead architect at Bamboo Build Co., saying, “We wanted to create a place that felt intimate but also connected to the larger ecosystem. The terrace is our way of bridging that gap.” Santos also highlights the use of closed‑cell foam insulation to maintain a comfortable interior temperature, a crucial feature in the humid Amazon climate.
Amazon’s Bigger Picture
Beyond the architectural novelty, the tiny house represents Amazon’s broader push into “green tech.” The article notes that Amazon is testing micro‑grid solutions in remote areas to provide clean energy to communities that currently rely on diesel generators. By building the Rainforest Terrace on Amazon’s own land, the company has a test bed for the technology and an example to showcase to investors and partners.
The Travel + Leisure piece also references Amazon’s 2023 press release, linked directly from the article, where the company announced its “Green Future” initiative. In that release, Amazon stated that they intend to plant 30 million trees by 2030—a goal that the tiny home’s design directly supports by using sustainably sourced timber and by serving as a living demonstration of forest conservation.
Where to Find It
The article includes a link to the official Amazon sustainability page, which provides details on how to book a stay at the Rainforest Terrace for a limited‑time “Eco‑Retreat” program. According to the booking page, the experience includes guided tours of the surrounding rainforest, workshops on sustainable living, and a zero‑waste dinner prepared from local produce.
For those intrigued by the architecture itself, a link to Bamboo Build Co.’s portfolio offers a deeper dive into their other projects, many of which share the same ethos of low‑impact, high‑performance design. Additionally, the Travel + Leisure feature links to a behind‑the‑scenes video that follows the construction team from the first excavation to the final finishing touches, providing a valuable look at how the tiny home was built in an environment that is both fragile and majestic.
Bottom Line
Amazon’s two‑story tiny home with a terrace is more than a novelty; it is a statement about how technology companies can lead the way in sustainable design. The Travel + Leisure article paints a vivid picture of a structure that respects its environment, utilizes cutting‑edge green technologies, and offers an intimate, immersive experience of the Amazon. By turning a small footprint into a statement of ecological responsibility, Amazon demonstrates that even the biggest corporations can adopt “tiny” principles to leave a lighter, yet more meaningful, mark on the world.
Read the Full Travel + Leisure Article at:
[ https://www.travelandleisure.com/amazon-tiny-home-2-story-terrace-decemeber-2025-11872527 ]