( CNN ) -- It 's one of the best insomnia cures around . A private platform in the African bush , soft bedding , starlight and nature 's night-time noises . Whether it 's a raised star-bed or a treehouse kitted out for sleeping , each of these six retreats spread across Africa has the elevated experience just right . Kiboko and Koija Star Beds , Loisaba Wilderness , Kenya . These `` star beds '' comprise wooden platforms with thatched roofs , open decks and big beds . They 're rolled out under the night sky when it 's time to sleep , giving guests great views of the thick star clusters , unclouded by light pollution . The mosquito net draping over the four-poster becomes invisible once you 've climbed inside . You can end up at your star bed after a game drive or other wildlife outing , when staff will be lighting the campfire and preparing pre-dinner sundowners . Antelope and zebra may be drinking at the Kiboko waterhole in the valley below . If you stay at one of Loisaba 's two sets of star beds you 'll have an extra reason to sleep comfortably -- they 're part of a responsible tourism project that benefits the local Koija community . Loisaba Wilderness , Laikipia , Kenya ; + 254 62 20 31070 ; from $ 420 per person , per night , including full board , safari activities and transfers , through Cheli and Peacock ( +254 20 600 3090 ) The Stilted Lodge , Mandina Lodges , the Gambia . The ordinary rooms here , set in a mangrove forest , are impressive enough . But the Stilted Lodge adds something extra -- a thatched two-story riverside tower with open sides , including a ( discreet ) open-air bathroom , separate bedroom and lounge room open to the skies . Mandina Lodges , Makasutu , The Gambia ; from $ 2,230 pp for seven nights , half board through The Gambia Experience ( +44 845 330 8708 ) The Tree House , Tongabezi , Zambia . You ca n't quite hear the roar of Victoria Falls from The Tree House but they 're close . The broad Zambezi River looks peaceful from the deck at the top of this three-tier treehouse , but a few bends away that all changes . When it hits the lip of Batoka Gorge , the river hurls itself over at 3,000 cubic meters a second . The spectacle has drawn visitors to the area since 1855 , starting with the explorer David Livingstone . There are multiple ways to experience the falls , from soaring through the spray in a microlight to rafting the rapids or bungee jumping from the Victoria Falls Bridge . This riverside eyrie high up in an ebony tree , with king-size bed and claw-footed bath , provides a place to hide out after all that activity . Tongabezi , Livingstone , Zambia ; +260 213 327450 ; $ 620 pppn , incl . full board and safari activities . Chalkley Treehouse , Lion Sands Game Reserve , South Africa . Lion Sands has three luxury treehouses in wilderness rich in wildlife . The Chalkley Treehouse , a timber deck built around an ancient leadwood tree , is particularly good for photographers . It 's high off the ground and exposed , with superb panoramic views . Lion Sands Game Reserve , Sabi Sands , South Africa ; +27 13 735 5000 ; from $ 250 pppn , incl . picnic dinner . Baines ' Camp , Botswana . Part of a small safari camp on a private concession in the Okavango Delta , the five suites here are built on stilts with decks looking out over wetlands . On dry , warm nights , you can wheel your four-poster bed out to hear the throaty chuckling of hippos and the high-pitched chirrups of frogs . Baines ' Camp , Okavango Delta , Botswana ; +44 20 7190 7728 ; from $ 755 pppn incl . full board , safari activities and transfers , through Sanctuary Retreats . Chole Mjini Lodge , Tanzania . Some Swahili Coast aficionados have been to Zanzibar many times but never heard of its little cousin , the island of Mafia . The name may sound ominous , but Mafia is a perfectly innocent island of sand and shimmering light , around 160 kilometers south of Zanzibar . Of the few people who make it here , most are divers : in the surrounding waters whale sharks and turtles float above some of the best preserved coral reefs in Tanzania . Mafia has an even tinier relative , Chole , an islet just over a kilometer long tucked off its southeastern shore . Hidden among the dense mangroves , baobabs and tangled figs are half a dozen treehouses making up Chole Mjini , a simple off-grid eco-lodge . Stay in Treehouse No.1 , and you may have nesting fish eagles for neighbors . Chole Mjini Lodge , Chole Island , Mafia , Tanzania ; +255 784 520799 ; from $ 220 pppn , full board . Winner of several British travel journalism awards , Emma Gregg has written about Africa for The Independent newspaper , National Geographic Traveler and Travel Africa magazine .
Ca n't sleep ? A night on a `` star bed '' might help . Comment: A Zambian riverside treehouse has a king-size bed and claw-footed bath . One Tanzanian hideaway is tucked among fig trees on a tiny island .