Ditch the smelly sleeping bag and go 'glamping'
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NEW YORK (AP) -- Did a bad experience turn you off camping? Maybe your tent leaked in a rainstorm or you shivered all night in a borrowed, smelly sleeping bag. Or that thin foam pad you were trying to sleep on didn't do much to protect your back from the rocky, uneven ground beneath your tent.
It doesn't have to be that way. Tour companies and resorts now offer luxury camping, and the term "glamping" -- shorthand for glamorous camping -- is starting to turn up in reports from the United Kingdom and Canada. The New York Post recently mentioned "glamping" in an article on a new Web site for luxury travel, http://www.globorati.comexternal link. (The story also referred to "jetrosexuals" as a globetrotting jetsetter who thinks nothing of hopping on a plane to Asia for a shopping spree.)
In British Columbia, Canada, the Clayoquot Wilderness Resort, a 30-minute boat ride from the town of Tofino, is offering "glamping" on a fjord on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Tents have Persian carpets, down duvets and even electricity. There's a sauna and hot tubs on site, and activities including fishing, horseback riding, kayaking, hikes and wildlife-watching.
But if you thought camping was a budget vacation option, you'll have to readjust your expectations for glamping. Three-night packages at the Clayoquot resort begin at $4,100 a person, double occupancy. Details at 888-333-5405 or http://www.wildretreat.comexternal link.
Other tour companies offer luxury tent accommodations as well. Abercrombie & Kent has several trips to Africa that include high-end camping, such as guided tours of Botswana that include game drives and accommodations in "walk-in tents with extra length beds, crisp sheets and warm blankets," plus a "mess tent" for what's described as "bush-style haute cuisine" served on china and linen tablecloths. Details at http://www.abercrombiekent.comexternal link or 800-554-7016.
Closer to home and a bit less upscale, but still a world away from the do-it-yourself leaky tent, Maine Family Adventures offers a deluxe guided camping trip to Acadia National Park; http://www.mainefamilyadventures.com...p.htmlexternal link. Meals prepared by the guides, camping equipment and activities are all included in the cost of about $1,000 a person.
Re: Ditch the smelly sleeping bag and go 'glamping'
Quote:
Originally Posted by Summit42
Tents have Persian carpets, down duvets and even electricity. There's a sauna and hot tubs on site, and activities including fishing, horseback riding, kayaking, hikes and wildlife-watching.
"walk-in tents with extra length beds, crisp sheets and warm blankets," plus a "mess tent" for what's described as "bush-style haute cuisine" served on china and linen tablecloths.
oh, hell yeah !
