Glamping – When You’re Not Quite Ready to Make the Rustic Leap

Welcome to this month’s Blogorail Black Loop. Today we are sharing some ways for your family to participate in the Great American Campout.

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In honor of the Great American Campout on June 25, I had to write something about camping. I used to love to go camping in my early adult years. I was even a counselor at a camp one summer. For personal trips, we camped in a tent with our sleeping bags on a tarp, no cots or air mattresses. We cooked over an open fire. That made the food taste so good, and heated our water for washing dishes over the same fire. It was so great to be able to connect with nature. Plus, back then, it was about the only way I could afford to travel!

Now that I’m older, sleeping on the ground or even a cot or air mattress no longer holds much appeal, but I do still love being in nature and the taste of food cooked over a campfire. That’s where glamping comes in!

(C) Image courtesy of Warwick Castle

I had first heard of glamping when traveling in England. I was walking the grounds of Warwick Castle and there were signs for glamping on the castle grounds. Curious, I couldn’t help but check out a couple of the tents when we walked by them. I so wished we had more time there. I wanted to stay in one! Inside the tents were beds, real beds, and some small tables all set on a wooden floor. The tents had electricity and WiFi. There were no individual bathrooms (it is a tent after all), but there were public facilities that included hot showers (another luxury I missed when camping rustically).

A cabin at Friendly Pines camp near Prescott, Arizona

Since then, I’ve discovered that there are locations to go glamping all over the U.S. Using websites like glamping.com and glampinghub.com, you’re sure to find a location near you or in a destination you’d like to visit. One of the ones that has me most intrigued me when I was looking for one in my area is a yurt in the Coconino National Forest. A yurt is a round tent used by nomads in Central Asia and there’s one right here in Arizona! Plus, it’s not far from attractions like Arizona Wine Country and Tombstone. I think I see a long weekend in trip in our future.

Sometimes summer campgrounds offer family camping as well that could somewhat be characterized as glamping. For example, my son’s summer camp, Friendly Pines in Prescott, Arizona, offers a family weekend in September where families are given a cabin with cots and a full bathroom to stay in. Meals are cooked in a central kitchen and throughout the day, the family can enjoy the camp’s activities such as horseback riding, ziplining, swimming, hiking, and arts & crafts.

One of The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort

Since Disney is partnering with the National Wildlife Federation on the Great American Campout, I should mention some glamping options on Walt Disney World property. First are The Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort. These cabins are nestled in the middle of pine trees offering a typical camping view. There’s also a deck to enjoy the outdoors and a grill. They have a bedroom that has a full bed and a set of bunk beds and the living room has a Murphy bed or sleeper sofa. There is also a bathroom and a kitchen. They are very small, but you’re supposed to be outside enjoying nature anyway!

The other amazing glamping experience at Walt Disney World Resort is the Treehouse Villas at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa. They are actually my favorite place to stay at Walt Disney World. These round villas are perched high in the pine trees. They have three bedrooms – a master with a king, one with a queen, and a small one with bunk beds. They have a complete kitchen, living room, dining room, and two bathrooms as well. My favorite thing to do is just hangout on the huge deck. Be sure to ask for one away from the golf course, though, otherwise your peace may be disrupted by an errant shot. Being surrounded by the pine forest, though, with birds and squirrels is a great way to get away from the parks and turn a busy vacation into a relaxing one.

In other words, even for those not quite to do something as rustic as regular camping, there are options. Take advantage of them and be part of the National Wildlife Federation’s Great American Campout this year.

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For more ways to participate in the Great American Campout,
check out the other great posts from the Blogorail!

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Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail Black | Great American Campout Loop:

• 1st Stop – Love Our Crazy Life | Camping Activities For Kids
• 2nd Stop – Rolling with the Magic | Disney & the Great American Campout
• 3rd Stop – Magical Memories with the Mouse | Glamping – When You’re Not Quite Ready to Make the Rustic Leap