Glamping on the Rise: Travel + Leisure Lists 20 Glamping Properties Among 70 Best New Hotels in the World

It’s official: glamping has arrived, landing on the 2014 Travel + Leisure “It List” in no small fashion. With only the “coolest new hotels that are changing the travel landscape” making the list, glamping makes its mark with 20 properties (nearly 30%) that feature glamping as their primary accommodation, nestled among urban trendsetters, scene makers, and Next-Gen business hotels. The best glamping spots easily keep pace with the “hip,” “swank,” and “luxurious” newcomers, bringing with them “experiential travel” to round out a list that prides itself on recognizing the most exciting changes in the travel landscape.

1000-7_000 Mahali Mzuri

From jungle to savanna, and snow-topped mountains to tropical islands, choices are what is cool about glamping. Glamping accommodations that made the T+L list were safari lodges, beach resorts, and “remote outposts.”  It List safari lodge choices range from the traditional, such as Chinzombo in Zambia that offers “stylish austerity and unforgettable wildlife encounters”  to Richard Branson’s Mahali Mzuri in Kenya that T+L refers to as a “futuristic riff on the classic East African lodge,” with tents resembling  “spaceships.”

022_Villa Three At Night_original Chinzombo Camp

Beach resorts on the list span the globe from great escapes in the Caribbean like Eden Roc in Dominican Republic and The Cove Eleuthera Resort and Spa to sublime island resorts like Australia’s Bedarra Island Resort, Hawaii’s modern, renovated Andaz Maui Villas, and the decadent Cheval Blanc Randheli in the Maldives.

Not surprisingly, several “remote outposts” are listed, such as Cresto Ranch and Outlook Lodge, both in Colorado.  What may initially come as a surprise however is a property in the United Arab Emirates, Anantara Sir Bani Yas Island Al Sahel Villa Resort, until you learn that it is set amid “savanna-like grasslands of Sir Bani Yas Island’s famed Arabian Wildlife Park,” a welcome surprise indeed.

Bathhouse_at_duskDunton Hot Springs and Cresto Ranch

What may not come as a surprise are the price tags. To be the best in the world often means the most expensive, and glamping by Travel + Leisure standards can be pretty pricey, with 14 of their glamping choices (70%) costing guests $500 or more a night. Five properties in the more reasonable range of $350-500 were Ion Luxury Adventure Hotel, Selfoss, Iceland, the culturally rich Anantara Xishuangbanna Resort and Spa in China, and It List five time winner Hotel Escondido in Mexico. One bargain made the list Outlook Lodge of Colorado Springs, Colorado, costing less than $200 a night. Regardless of price however, a discerning traveler on the lookout for a new experience will find that it really is no surprise that glamping is on the rise.

Festival Glamping

Now that winter has officially ended, many of us are already ‘springing’ ahead with an eye towards summer.

Over the past several years, festivals have become all the rage with music lovers. Despite their growth in popularity, there’s a growing number of music fans who don’t want to deal with some of the hassles and discomforts associated with these large outdoor gatherings.

A recent Festicket survey found that a large percentage of festival goers were not only willing to travel long distances to events, they wanted to do so in comfort.  While only 8% of people stayed in a luxury hotel when attending festivals in 2013, a whopping 80% are planning to travel in style and stay in a luxury hotel this year.

To cater to this growing market, more and more event organizers are offering “glamping” as an alternative for their more discerning ticket holders.  Here are some examples:

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Wakarusa Music Festival– June 5-8th at Mulburry Mountian in Ozark, Arkansas:

The rapidly growing global trend of glamping has made it’s way to the Ozarks.  This is the classy and elegant way to experience the festival at its fullest.  So whether you’re going General Admission or VIP, specially designated glamping tents will give you the opportunity to rest up in luxuery (and privacy) in-between acts like The Flamping Lips, Michael Franti Spearhead, and String Cheese Incident.

Firefly Music Festival – June 19 – 22 in Dover, Delaware:

For 2014, Firefly camping will provide concert goers with unique and exciting amenities outside the festival gates including a farmer’s market, yoga, food trucks and even more live entertainment.  For $699, you can buy a Glamping Package that includes:

4 nights/5 days camping for up to 2 people

Private air-conditioned tent (12’ x 9.5’)

Minimum 20’ x 45’ site with space for a standard car or SUV

2 cots with pillows and blankets

Preferred check-in location

Power source for personal electronics

Glamping Lounge access

Complimentary shower fast passes

Private restroom facilities

Access to “The Post” for cell phone charging stations, ice sales, and water refills

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Alt Fest – August 15-17, 2014 in Northamptonshire, England:

If you’re into bands like The Cult and Marilyn Manson and want to survive The Alt in style, the organizers have you covered.  Compared to other festivals whose camping rates are based on a per-person charge, Alt Fest offers an inclusive flat rate to keep things simple.  Each of their glamping options comes with a variety of perks, such as memory foam mattresses, solar powered lighting, rugs, scatter cushion, and more.

The legendary US punk band, the Dead Kennedy’s once said, “Give me convenience or give me death.”  Thanks to glamping, attendees don’t have to lug all their camping gear back and forth and there will be no precarious tent-based construction to deal with.  Best of all, when the concert is over, you can simply walk away knowing that the Alt Fest “glamping gophers” will take care of everything.

altfest

The Indianapolis 500  – May 22-26th in Indiana:

Not all large gatherings revolve around music.  Although the Indianapolis Motor Speedway has been used for a lot of things in its long and storied history, storied history, but never for anything quite like this.

For the first time, Indy 500 fans will be able to go glamping during race weekend.  The Speedway is offering packages ranging from $650 to $1,100 that include an assortment of luxuries, such as a tent with tarp floor and windows, queen-sized beds, a private shower area, electronic hookups and access to a glamping lounge.

All packages include four nights and five days.  Tickets for Coors Light Carb Day on May 23, Legends Day on May 24, and the race on May 25 are required and must be purchased separately. 

Glamping Ahoy! – UK Shipbuilders Bring Glamping Pods Ashore

Landlubbers need not fear the tumultuous seas to enjoy a night aboard a ship now that English boat builder John Knight has employed his craftsmen to build glamping pods. A recent downturn in traditional boatbuilding got Knight, who directs a campground Waveney River Centre near Lowestoft, United Kingdom, thinking of a new way to use his boatbuilding skills.

pod interior

Great care is taken in the crafting of his cabins, using authentic boatbuilding materials like sustainable larch and pine right down to the wool insulation, which ensures a warm and pleasant slumber. The boat shaped cabins are so popular that Knight plans to add more of these ship-shape pods to create a cluster at the River Centre.

lodge deck

He notes that unlike other pods that don’t take advantage of a boat’s true design, his glamping pods make “the most of the available space, raising the level of the double bed and creating storage space.” The 14ft x 10ft pods are furnished with a full size double bed above two single beds (4″ mattresses linens not included), FreeView TV, LED lights, a double socket and loads of storage space, certainly providing a level of comfort that Ernest Shackleton would approve of.

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As well as marketing the pods to other resorts, he believes the public at large will be interested in buying the “boat houses” for other purposes such as garden studios, unique sheds or guest accommodation, and so is offering them for sale online at myescapepod.co.uk for £11,500 including VAT (value added tax). It’s believed that should the demand for traditional boatbuilding continue to wane, crafting these glamping pods will help preserve the art.

lodge interior

Tourists can find these pods at Waveney River Center at Burgh St Peter, near Beccles, just over 100 miles northeast of London, near the city of Lowestoft on the North Sea, which is the most easterly point in the United Kingdom.

lodge

If the glamping pods are booked, guests can choose to stay in one of their luxury lodges. The marina has a fleet of boats from which to choose to rent, and the Knights are expanding their on-site pub and adding a new menu with locally-sourced food.