Sleeping in the Trees at Glacier Under Canvas

“Mom, can I sleep in the treehouse tonight?”

Remember building a treehouse in the backyard with your dad? Did you dream of spending the night up in the tree watching stars twinkle through the leafy canopy? Whether your parent’s said yes or no to that request, the dream can come true again at Glacier Under Canvas.

Located in West Glacier, Montana, about an eight-minute car ride from spectacular Glacier National Park, Glacier Under Canvas offers an assortment of glamping choices, including treehouse accommodations. It’s an especially good choice for those flying into the area who would like to experience camping but can’t bring outdoor gear with them on the plane.

But this treehouse is not like the one in the backyard of the family home. It’s more like a luxurious tent in the trees with lots of comfy touches. You did grow up with housekeeping service, right?

A wide, wooden staircase provides easy (and safe) access into the trees where a wooden platform with canvas walls and roof is home to your Glacier National Park adventures. From the king size bed, you’ll watch those stars playing peak-a-boo through the leafy canopy. And, when nature calls, there’s no walking down a perilous ladder in the dark of the night, because a toilet is located behind a canvas door flap in the treehouse.

Is spending the night in a treehouse dark and cold? That might have been the case in your childhood backyard but at Glacier Under Canvas, the treehouse has a woodstove for warmth and lanterns for light. And rather than the “no girl’s allowed” sign, your motto is “no bears allowed,” so leave the food in the car.

Wake up to the smell of coffee brewing in the concierge tent, there’s tea as well. After a shower in one of the bathhouse’s private bathrooms—hot running water, flushing toilets and spa products included—you’ll be saying, “Now this is camping as it should be.”

Although meal service isn’t available at Glacier Under Canvas, a hot breakfast is just a couple of miles away. But before leaving camp, don’t forget to pick up the devices that the concierge staff charged up for you overnight.

After breakfast, get ready for the day of adventure that the concierge team arranged just for you. Perhaps you’ll spend the morning hiking one of 700 trails in Glacier National Park or driving Going to the Sun Road up to Logan Pass and beyond. Or maybe you’d rather go horseback riding or whitewater rafting. And then there’s biking and even golf.

When the day ends, share adventures around the communal firepit with guests from around the world. After saying goodnight, return to the treehouse along solar-lit paths. Once you’re under the covers, claim a personal view of the Milky Way before slipping into a restful sleep that only an active day in the outdoors provides.

And this time, you don’t have to ask anyone’s permission to sleep in the trees.

If you go:

Glacier Under Canvas is open from June 19 to September 25

Bedding can be provided for 2 extra people at an additional cost

Pets are allowed at $25 per pet

Donna Hull