Get your glamping gear and head for the great outdoors

Pitch perfect

With holiday plans in disarray this summer, glamping offers fresh air with a touch of luxe. Jessica Doyle on how to go (a little bit) wild

The term ‘glamping’ entered the Oxford English Dictionary four years ago and is defined as ‘a form of camping involving accommodation and facilities more luxurious than those associated with traditional camping’. It had existed as a concept for some time before that, and in the years since it has grown as a trend, as those who might have balked at the idea of putting up a tent and using a communal shower realised that you can have the romantic experience of sleeping beneath the stars, while still enjoying creature comforts. This summer in particular, with overseas travel not an option for many, it is set to be the staycation of choice.

According to James Warner Smith of the website and guide

Cool Camping (coolcamping. com), bookings are already up 87 per cent on last year. ‘People are not seeing camping as a quick weekend getaway,’ he says. ‘They’re booking longer stays, and spending more.’ And the longer people stay, the more effort they make: for the interior-decorating enthusiast, glamping offers a styling opportunity that a hotel can’t offer.

‘There’s no need to think of camping as a lightweight, minimalist activity,’ says Warner Smith, who reports not only an increasing number of people buying canvas bell tents, but they’re also decorating them on-site with bunting and fairy lights, filling them with soft furnishings, and even bringing their own wood-burning stoves.

But for the ultimate in luxury camping, forget bringing your own stuff and hire a readyassembled bell tent or yurt, or perhaps a shepherd’s hut, converted van or treehouse (the one at Melin Mabes in Pembrokeshire even has a slide to take you down to ground level). And whereas ‘luxury camping’ used to mean bringing a duvet instead of a sleeping bag, these days you can expect all the comforts of a five-star hotel (and in some cases, at a similar price) – proper furniture and lighting, en-suite bathrooms, log burners and private hot tubs.

The idea is that you can experience the beauty of camping –

sleeping under canvas, waking up to uninterrupted views of rolling fields, and evenings spent toasting marshmallows beneath the stars – without having to spent a restless night on a lumpy airbed or trudge over to the bathrooms in the middle of the night.

It might not be what a purist would call camping, but for the reluctant camper, it’s one way to get away from it all and immerse yourself in nature, without going too wild.

Bring your interior-design skills into play by decorating your tent

Canvas bell tents have a vintage charm, while some sites run to five-star luxury