ON A DIFFERENT KIND OF CAMPING

GETTING OUT MORE

Here's a new word I learned today, "Glamping".  This LA Times piece this weekend explains:

"The number of visits to U.S. national parks is declining, but "glamping" -- glamorous camping -- is on the rise in North America after gaining popularity among wealthy travelers in Africa and England, where luxury tents come with Persian rugs and electricity to power blow dryers."

Not to mention butlers.

Demand for this sort of thing seems to be growing, as the article goes on to explain:

"Resorts like Paws Up that expand on the dude ranch concept are reporting increased bookings, another signal that luxury travel remains one of the strongest and fastest-growing segments of the tourism industry."

So much for global financial turmoil, precipitated by sub-prime meltdowns and "hedgie wedgies" (from a naming exercise by CNBC explained here).

The LA Times article has a lot more examples of the kind of trips one can take while "glamping", at different price points.

I've never been much of a camping sort, but something like this may get me trying the great outdoors...as long as it comes with wireless broadband, of course.