Pictured above: Ofland Escalante
If you’re looking for the Goldilocks camping experience, one that says “yes” to fire-cooked meals, stargazing and spending time outdoors, and “no” to sleeping on the ground and long walks to a shared bathroom of questionable cleanliness, you might be a glamper.
A portmanteau of glamourous and camping, glamping is all about adding an element of luxury to your outdoor adventure, swapping nylon tents for fortified yurts in the forest and buggy latrines for revamped trailers in the wine country. If glamping sounds expensive, that’s because it can be, but as the accommodation style has become more popular in recent years, a wider range of budget-friendly glamping sites have popped up across the United States. Below are some of the best, affordable glamping stays for those of us who want to live a glamping lifestyle with something closer to a camping price tag.
The idea behind Getaway, a cabin rental service you can use to reserve a tiny, modern cabin in a forested area outside of 24 major cities, is to disconnect and really spend time in nature. And the company hopes you do unplug — there’s no WiFi, typically spotty cell service, and each abode is equipped with a phone lockbox to encourage you to take a breather from your devices. Every cabin ranges from 140 to 200 square feet and is outfitted with a queen-sized bed under a picture window, a two-burner stove, a mini-fridge, cookware, a bathroom, a mini library and an outdoor fire pit. Getaway currently owns 30 outposts in places like Wild Rose, Wis. (135 miles outside of Milwaukee), LaRue, Texas (87 miles to Dallas), and Running Springs, Calif. (80 miles from Los Angeles).
Prices start at $127
Located on 20 acres in Southern Utah’s Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Ofland Escalante (formerly Yonder Escalante) rents out renovated airstream trailers and cabins, all decked out with West Elm furniture, a queen bed, a day bed, a kitchenette and private patio. They make a great basecamp for exploring the surrounding five National Parks, four State Parks, two National Monuments, a National Forest, and more. After a day in nature, you can lounge around the pool, take a dip in the hot tub, grab a meal from the food truck or cook your own dinner over an open fire. To wind down, hop in a vintage automobile to watch a movie at the onsite drive-in movie theater, where there’s a concession with popcorn and theater candy.
Prices start at $159
Originally built in the 1930s, Camptown has 26 log cabins in the foothills of the Catskills Mountains, no two of which are alike. Each has one or two bedrooms, a kitchenette or wood-burning stove, a shower or bathtub, and a porch or picnic table. There are also 20 “Queen” guest rooms in a reimagined motor lodge, which are slightly more uniform but no less fun (think built-in beds, a curated book selection and preppy decor). All of the accommodations are decorated with pieces from local artists and woodworkers in Leeds, N.Y. This glamping property sits on 22 wooded acres, where you can spend the day hiking or skiing. If you’re more adventure-light, the property has a swimming pool, sauna, grilling area and firepit at your disposal. Casa Susanna, the property’s Mexican restaurant, serves a seasonal menu focused on fresh produce. They prepare their tortillas in-house daily, and their drink menu lists natural wines alongside cocktails that utilize house-made tinctures and garnishes harvested from the onsite greenhouse.
Prices start at $189
This is lake life, glamping-style. Located right on the shores of Silver Lake, within driving distance to Letchworth State Park, the Finger Lakes and Niagara Falls, Silverlake Glamping Resort has a slew of unique overnight options. There are safari-style canvas tents with private Jacuzzi tubs, smaller tents set up on overwater wooden platforms, tiny houses and timber frame cabins, retro campers and a houseboat. The property also has a sauna, stand up paddleboards and kayaks, fire pits and a camp kitchen.
Prices start at $90
Five cheerfully-painted vintage trailers, all from the late ’50s and early’ 60s, sit on the edge of a pond at the 130-acre Alta Colina Vineyard in Paso Robles, Calif. Each abode can sleep up to two adults and includes a double bed with luxury linens, a small seating area, a refrigerator and a coffee maker. Fully plumbed bathrooms with outdoor showers are a short walk away, and there’s a communal cooking area with a barbecue grill, cooktop, cookware and a table large enough to seat 12. The kitchen is right above the dock, which is a great place to enjoy a glass of the vineyard’s Rhone varietal wines.
Prices start at $225
In the Hill Country just outside of Austin, Texas, Lucky Arrow Retreat brings heating and air conditioning to outdoor living in this very hot — and sometimes very cold — southern state. Glamping options here include safari tents, yurts, cabins and porch houses, which are similar to a tiny house. Each has a keyed entrance and includes WiFi and a coffee machine. The yurts are the only ones that don’t have a private bathroom, instead utilizing a communal shower house nearby. Many of the cabins and porch houses have a private hot tub, while the safari tents have clawfoot tubs and a record player. Regardless of where you stay, you’ll have access to the beer garden, heated pool and an ax-throwing area. Bell Springs Winery is stumbling distance away, and there’s a private access trail to get there.
Prices start at $219
Surrounded by 500 acres of the Catskills Forest Preserve, Boheme Retreats is redefining what it means to stay in an RV park. Located in Livingston Manor, N.Y., the retro escape provides six distinct, fully renovated pull-behind campers, with models ranging from a 1963 Shasta to a 1978 Dutchcraft. While you’ll be close to nature, you won’t be roughing it — each trailer sleeps between two and four people and comes with a private bathroom and shower, a kitchenette and an outdoor seating area with an umbrella and a firepit.
Prices start at $250
Known for its safari-style tented camps near national parks, Under Canvas currently operates 11 glamping outposts, mainly across the American West. Currently, they’re in Acadia, Bryce Canyon, Glacier, Grand Canyon, Great Smoky Mountains, Lake Powell-Grand Staircase, Moab, Mount Rushmore, North Yellowstone, West Yellowstone and Zion, and they have plans to open in Yosemite in 2025. Each tent has a king-sized bed, West Elm furniture, bedside lanterns and USB charging packs, along with an en suite bathroom with a sink, a hot shower and a flushing toilet. On the campsite, there’s a dining area and bar, fire pits with complimentary s’mores, free activities like sunrise yoga and live music, and Experience Coordinators to plan adventures in the nearby parks. It’s also a solid destination for astronomy lovers: all five of its camps across Utah and Arizona recently became the first resorts to earn a DarkSky Lodging certification from DarkSky International, an organization dedicated to preserving the night sky.
Prices start at $199
Sitting on the banks of the Colorado River and surrounded by the famed sandstone peaks of the southwest, Red Cliffs Lodge in Moab, Utah, is where city slickers go to get in touch with their cowboy side. The property has both modern cabins and suites, each with frontier-inspired decor (think Mexican saltillo tiles and an Earth-colored palette), a separate dining area and kitchenette, air-conditioning and heat, and coffee machines. The Lodge is also home to the Moab Museum of Film & Western Heritage and offers a range of activities, including Sunday art sessions, pickleball and tennis, horseback riding, and a Ford Bronco “Off-Roadeo” experience.
Prices start at $187
In the 1930s, the Airstream was invented, allowing people to spend time outdoors without compromising comfort. AutoCamp took that idea and upped the cool factor. Each of its eight outposts, in places like Asheville, N.C.; Zion, Utah and Joshua Tree, Calif., have a clutch of elevated Airstreams. We’re talking stainless steel motorhomes with queen or king-sized beds topped with high-thread count linens, bathrooms with walk-in rain showers, kitchenettes with all the essentials, and a private patio. Some locations also have cabins and luxury safari-style tents. But beyond the accommodations, AutoCamp is known for crafting some stellar (and often complimentary) programming for guests, ranging from wine tastings under the redwoods in the Russian River to candle-making classes in Cape Cod.
Prices start at $200
Found at Goose Rock Beach in Kennebunkport, Maine, Sandy Pines Camping has a truly wild range of overnighting options. Sure, you can bring your own tent or park your RV in one of their campsites, but chances are your camping game isn’t as strong as Sandy Pines. For glamping, the brand outfits safari tents, camp cottages, airstreams, vintage trailers and A-frame huts, each with a different theme, like fishing or sailing. Perhaps the most unique options, however, are the covered wagons, outfitted with a king-sized bed, indoor and outdoor seating areas, twinkle lights, and a fire pit.
Prices start at $100 (for glamping options, not personal tents or RV sites)
Billed as a modern-day nomadic campground, El Cosmico, in the desert of Marfa, Texas, has a manifesto that talks at length about the pleasure of doing nothing. You can book an array of art-forward trailers, Sioux-style tepees, safari tents, yurts or the Cosmic Kasita, a micro-home with a mirrored exterior. It’s pretty off-grid—there’s WiFi in the lobby, though don’t expect cell coverage. But that just allows for more time in the Hammock Grove and the wood-fired Dutch hot tubs, right?
Prices start at $85
