A spot of glamping; anyone? @ Rotunda Roundhouses – Unique Garden Rooms & Yurt Style Eco-Buildings

A spot of glamping; anyone?

round garden lodges glampingglamping

noun

British informal noun: glamping

  1. a form of camping involving accommodation and facilities more luxurious than those associated with traditional camping.

    “glamping is likely to satisfy any city slicker seeking a little refuge in nature—without foregoing any of life’s luxuries”

If you go down to the woods today, you’re sure of…..  another glamping site!!

The trend for UK glamping first showed up at Glastonbury in 2005 with the moneyed and the stars wanting to enjoy the festival weekend but not have to wade around in the mud and spend the night in a damp flappy tent. It’s not hard to see how images of the boggy fields of Glastonbury may have put many people off a camping and since the term “glamping” (glamorous camping) was coined, the trend has been surging in popularity.

The Glastonbury festival’s 5* Glamping “Camp Kerala” described by Vogue magazine as “unquestionably one of the most glamorous places to be in the UK”  has been growing in popularity over the past few years,  albeit only among those who can afford the £8,000 price for a weekend in a shikar tent, originally designed for use by the maharajah of Jodhpur and filled with Rajasthani furnishings and duck-down duvets. Gosh!

By 2011 there were over 150 Glamping sites scattered over the country and the trend is set to continue.

As much as we might gasp at prices of the infamous Camp Kerla, glamping makes a lot of sense.  Being outdoors is good for us, environmental psychologists have been writing papers for years on the life affirming benefits being out in forests.  Most city dwellers like to escape the densley packed smoggy urban environment to experience a weekend out and unplug from the fast paced reality of ‘normality’.

The problem that glamping is so clearly solving is that until recently there have only been two options – camping or b&b accommodation. The middle ground has now arrived!  The creativity shown by both the glamping sites and the manufacturers of glamping pods and self-contained accommodation units is just wonderful, the dizzying options of huts or tents to inhabit are just staggering; to name but a few are:

Tipis, Bell Tents, Yurts, Shepherds huts, camping pods, wigwams, safari tents, gypsy caravans, treehouses, up-cycled buses and train carriages, igloos.. (got you there!) no, not igloos (but I wouldn’t be surprised if an ice-hotel did open up in this country).

glamping pods wooden

Here’s a short description of some of those:

  • Yurts are portable Mongolian dwellings made from a circular wooden frame covered with felt, with the frame including wall sections and door. Yurts normally have large living areas, usually include indoor heating and often have indoor cooking facilities too.
  • Tipis are Native American conical tents, and like yurts usually come furnished and fully equipped – check individual listings for details.
  • Wigwams are also Native American, but domed in structure, and can be wooden or canvas. Like yurts and tipis, they can sleep from two to six or eight people.
  • Camping pods are curved wooden structures with double glazing and wool insulation. Most sleep two adults or two adults and two children, with family pods also available on some sites.
  • Lodges are often the height of camping luxury and a good option if you’re camping in a group. Lodge parks can include camping pods but can also cover camping cabins, camping huts and shacks:  
  • Shepherd’s huts are similar to camping pods, with many restored from original shepherdy dwellings and some are insulated.
  • Gypsy caravans have soared in popularity in the past couple of years, with old wagons fully restored for old-style glamping.

… Now, this is amazing, but really, what if your family doesn’t do well at being squeezed into a bell tent or a wigwam? Quirky is good but a safari tent is still a tent.  Does this mean the outdoor holiday must still be restricted to the summer months?

glamping unusual uk building

There’s one really fabulous building which isn’t yet on that list (have you guessed what it is?!) and of course, that’s the…. Rotunda!

We’re been speaking with rural hoteliers and glamping sites all over the UK about the benefits of having a temporary eco-building in the round which would not only provide an unforgettable experience for all who enjoy it, but is flexible enough to add additional units on and expand bedroom space if larger groups made up a large part of their clientele. Log Burning Stoves, hot-tubs, underfloor heating, mosaic tiled bathrooms and beautifully designed compact kitchen units can all be incorporated as part of the package.

Lease agreements are available to trial the unit prior to purchasing them outright and they’d bring a steady of revenue to the outdoor retreat centre or glamping site over the winter months; which is when most sites experience a shortfall of visitors. Win win!

Each and every one of us at Rotunda Living C.I.C. are looking forward to a winter escape with our families in a luxury Rotunda (it’s a regular day dream of mine!) and judging by fantastic conversations we’ve had with dozens of glamping sites requesting further information (on how they can be the first to provide the most innovative luxury lodge available to their guests!); the dream is quickly becoming a hard and fast reality! Smashing! We’ll stock up on some firewood then…

Until then…. enjoy your weekend!

Blogpost written by Gemma