Glamping is short for glamorous camping. Glamping is a way to experience the splendor of the great outdoors without forgoing the creature comforts you can't live without. Whether in a tent, yurt, airstream or treehouse, it's camping on a grand scale.
The idea of roughing it during a camping trip might sound appealing if it weren't for the bugs, wild animals, sudden storms, leaking tents, smelly sleeping bags and questionable food. For a number of people, their first camping experience often becomes their last, but there is now a camping option growing in popularity. Welcome to the world of glamorous camping, otherwise known as glamping. Organized glamping trips feature all of the exposure to the great outdoors as traditional camping trips, but the amenities found at the campsite far exceed anything most campers have ever experienced.
During a typical glamping trip, for example, the tents are often designed with bright designer colors and materials, not the olive drab canvas tents of yesteryear. These tents can be rigged for electrical power, which means occupants can operate appliances, reading lamps and climate controls. Forget about smelly sleeping bags placed on rocky or insect-infested ground, as well. Those who have gone glamping may sleep on full-size air mattresses, or even regular spring mattresses provided by the outfitters.
