Glamping is a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsglamorous" and "

camping Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more na ...

", and describes a style of camping with amenities and, in some cases, resort-style services not usually associated with "traditional" camping. Glamping has become particularly popular with 21st-century tourists seeking modern amenities, such as

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio wav ...

, alongside "the

escapism Escapism is mental diversion from unpleasant or boring aspects of daily life, typically through activities involving imagination or entertainment. Escapism may be used to occupy one's self away from persistent feelings of depression or gener ...

and adventure recreation of camping", in a variety of accommodations such as cabins, treehouses, and tents.

History

The word "glamping" first appeared in the United Kingdom in 2005 and was added to the ''

Oxford English Dictionary The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...

'' in 2016. The word is new, but the concept that "glamping" connotes, that of luxurious tent-living (or living in other camping accommodations), is not. In the 16th century, the Scottish

Earl of Atholl The Mormaer or Earl of Atholl was the title of the holder of a medieval comital lordship straddling the highland province of Atholl (''Ath Fodhla''), now in northern Perthshire. Atholl is a special Mormaerdom, because a King of Atholl is repor ...

prepared a lavish experience in the Highlands for the visiting

King James V James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV and Margaret Tudor, and dur ...

and his mother. Here, the Duke pitched lavish tents and filled them with all the provisions of his own home palace. Probably the most extravagant example of palatial tent-living in history was the

Field of the Cloth of Gold The Field of the Cloth of Gold (french: Camp du Drap d'Or, ) was a summit meeting between King Henry VIII of England and King Francis I of France from 7 to 24 June 1520. Held at Balinghem, between Ardres in France and Guînes in the English ...

, a diplomatic summit in 1520 between

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

and

Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...

in northern France. Some 2,800 tents and marquees were erected, and fountains ran with red wine. The Field of the Cloth of Gold

At around the same time, the Ottomans had ostentatious, palatial tents transported from one military mission to the next. Entire teams of artisans travelled with the army to erect and maintain these imperial tents. As described by Professor

Nurhan Atasoy Nurhan Atasoy (born February 12, 1934) is a Turkish art historian. She specializes in history of Ottoman and Islamic art. She served as a Chair in the Department of Fine Arts, Archeology and Art History at Istanbul University until 1999 when she ...

Recent trends

Some 400 years later, in the 1920s, an African safari became "the thing to do" among wealthy Americans and British. But wealthy travelers, even those in search of adventure, were not willing to sacrifice comfort or luxury. From electric generators, to folding baths, and cases of champagne, travelers were afforded every domestic luxury while on adventure. Others have suggested that recent interest in glamping can be traced back to the 1990s, as safari camps became increasingly popular in Africa and coastal Thailand. In 2011, CNN reported that glamping had also become popular in the United States, Europe, and Australia. The modern version of glamping offers holidaymakers with "spacious designer-outfitted tents complete with soft sheets instead of sweaty sleeping bags". By minimizing the impact on the environment of constantly unpacking tents and poorly discarding waste, glamping is also arguably environmentally friendly. Since 2020, the tourism industry has seen renewed interest in glamping, due to the global outbreak of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, because it allows for

social distancing In public health, social distancing, also called physical distancing, (NB. Regula Venske is president of the PEN Centre Germany.) is a set of non-pharmaceutical interventions or measures intended to prevent the spread of a contagious dis ...

and provides opportunities for

outdoor recreation Outdoor recreation or outdoor activity refers to recreation done outside, most commonly in natural settings. The activities that encompass outdoor recreation vary depending on the physical environment they are being carried out in. These activitie ...

. File:ZC15 Grasnapolsky 1.JPG, Glamping at the music festival

Zwarte Cross The Zwarte Cross Festival is the largest paid festival in the Netherlands, and the largest motor event in the world. The 19th edition in 2015 had 197,450 visitors and the 20th edition in 2016 numbered 220,000 visitors. The festival is a combinatio ...

in the Netherlands File:Glamping hut.jpg, A glamping hut at Norwich, United Kingdom

References

External links

* {{Adventure travel 2010s fads and trends Camping Types of tourism

History

Recent trends

See also

References

External links