Updated 7-20-23
Recently, House Beautiful online published 85 Landscaping Ideas to “Create an Enchanting Outdoor Space,” suggesting “you may never want to go indoors again.”
At Deck and Patio we were delighted to see similar examples of our own designs listed as noteworthy. One in particular caught our eye — create a glamping (or camping) retreat.
Decks are ideal for this as they offer a key ingredient — a flat sturdy surface to put up your tent and house any other amenities that will make camping or glamping only a step outside your own door.
We don’t mind boasting that the decks and platforms suitable for such delightful experiences happen to be one of our specialties.
Note: To add to the camping experience, it’s wonderful if you have a wilderness area near your deck. But it’s not necessary. As you’ll see from our tips below, it’s easy to add a natural look to any deck experience.
And if your existing deck isn’t ample enough for all your camping plans, it probably can be expanded or redone.
The Joys of Camping
For the uninitiated, when you go camping, not only do you fall asleep to the sound of crickets, and wake to a symphony of birds, but, camping on your own deck means you don’t have to travel anywhere to do it.
Deck Railing Planter
This can be a terrific experience even if you don’t have natural wilderness areas on your property to drink in during the evening outside. It’s easy to naturalize your deck with a few containers of plants.
The deck camp begins with a tent, of course. And if you’re worried that you don’t know how to put it up, there are a lot of tent set up videos on Youtube.
Also: plan for some folding chairs. Your night outside won’t be spent only in the tent. String a few lights, get out the citronella candles, and you’re pretty much ready to go.
Lastly, just collect enough sleeping bags (or sheets and blankets, see ‘glamping’ below), an easy-to-put-up crib for any younger children and your kids’ favorite blankets and sleep items.
You don’t have to worry about snacks — your kitchen is just steps away.
Want to Glamp It Up?
Tips for turning the relatively rustic style of camping into the glorious comfort of “glamping” takes a bit more work than pitching a tent if you want to do this at home. For some creative ideas on what goes into having a luxurious camping experience, we found a lot of ideas at the website of glamping holiday resorts.
For example, our feature photo at the top of our blog is from Daylesford Holiday Park (Victoria Australia). And their website offers some great comfort amenities to get you thinking about what you could include in and around your tent.
Hudson Valley Luxury Camping
Closer to home, the Collective Hudson Valley has some very sophisticated ideas for true glamping.
Their retreat at Liberty Farms is inspiring. Their setups may be a bit of work if you plan to only camp out for a night or two. But if you want to have your own summer-long glamp-site, their website is not to be missed for ideas.
However, if you want to upgrade a camping experience from just plain sleeping bags to something a bit more refined, Pinterest has a wealth of ideas for easy glamping. Here’s just one helpful post we foundt:
“Setting Up Camp
..With so many options available, finding a pop-up weatherproof tent has never been easier. Choose one that best meets your needs in terms of size and portability. This one from Ikea works well because it has a solid structure, movable drapes and is large enough to fit two cots.”
Here’s to summer on your deck!
