Glamping Luxuries – Hot Tubs and Open Air Showers
What really sets camping from glamping apart are the luxury amenities you get. Depending on your budget and the site you visit, this could include a wood fired hot tub, a sauna, or even a treetop shower. Some high end venues offer private flushing toilets for their guests, while others have shared facilities which are still of the high quality you would expect – think hot running water, flushing loos and rainforest style shower heads.
Having a hot tub is a luxury experience and one which many people reserve as a treat for holidays, unless they’re wealthy enough to have one at home. Many glamping sites offer wood fired hot tubs which give you the fun of lighting and maintaining a fire with an indulgence of a hot tub. There’s nothing quite like being out in the middle of nature, sitting in a comfortably warm hot tub with a glass of something cold in your hand. On a safety note, it’s better to use plastic glassware in hot tubs, in case of breakages and injury.
One high end glamping experience, the Woodsman’s tree house at Crafty Camping in Dorset, has a hot tub on the roof! Situated high up in the tree canopy this hot tub with bubble jets also has a small sauna nearby, so you can pamper yourself at the same level as the squirrels! This isn’t a wood fired one, for obvious safety reasons, but there is nothing quite like that experience – not many people can say they’ve had a treetop jacuzzi!
The same site has a communal wood fired sauna, excellent for large groups to get away from it all and enjoy a relaxing, immersive experience in quiet woodlands. The showers are open air with hot running water, so even if you’re glamping in the depths of winter you can still enjoy an outdoor shower under a tree or even within the trees, if you’re glamping in the tree house. There’s something about showering in nature that awakens the caveman instinct in us and it’s a very liberating experience, compared to a shower at home in your bathroom.
Hill Farm Glamping in Warwickshire offers private hot tubs large enough to recline in, while Devon Yurts have rolltop baths in private tipis where you can close the tent for privacy, or throw back the canvas and stay connected to nature. Elmley Nature Reserve on the Isle of Sheppey has cabins and shepherd’s huts with outdoor shower facilities and stunning views for you to drink in while you wash.
Eco Retreats in Powys have secluded yurts, each with their own private bathroom and outdoor roll top baths with hot water provided from the attached wood burner. The Roundhouse at The Yurt Retreat in Devon also has an outdoor bath, as well as a private indoor bathroom and is open all year round for those brave souls who fancy a bit of winter glamping.
Many of the Featherdown Farm franchise sites have hot tubs attached to each accommodation, and their range of cabins and safari tents are fully equipped for a relaxing stay close to nature, but with all the modern amenities you would expect. There are sites all across the country, so if you find that the set up works perfectly for you and your group why not try a different area for your next trip, safe in the knowledge that you know what to expect from the brand.