Hi all,
I don't know if there is a thread on this because I am not even sure of what to call what I want to do. I want to plan an annivesary trip for my partner. When we were young we used to enjoy camping. Now that we have jobs and can afford to stay in decent hotels, camping has fallen by the wayside. We just can't make ourselves sleep in a sleeping bag in a tent and cook on a campstove, even though we always enjoyed being outside and more alone than is possible in a hotel.

So, what I thought I would do for our 20th is try to find a place that is some sort of combination between camping and staying in a nice hotel/lodge. What I envision (and don't know if such a thing exists) is some sort of cabin, with comfortable beds and linens. Breakfast would be cooked in the cabin but lunch and dinners could be obtained elsewhere. We could hike in the days and be outside, by ourselves, in the evenings.

Any recommendations?

Thanks so much

There are such places - luxury tent camping. I know there is one in Hawaii. Are you interested in going that far?

I know nothing about this, except that it found its way to my email in box a few days ago and popped to my mind when I read your post. I'm sure you'll get many other recommendations, and I do know that some of the out west national parks have beautiful lodges.

www.canoebay.com (Wisconsin)

I googled and got several links. Here's one with a list with many optionns to check out.

http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=533682

One place that comes to mind is the cabins at Fort Wilderness Campground at Disney World. I don't know if being that close to a theme park is what you had in mind, but the campground is really nice with lots to do and the cabins are certainly comfortable.

Another place is on Swan Lake - near Flathead Lake by Glacier Park in Northern Montana. It's been years since I've been there, but I think the place was called Deer Lick or something like that.

http://www.costanoa.com/site.php
On the San Mateo coast

almost exactly what you described.

Not sure what part of the country/BUDGET you would like but here are some ideAs;..

Clayoquat Wilderness Resort
Tofino BC Canada

Yosemite National Park USA
(Other National Parks Too)

White Sulpher Springs Resort and Spa
St Helena CA

Washington, Oregon and California State Parks all offer tent or yurt camping. Some around lodges..

Most State and Nat'l Parks offer plain old camping - not "luxury camping". And even the luxury hotels/lodges w/i the parks aren't really luxury - more historic lodges at luxury prices.

Lots of regular campgrounds have a few cabins available in addition to spaces for tenters and RV owners. Most of them aren't luxurious, but they're totally different from tent camping.

Another possibility is to rent a small RV; then you could stay in any campground (from luxury resort type to wilderness) and have all your stuff with you easily transportable. As a former tent-camper I just love my RV: Real beds! Real kitchen and bathroom!

Maho Bay on St John USVI has luxury camping. You have a choice between canvas wall/wood frame tents with real furniture or something more like a condo unit. The tents are on wood platforms and boardwalks connect everyone. There is a dining pavillion for optional breakfasts and dinners. You're on your own for lunch since most people are on the beach or off hiking and visiting other beaches during the day.

St. Johns is a great place to eco-camp. We stayed there for our honeymoon and it was great. Concordia Eco tents are more remote than Maho bay, but both were very nice.

Yes, be careful of the campground at Yosemite. When we were waiting in line to rent boats to float the Merced, I was eavesdropping on the conversation b/w 2 men in line in front of us. One said the Curry Village tents were horrible. He said he couldn't bear the thought of another night, and ended up renting a super-expensive room at the Ahwahnee Hotel.

You can hike down into the Grand Canyon and stay at Phantom Ranch. There's a mess hall type restaurant down there - nothing fancy, but you're IN the Grand Canyon, and that's amazing.

You can also hike into Havasu to see the beautiful waterfalls and stay in the Supai Lodge, but the lodge is a dump. It does have clean sheets and an attached bathroom - so right there it's better than camping (in my book!)
The waterfalls are incredible.

It does sound like St. John would be great for you.

One of my favorite places of all times was Kailuum near Playa Del Carmen in Mexico. Alas, between the destruction caused by hurricanes as well as development along that coast it no longer exists. But I understand that its little sister Kailuum Cito still does:

http://www.mexicoholiday.com/destina...iluumcito.html

karens: I wouldn't base an opinion on what you overheard waiting in line. Thousands of people stay at Camp Curry every year -- many go back every single year. While the tent cabins definitely are not "luxury" camping, they are just fine.

Maybe those two were just really picky and not used to camping/roughing it.

Check out this bed and breakfast in Keystone, CO. They have a couple cabins on their property. Keystone is in summit county and close to many outdoor activities, great restaurants and shopping.
http://www.westernskies-keystone-cabins.com/

You may also want to look into Estes Park, CO. Estes is at the foot of Rocky Mountain National Park, kind of touristy, but has lots of shops, restaurants and outdoor activities as well.

Janisj---my thoughts exactly; many people book Curry Village because it is the only thing available, and then are disappointed because it is not anything like a hotel or motel. But it's not luxury camping, either very bare bones.

My idea of "luxury camping" was the beach village at Molokai Ranch. We spent a wonderful 5 days there. The tent cabins are spacious, very clean, and well situated, scattered around a lawn with palm trees and views out to the ocean. And the have those wonderful Sheraton beds. Each unit has the "bedroom" (tent cabin) connected to a private deck with a table and chairs. The bathroom is open to the sky but also very private (very high walls) and has a shower with solar-heated water. There is no cooking in the cabins; meals are served at a central pavilion and were very nice (but not gourmet). If you have a car you could drive up to the town and eat elsewhere.

The beach village is very isolated, and there is nothing to do there but relax, swim/snorkel (the swimming beach is a 20-minute walk), walk, mountain bike, or ride horses. Not everyone-s idea of Hawaii, but for us it was pure pleasure.

I can tell you I've stayed at Curry Village and absolutely hated it. They are right next to each other with no privacy. I would rather have been tent camping outside of the valley. I would never stay there again. I did enjoy a stay in a cabin over by Wawoma.

On the California Coast:

www.elcapitancanyon.com
www.treebonesresort.com

Costanoa and Treebones came to mind immediately when I read scorrell's post. I see others are on the same page

I'm looking at staying in Cabanas in Tulum, there are lots of them, but they seem to be what you're looking for. The bonus is that you can go in winter.

We're looking at Cabanas Las Conchitas, google it, very Robinson Crusoe-esque.

I was also planning a stay at Goose Cove Lodge in Maine which has been desribed as luxury camping but we had to cancel. It seems pretty rustic without roughing it.