White Pod Resort. Swiss Alps.
The Swiss are too exacting to build igloos, so they prefer perfectly precise geodesic domes. Tres chic and cozy, these pods are neatly nestled in a ski resort with a newly constructed spa to melt away in. All pods are equipped with wood burning stoves, organic luxury bedding and full bathrooms.
About $500/weekend night.
(Source: whitepod.com)
Marataba Safari Company. South Africa.
Set in 240 sq. km of private reserve, you’ll have wild game all to yourself: lions, leaopards, elephants, cape buffalo, rhinos. Oh my!
About $475/night. Airfare is another story.
(Source: kiwicollection.com)
Longitude 131*. Northern Territory, Australia.
You know I’m a sucker for a glamorous tent…next to the hallowed Aboriginal site of Uluru, this is a spectacular kind of camping.
About $1350/night. A mere $150 more expensive than an overwater bungalow in Fiji!
(Source: kiwicollection.com)
Rolling Huts. Methow Valley, Washington.
Another fabulous glamping option: Six simply cool huts that are grouped together in a ‘herd’. With mega casters beneath them, I wonder if they moooooove. *har har*
From $95-110/night.
(Source: rollinghuts.com)
Treebones Resort in Big Sur, California.
My cousin, Grace, had the privilege (and foresight) to stay here. It’s clearly the future: recycle, reuse, sustain, maintain, eco-this, eco-that. Tilling the soil, tending an organic garden, reverting to a yurt, or a human-sized nest that overlooks the ocean will get you so close to Nature (and what truly matters) that you will undo all compulsions to go back to your senseless corporate job on Monday morning.
Camp for $65 (dogs OK!), Yurts for $160-$290/night, The Human Nest $95 (priceless.)
My girlfriend recently stayed at Harbin Hot Springs in Sonoma County during the recent Summer Solstice. If you’re really into roughing it, you can bring your own tent. Me, I prefer to “glamp” it occasionally, so they have these really futuristic geodesic tents, complete with animal print rugs for only $75-95/night (middle-aged guy not included).
Be sure you’re cool with nudity (mostly of others’), and a little koombaya. In no time, you’ll be detoxed by the natural springs and running around in the woods like a good little pagan creature. She reportedly soaked away 3 lbs!
If you feel like you need to REALLY UNdo, Harbin is the ‘birthplace’ of watsu (an in-water massage technique). It literally makes you feel as if you’re still floating around in the womb.
For slightly more ‘substantial’ accomodations, you can also stay in one of the DOMES, which look strangely similar to Anakin’s home planet of Tatooine.
May the Force UNdo you…
