After my first glimpse of glamping the other week I realised how nice it is to be away from the computer & TV!
I wasn’t sure of what a camping pod would be like. The basic idea is that you take everything you normally take camping except the tent. Instead you are provided with a wooden pod, or the shed as my wife’s colleagues keep referring to it.
This is a fairly simple construction but it has lights and a heater as well as being well insulated. There is also a patio table and some chairs for the small decking area out front.
Shirley & I were lucky enough to get one of those experience gifts for Christmas and decided to use it for the night in the camping pod experience. We added a second night to make the most out of the stay on Dartmoor.
It was definitely more luxurious when compared to a tent and the heater was a bonus, even in June. It’s still hard to get a completely fulfilling nights sleep on an inflatable mattress though. Especially when it springs a leak…
The campsite at Langstone Manor, near Tavistock, was great and everyone seemed really friendly. I would definitely recommend it to anyone wanting to stay in that area.
I wasn’t sure about the camping pod idea to begin with. The cost was getting towards B&B prices so what was the benefit over a proper bed and a breakfast cooked for you? After a bit of reflection though I realised that the price is actually a fair bit cheaper than a B&B and the camaraderie adds something extra.
The great thing about a campsite is that complete strangers seemed a lot more inclined to strike up a conversation. Everyone seems to say ‘Hello’ as you walk past and you can get into an in depth conversation while doing you washing up…
Compare this to a stay in a B&B and usually people tend to keep to themselves, even more so in a Hotel. Sometimes you can even feel uncomfortable talking amongst yourselves at breakfast if the room is pretty much in silence.
Anyway fun was definitely had. There is always something you forget when camping. This time it was the bowls so we had to eat our cereals out of tin mugs…
We even managed to get our bikes out for a brief struggle up a steep hill before being returned to the top of our car.
So overall another great experience. Really makes you think about spending more time in the great outdoors…
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The problem with B&B is that people stay for a variety of reasons, whilst a camp site is only ever for one reason. Visualise the python sketch, where the business man / holiday maker / too cheap to rent are upper/middle/lower classes. You can get around the problem by wearing a T-shirt saying “I’m a Nutter Too, Talk Me, Plz”, not required when camping.
The hut is cute, but I’d rather have proper camp equipment, the sort you carry on your back including a Thermarest.