Wellness: The Guest Experience by HoneyTrek

With everything that's happening in the world right now, we could all use a deep breath in the woods. Help guests realize the restorative properties of an outdoor getaway by enhancing your wellness offerings. And know that you don't need to build a lavish spa to create an oasis. A vibe of serenity and a culture of mindfulness, along with a few zen amenities can make even a simple glamping camp feel like a wellness retreat. Try these upgrades and thoughtful gestures to make your guests say 'ahhhhh'.

Creating Spaces for Reflection

Walk around the wilderness area of your property and mark the prettiest spots. Is it a break in the trees, the shade of a beautiful bough, or a bend in the creek? Consider adding a bench, hammock, swing, yoga platform, or lookout tower to better enjoy the scenery. Create a little whimsy by decorating a tree with windchimes, a few artsy birdhouses, or a little library with poetry and communal journal for guests to add their thoughts. Give people a reason to stop and look around, especially in unexpected places.

A Simple Spa

This isn't the Ritz where guests expect a multi-room complex with a menu of services. A glamping-style spa can be any dedicated space that offers peace and privacy. In the middle of the property at Sou-wester Lodge & Vintage Trailer Resort, their spa area was just a small walled garden, enhanced by a vintage clawfoot tub (aka the cold plunge pool), outdoor shower, and dry Finnish sauna. We recently stayed at a hip new campground in Wisconsin, ROAM Adventure Basecamp, that had 30 campsites and 4 modern cabins, but everyone felt like they were glamping because of the state-of-the-art bathhouse and wood-fired sauna. We liked that they used a reservation system to ensure each sauna session was private and that the scarcity of appointments made us dedicate a portion of our day to relaxing.

At Luna Lodge, a simple thatch-roof structure perched over the rainforest with two massage tables felt plenty luxurious for their variety of treatments. Nature is an inherently soothing and far more memorable setting. Which would you choose... a body treatment with all the bells and whistles in a windowless room, or one set up in the spray of a waterfall?

Sou'wester Garden Spa

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Soaking

At Isla Chiquita in Costa Rica, they built a simple treatment room high on a cliff and added a hot tub for spa-goers to extend their relaxation time gazing over the Gulf of Nicoya. Guests could also just book the secluded hot tub for sunset with a bottle of champagne. Jacuzzis plopped next to the pool are expected, but what about a wood-burning hot tub in the forest? They don’t require electricity for the heat or pump, just wood, water, and a match. Designed to be off-grid and in a beautiful cedar construction, they work seamlessly in a natural environment. For the simplest and most affordable soaking experience, offer sunset or bedtime foot baths. We saw this done in the high desert of Oregon where the hosts infused the water with wild sage and Epsom salt in pretty copper basins and brought them right to our porch. The cost to them was virtually zero but after a day of hiking, it felt like a million bucks to us.

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Yoga & Meditation

Yoga has become so popular and synonymous with wellness that many glampers expect yoga to be offered in some way, shape, or form. Even if you don’t have the staff for it, create a space that allows for self-practice and the potential for classes down the road. Build a raised platform (ideally with a shade structure) in a peaceful part of the property. Add a sign that says “yoga deck,” a storage chest of mats, blocks, and outdoor blankets so anyone familiar with yoga (or even stretching) can take it from there. Help set the intention with a bookshelf of yoga guides, chill music or meditation podcasts, incense, and a Tibetan singing bowl. Build out your yoga offerings by partnering with a local instructor for classes 1-3 days a week. Even if all the fees go to the instructor, having yoga classes as a part of your offerings could just be the reason your next guest presses “Book Now.”

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Forest Bathing

Have you heard of the Japanese practice ofShinrin-yoku (aka forest bathing)? There is anart and fascinating science to it, but basicallyit’s a mindful walk in the woods, where the slowpace, ambient sounds, and intake of nutrientrichair help relieve stress and improve overall health. You’d think Shinrin-yoku was an ancientpractice but it officially started in the 1980s asa government program to counter the negativeeffects of the population’s hectic modern lives.Add this to your wellness services by creating ashort trail in a heavily wooded area with a sign thatsays “Forest Bathing” and its guiding principles…walk slowly, engage your senses, notice yoursurroundings, and how you feel when you are intune with nature. Mid-trail, put in a bench andperhaps a poetic prompt like Albert Einstein’s“Look deep into nature and you will understandeverything better,” to encourage people to extendtheir experience and its benefits.

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Refreshments

Spas offer fruit-infused water or tea because it's a thoughtful and affordable way to set the stage for wellness. In your check-in area or common space, add a decorative water dispenser with fresh mint and berries to refresh your road-weary travelers and returning hikers. (FYI water refilling stations (fruit or not) should be throughout the property to do your part in reducing single-use plastics. See our last article on sustainability). A complimentary tea station is also a lovely gesture and doubles as decor when you line up artful jars with floral teas. We have to give another nod toSou’wester, who has dedicated one of their vintageAirstreams to be a “Tea Trailer,” stocked with all the accoutrements for a private tea party ormament of calm. A few mornings a week, they also offer Ayurvedic “golden milk” (an easy turmeric drink recipe that any staff member can whip up)and other days bring in a local juicery to sell their fresh concoctions.

Mendocino Grove

HoneyTrek

Outside Specialists

What’s the secret to running a small glampingcamp with a robust wellness program? Outsidespecialists. Research your surrounding area forwellness experts and see what comes up. You’lldefinitely find a yoga instructor and a masseuse,but you might find the unexpected offering thatsets your camp a part, like someone who performsancient cacao ceremonies or dance therapy. Asmart strategy that many of the leading glampingcamps use is to host retreats, where they tapbeloved yoga instructors to invite their devoteesto your camp to partake in their wellness getaway.The instructors plan the weekend, help securethe bookings, and legitimize you as a wellnessdestination. (More on using influencers to helpgrow your business in our next article and talkat The Glamping Show on October 5th, 2022 inAurora, CO!)

Remember, wellness in glamping is largely about creating spaces that foster tranquility and show guests you care about their well-being. Namaste.

About Mike & Anne Howard

Traveling for the last 10 years across 63 countries, Mike & Anne are travel experts with a glamping speciality. They launched HoneyTrek.com to chronicle their journey, and have since written National Geographic’s bestselling book Ultimate Journeys for Two and the first guide to glamping in North America, Comfortably Wild. Earning a Lowell Thomas Journalism Award for their book and a seat on the American Glamping Association Board of Advisors, they are committed to the success of the glamping industry. Businesses from budding glampgrounds to established tent manufacturers have partnered with the Howards for their skills as photographers, writers, influencers, and consultants to improve their guest experience and share it with the world.

Visit HoneyTrek.com/GlampingExperts