Glamping craze grows in Florida

When the Westgate River Ranch relaunches this week, the 1,700-acre resort will become the newest site to offer "glamping."

Its 10 new "glamorous camping" tents will open on Friday, and be ready for Faith on Fire, which in November will bring 10,000 Christians to this most unique dude ranch just 90 minutes from Orlando.

Not quite like the tent in which Abraham greeted the angels, these tents come with electricity, air conditioning, front porches, gas grills, and private bathroom stalls.

Westgate expects to add 20 or 30 more tents in coming months, if the glamping phenomenon continues to grow in popularity.

Besides the tents, the company has made "a huge financial investment" in the relaunch of River Ranch, a 1,700-acre resort and dude ranch about 75 minutes from Orlando, surrounded by 400,000 acres of federally managed open land, says COO Mark Waltrip.

This "oasis out in the middle of Florida swamp and pastureland" combines modern amenities for corporate groups, like a runway and marina and nine-hole golf course, with the simple and old-fashioned—a horse stable, a petting zoo, a trap and skeet range, a full weekly rodeo.

The resort has added an outdoor dance hall, a zip line, a mechanical bull, a rock climbing wall, a bungee jumping systems and an 18-hole miniature golf course, plus a new restaurant and 1,200- seat covered rodeo arena.

In addition to the glamping tents, there are cabins and a lodge with traditional hotel rooms and suites.

There’s also a completely renovated marina, a whole new activities staff, a new ropes course, and a variety of unique outdoor cowboy-themed team building opportunities, from roping real livestock to saddling a horse or flying a plane.

For corporate groups, there’s 8,800 square feet of meeting space with full banquet facilities; groups can fly in or come by boat all the way from the Gulf of Mexico.

When groups stretch into the thousands, the resort closes the runway and allows folks to camp out or sleep in RVs on its massive fields.

More than 3,000 guests are expected to stay overnight and use the facilities—including the on-site church—during Faith on Fire.

While most people think of Texas or Oklahoma as the original cowboy states, Waltrip notes that the first herd of cattle in the U.S. was brought by Ponce de Leon to Florida, and the state remains one of the top 10 cattle-producing states in the country.

With price points that run from $20 for an RV hookup to $1,500 for a suite ($100-$250 for the glamping tents, depending n the time of year) the resort offers a price point for any budget.

"There’s not a facility anywhere in the country that can provide this much entertainment value in such a unique setting, and you can tie it in with a great Orlando or beach visit," Waltrip says.

Westgate is spending $60 million on upgrades to every one of its resorts.

Glamping is also available at hotels around the world.

In the U.S., you can sleep under the stars in luxury at scores of sites, including the five-star Ranch at Rock Creek in Philipsburg, Montana;  Safari West, a 400-acre African wildlife refuge in Santa Rosa, California; or a cedar-and-glass yurt in the Blue Ridge Mountains at the Rose River Farm in Syria, Virginia.

By Cheryl Rosen