48 | luxury
camping
TeNTeD T
We’re spoilt as travellers; we’ve had the infinity pools and
the high rise urban hotels, the rooftop cocktail bars and the
decadent day spas. But it wasn’t enough, and now, true
experiential travellers want their hotel rooms perched in
trees or under the sea, shaped from ice or pitched in the
middle of a wild game park.
Located on a deserted strip of Western Australian beach,
Sal SaliS NiNGaloo reef is an exclusive safari camp hidden
in the white sand dunes of the Cape Range National Park.
Boasting nine spacious beachfront tents, just steps from
some of the world’s greatest coastal reefs, guests share this
ultimate beach camp with red kangaroo and Butcherbirds
while the surrounding seas are popular with humpback
whales. Each tent comes with 500-count cotton linen, a
pillow menu, an en suite bathroom and of course, stunning
sea views. A main camp building acts as dining room,
where guests share stunning sunsets and stellar Australian
cuisine with a hint of bush tucker influence. From AU$730
per person, per night, twin share, inclusive of drinks and meals.
www.salsalis.com.au
www.jetsetter.hk
luxury camping | 49
Temples
Camping has come a long way in the last couple of years. Once
the realm of backpackers and the adventurous, affluent travellers
are increasingly seeking new and exciting experiences whilst on
the road. The notion of camping has been given a dusting off and
a lavish new look, finds Nick Walton.
50 | luxury
camping
Under a canopy of stars, in the heart of nature,
tented camps have long been associated with
exploration into Africa’s wide open savannahs
and Tanzania’s Selous Safari Camp epitomizes
that fantastic outdoors experience. At almost
twice the size of Belgium, the Selous Game
Reserve is a destination in itself, and is home
to over half of Tanzania’s elephants, as well
as the nation’s largest crocodile and hippo
populations. When they’re not on safari, guests
can relax in spacious tents – complete with en
suite bathrooms, outdoor hot water showers,
and king sized beds – or cool off with a cocktail
in the communal swimming pool. From US$535
per person, per night; www.selous.com
One of Africa’s newest luxury tented camps, the
Moremi Under Canvas experience in Botswana
offers an authentic take on luxury camping.
Located on the Moremi Game Reserve on
the Okavango Delta, the camp offers access
to a thriving ecosystem of waterways and
wildlife. Moving site every five or six days,
the secluded camps are set up beside watering
holes popular with packs of African wild dogs.
Accommodation is simplistic yet elegant;
there are hot bucket showers each morning,
shady verandahs from which to gaze across
the savannah in the afternoon, and at night
you’ll dine on world-class cuisine before sliding
between crisp cool linens in double beds. Twice
daily game drives wind through mopane
and riverine forests in search of red lechwe
and sitatunga antelope as well as families of
elephants. From US$395 per person, per night;
www.andbeyondafrica.com
In Namibia’s 47,000-hectare Kulala Wilderness
Reserve, Wilderness Safaris’ Little Kulala
Camp brings contemporary luxury to the
deserts of Africa. Boasting 11 spacious, climatecontrolled thatched ‘kulalas tents’, each with
bleached decks, private plunge pools, and
innovative rooftop ‘skybeds’, Little Kulala
grants access to one of the region’s most
desolately-beautiful landscapes, home to ostrich
and springbok, bat-eared foxes and dune larks.
Climb the towering dunes of Sossusvlei in the
world’s oldest desert, explore the park by 4x4,
or start the day with an early morning balloon
ride before returning to gourmet meals, after
dinner drinks in the library and staggering
night skies. From US$844 per person, per night,
book through Heavens Portfolio, +852 2571 3018;
www.wilderness-safaris.com
www.jetsetter.hk
52 | luxury
camping
If camping in the tropics, with a cold pina colada
never far from reach, is more your thing, then
head for the lagoon-sided tented encampment of
BaNYaN tree madivaru maldiveS reSort & Spa.
Located in the North Ari Atoll, this opulent camp
features just six free-standing pool “villas”, each
of which is actually made up of three spacious,
tented structures. The tent trio comprises sleeping,
bathing and living spaces and surrounds a private
pool. The resort is 30 minutes from Malé by
seaplane or overnight when sailing on the resort’s
restored Turkish schooner Madi, sunset cruises on
which are included in the tarrif. From US$2,000
per night, twin share, all inclusive,
www.banyantree.com
www.jetsetter.hk
54 | luxury
camping
One of the world’s most talked about luxury
tented camps can be found in Thailand’s
Golden Triangle. At the Four Seasons Tented
Camp in Chiang Rai, guests can learn to ride
elephants, saved from the streets of Bangkok, on
two or three-night all inclusive packages. The
camp’s 15 “tents” - essentially canvas stretched
over spacious wooden frames, complete with
polished teak floors, sun decks and new custombuilt timber hot tubs – offer complete privacy,
with the resort itself only accessible by boat.
There’s no television and no room service but
you can soak in the camp’s granite boulder
swimming pool and Jacuzzi, located high above
the meandering Ruak River, and for early risers,
a suspension bridge over the San Valley is a
stunning spot for dawn photography. Two nights
from US$4,334 per room, twin share,
www.fourseasons.com/goldentriangle
Located in a glacial valley in the heart of New
Zealand’s stunning Southern Alps, Minaret
Station is only accessible by helicopter and
offers the ultimate private escape. A select
few guests are accommodated in luxuriouslyfurnished tented suites, complete with wall-towall sheepskin carpet – perfect for those chilly
South Island nights – king beds, full ensuites
and private decks replete with timber soak
tubs. Of course it’s not all roughing it; there’s
a cozy library and dining room with open
fireplace, as well as a dedicated chef working in
the ‘mountain kitchen’ and private guides for
awe-inspiring daytime excursions to secluded
fly fishing spots, ancient mountain passes and
towering peaks. From NZ$3,500 per night, twin
sharem min two nights; www.minaretstation.com
India is increasingly becoming a destination
sought after for its wildlife and a stay at the
Banjaar Tola Kanha Tented Camp is the best
way to get into the thick of the action. Located
overlooking the spectacular Kanha National
Park, the camp’s 18 lightweight tented suites
are scattered along the banks of a meandering
river. Each boasts canvas walls and glass doors
as well as private verandahs and contemporary
fittings. Beds are on risen platforms and offer
the best sunrise vistas, while bathrooms feature
deep soak tubs and river panoramas. You’ll get
to know the adjacent national park even better
with complimentary twice-daily game drives,
guided walks and tiger viewings from elephant
back. From US$420 per person, per day;
www.andbeyondindia.com
www.jetsetter.hk
lux lodges | 55
REserved
for the
Intrepid
A new lodge in the Ecuadorian rainforest
brings luxury and nature closer than ever.
N
estled deep within
Ecuador’s Mashpi
Rainforest Biodiversity
Reserve, a luxury wildlife
retreat opens this month,
giving access to one of the country’s
most diverse ecosystems. With its green
technology and sustainable construction,
the 18-suite Mashpi Lodge is located at the
foothills of the Ecuadorian Andes and offers
nature lovers a chance to get closer than ever
before to Ecuador’s ancient jungles.
Limited to just 36 guests at a time, the
Lodge is nestled in the tangles of a lush
rainforest yet its position – at 3,116ft above
sea level – affords it spectacular views from
its earthy, minimalist guest rooms, including
three Yaku (Quechua for ‘wind’) suites,
which boast their own outdoors Jacuzzi.
Guests come together in the Lodge’s main
building, where a quiet Reading Room offers
coveted internet access, and a spa offers up
a menu inspired by rainforest ingredients.
Gourmet dining takes place in the Lodge’s
Dining Room, where the freshest organic
ingredients sourced from villages within
the reserve – including naranjilla, papaya,
palm heart, coffee, chocolate and plantain -
are used to create classic Ecuadorian dishes
matched with Chilean and Argentinean
vintages.
But it’s what’s outside the Lodge that is
the true draw card; Mashpi is just twoand-a-half hours from Quito, meaning a
meander through this stunning ecosystem
is the perfect add on to any Ecuadorian
foray. Located on a high plateau, the Lodge
grants exclusive access to montane and rain
forests, fields of wild orchids - some only
recently discovered - and more than 500 bird
species. You’ll spy monkeys, peccaries and
even puma while hiking through the reserve
with expert naturalists or gliding above the
canopy on the Lodge’s unique Aerial Tram.
Guests even have the opportunity to visit
a butterfly vivarium to capture the vibrant
colours of local species, and a serpentarium
to learn about the reserve’s many
misunderstood snake species. You’ll meet
international scientists from the scientific
research centre set up in the jungle, and learn
the traditions of Ecuador’s forest people
from local villages supported by Mashpi.
www.mashpilodge.com
­­— NICK WALTON
www.jetsetter.hk