Page 38 - Bloomberg Businessweek-October 29, 2018

TRAVEL Bloomberg Pursuits October 29, 2018

Bill Bensley, guests will be able to eat at a luxury categories, so everything has to
restaurant tucked under a waterfall and be truly custom,” Franco says. When a
zip line into the resort. Endangered leop- leading hospitality brand, which can’t
ards are the draw at Wild Coast Tented be named because of a nondisclosure
Lodge in Sri Lanka. Similarly, when it agreement, asked him to design a tent
opens in fall 2019, Nayara Tented Camp that could be replicated in the Bahamas,
Clockwise from top: in Costa Rica will offer budding conser- Mexico, and Turkey, he said no: “All these
Wild Coast Tented vationists an up-close look at the coun- places have different climates. There’s no
Lodge in Sri Lanka;
Four Seasons Tented try’s dwindling sloth population. wind in Turkey, but in Holbox, Mexico,
Camp Golden Triangle “I grew up as a kid going camping,” the wind is very strong. In the Bahamas,
in northern Thailand;
Sierra Escape in says Leo Ghitis, Nayara’s owner. “At this you need tents that can be completely
New South Wales, stage in our lives, we like the nostalgia of removable for hurricane season.”
Australia; Capella
Ubud in Bali camping but with all the conveniences This adds up to costly customizations.
and luxuries.” At his property, that Some tents are mobile, others aren’t.
means plunge pools fed by hot springs. Most are made with weatherproof
According to Franco, hoteliers who canvas. Some have pool decks with
invest in tented projects can expect to in-ground plumbing, others don’t. As a
generate 20 percent to 40 percent more result, Franco’s tents can cost $50,000 to
in revenue than traditional six-star $1 million each. Plus, exposure to the ele-
counter parts. Simon Dornan, general ments means they need to be maintained
manager of the recently opened Capella and replaced every few years.
Ubud, Bali’s first tented camp, agrees. Of course, you can spend less (and
Not just because tents can command charge less). Collective Retreats, a brand
higher nightly rates, he says, but because built on simpler glamping principles,
the type of traveler they attract generally offers locations in Yellowstone National
spends more on excursions, spa treat- Park and on Governors Island, with 73
ments, and cultural exchanges—all high- views of Manhattan’s Financial District.
margin offerings for hoteliers. Although Its tents start at $150 per night.
tents often take longer to construct, costs In Australia, Sierra Escape, Nashdale
can be as much as 50 percent lower than Lane, and Bubbletent are new venues
those for standard hotels—particularly in where you can book for less than $300.
cases where they’re just one part of an “We wanted to do something com-
existing resort. Still, this doesn’t make pletely different and immerse guests
these camps affordable. in the environment without taking
“We are in the luxury or beyond- away the luxury,” says Cameron D’Arcy,
co-founder of Sierra Escape, a three-
tent camp in New South Wales. He says
the concept is a no-brainer: “Thanks to
Instagram appeal, the product almost
markets itself.”
The midrange glamping resort is
thriving, but it’s the ultra-high-end
proposition that’s truly resonating with
travelers. Sonny Vrebac created three
types of tents at Bubbletent—a prop-
erty overlooking New South Wales’s
Capertee Valley, the world’s second-
largest canyon. Each is fancier than
the next in an effort to serve an array
of clients, but he gets disproportionate
demand for the highest-end one, a PVC
bubble with both climate control and
its own outdoor wood-fired hot tub. He
calls the struggle to manage bookings
a “grand cru Champagne problem.” <BW>