GLAMPING
Why Glamping?
In Japan, very few people go camping. Those who do always return from their trips with amazing stories; and those who listen to these stories immediately feel a strong urge to go camping. But in the end, they resist the temptation. This is because, with camping, there is always a tradeoff. On the one hand, you get to spend time out in nature, enjoy barbecues, and sit around a warm fire at night with good friends, good wine, and good music. But, in between, you experience the not-so-fun aspects of camping: cleaning up after a meal, starting a fire and cleaning up afterwards, temperature fluctuations, sudden weather changes, bugs in tents, inconvenient bathroom facilities--the list goes on. These are the factors that discourage most Japanese people from camping.
What if we could expand the best parts of camping and eliminate all of the least attractive aspects? That is the luxury camping experience we sought to create with HOSHINOYA Fuji. We built cabins instead of a camp ground and equipped those cabins with air conditioning and bathrooms to ensure absolute comfort. We made sure a third of each cabin's floor plan was located outdoors, to allow guests the experience of sitting by a roaring fire. We embedded a series of wooden platforms in a red pine forest--a short climb from "base camp"--where guests can participate in just about every enjoyable activity associated with camping. Every choice was made in an attempt to strike the perfect balance between luxury, comfort, and ease, and the special connection with nature experienced with traditional camping.
