It’s the height of summer at Hickory Run State Park’s family campground, where cicadas hum, birds sing and the heat and humidity persist even in the shade, according to spotlightpa.org.
But when campers unzip a canvas door and step inside one of the park’s new tents, the soft thrum of an air conditioner dampens the sounds of nature and luxury reigns.
Glamping, short for glamorous camping, has arrived at Pennsylvania state parks.
Hickory Run in Carbon County is the third state park in the commonwealth to roll out glamping sites so far this year. The initiative, a public-private partnership between Pennsylvania and Georgia-based company Timberline Glamping, aims to encourage more people to visit state parks.
“The reality is everybody’s looking for something different when they’re going outdoors and getting that exposure to nature,” said Jonathan Bastian, who co-owns Timberline Glamping Poconos with his wife Janna.
