Forget what you think you know about camping… This is Summer Camp, by The Good Life Society, a treat for lovers and discoverers of the great outdoors
Foodies, nature lovers and crafty creators listen up, you’re going to enjoy this one. Running for multiple long weekends each summer, Summer Camp is a chance to escape. A chance to reset and recharge. It is about slowing down, about meeting new people, about learning new things. I am telling you this now, way ahead of next year’s dates, because it’s a pretty sure thing that everybody who went in 2023 will be back in 2024, so move fast if you want the experience for yourself.
Summer Camp is a small, intimate, inclusive luxury camping experience, hosted in the Walled Garden at Harwarden Castle, North Wales. You have your own choice of accommodation - you can camp among the ancient trees growing in The Walled Garden and bring your own tent, or you can pack a little lighter, bring your own sleeping bag and stay in a pre-pitched bell tent, or even a camper van. Alternatively book The Beekeepers Hut, a custom-built hut (duh) to add luxury to outdoor living, or stay in the Gardener’s House, with en-suite and king size beds. Or you can experience the weekend how I think we all need to experience it and opt for the Glamping bell tent. A double bed, luxury linens and all set up ready for your arrival. With our dog in tow, we felt right at home.
So, accommodation chosen, what’s in store for you? The team at Summer Camp do a phenomenal job of gathering world experts in nature and outdoor craft, exceptionally talented (and famous) chefs and thoughtfully curate a lineup of inspirational speakers to make sure there’s something for every person who visits.
The lineup changes week to week, so we advise checking before you choose your dates. For us foodies, it felt like waking up in food heaven every day. The communal terrace area is the hub of activity and where we spent most of our time. Here you’ll find the bar, coffee and tea station, pop-up shop and an outdoor kitchen. All foods are cooked over an open fire; breakfast, lunch and dinner, so it feels like you’re really camping, without all of the effort. Just how we like it.
The Harwarden Estate chefs set the bar VERY high for our first evening meal. We enjoyed slow-cooked Char Sui (cooked all day over the fire) and the most delicious kohlrabi spring green salad. A meal that’s making my mouth water as I type this. You know we went up for seconds!
Camp mornings consist of fresh coffee, freshly laid eggs (from the hens that were in the coop next to our tent) and the smell of bacon and sausages. You can choose from a camp-crafted menu: sausage or bacon and egg baps, omelettes, fresh pastries and granola. We happily took our seats at the camp kitchen for our brekkie on the first morning, then went to explore the award-winning Hawarden Experience Farm Shop on the second day, where we devoured a full English cooked in their outdoor kitchen. Local produce is the star of the show here and it was sensational.
After your breakfast and morning wild swim, what’s on the agenda for the day? As mentioned before, the Good Life team have done an outstanding job of curating a lineup of activities that’ll keep you excited and creatively challenged in equal measure. Be prepared to get involved and enjoy the experience, try not to be shy. Your fellow campers are there to learn with you too, so don’t feel like you can’t ask questions…we’re all equally as bad at whittling.
If it wasn’t clear by now, we love food. So, naturally, the Cooking Masterclasses and activities revolving around food grabbed our attention. We enjoyed a Curing and Smoking Masterclass on our first morning with the magnificent Steven Lamb. We were honoured to have Romy Gill MBE cook a feast for the camp on Saturday evening - her Samosa Chaat has frequently made a cameo in my dreams since. If that wasn’t enough, Romy also hosted a Masterclass over open fire on Sunday. A moment that will live rent-free in my mind for a very long time. We had a pizza making class and sustainability talk by chef Tom Hunt. A class that got almost all of the campers involved - adults and children making dough and competing for the best flavour combinations.
If food isn’t quite as important to you as it is for us, there are plenty of other options: printing workshops, community mural painting, cheese and cider tasting, whittling, pottery, axe throwing, traditional sign writing, and foraging... Don’t panic, not all of these events and activities are available on the same weekend. Each weekend has its own lineup. They are released well in advance so you know which weekend you’d like to book.
For us, each activity was something new, a step out of our comfort zone and something we’re genuinely going to remember forever.
For the eagle-eyed readers, you will have noticed I mentioned wild swimming earlier, so let's talk about the grounds. The Hawarden Estate is a stunning slice of history and is open for you to explore. The original Hawarden Castle is now a ruin but still stands majestic and seemingly approves of its new view overlooking the newer Hawarden Castle. Surrounding the castle are mature woodlands, manicured gardens, ponds, fields, and other buildings - welcome to the Wild Spa. Fancy a massage?, a sauna, Wild hot tub and a lake. This is where you’ll find the paddle boarding class, the campers trying to swim away any heavy heads after a night of campfire drinks and those who just want to shock themselves into the land of the living (guilty). Take a dip, then make your way to the showers before heading for breakfast. You won’t regret it.
“But guys, what about the bathroom situation?”. For those staying in the Gardener’s House or in a campervan you’ll have your own bathrooms, but for everyone else; you’ll be happy to know there is a purpose-built shower and toilet block, fitted with full cubicle toilets and showers. High pressure, rainforest showers await you. Embarrassingly, the water pressure here was better than our home shower, so you needn’t worry about staying fresh while on camp. It’s already been taken care of - even down to the luxury washing products if you didn’t bring your own (guilty again).
Our visit to Summer Camp was one of those real pinch-me moments. How did we end up here having such a fun time, in a tent! We were, we have to confess, a little nervous about the who;e ‘camping’ thing, but it couldn’t have been more comfortable (in every respect) or fun. We left Summer Camp feeling refreshed and inspired, ready to take on whatever life had to throw at us – and no planes, trains or long drives needed.
Tickets are on sale for 2024, so head to their website now and get those Glamping tents booked.
thegoodlifesociety.co.uk/events/summer-camp-2024
