Glamping Getaway Gratitude

Are you a camping or glamping person?

We just got back from Shenandoah, and I wasn’t planning to write about it but after such a special weekend renting a tiny cabin in the woods, I’m compelled, I simply must. It is the fuel fighting my Sunday scaries. I hope this will inspire you to book a wintry getaway somewhere too, and even if you don’t leave your couch, I beg you to please use your PTO you might have expiring. 

Catch me driving that message and bringing the idea up to everyone I know this week, including coworkers in upcoming coffee and happy hour chats (speaking of those, I guess that means it ties to my vision for the blog after all and earns a spot here).

Getaway is such a great gift idea for the holidays, for a birthday, for a wedding, for yourself. It’s for anyone looking for an escape and for something different, especially if you’re like me and prefer glamping over camping, I can’t recommend it more. This is just me raving in my typical way about something that excites me and not at all sponsored (but Getaway LMK if you want to chat 🙃).

The entire brand is centered around Danish Hygge components, which we love embracing thanks to Colin’s Danish heritage and both read this Little Book of Hygge recently, so naturally we noticed it immediately upon arrival. At one point this weekend I said to Colin this is up there with the most extreme Hygge I’ve ever felt, and I want to bottle this magic and take it home. The cabin itself has a modern + minimalist chic design with some creative touches. They maximize space in a brilliant way, with the star of the show being the iconic window wall next to the bed. 

I summed up my reflections on the experience below, straight from the heart and a few thoughts I jotted down in the cabin (I forgot a pen for my journal and ended up having to use the crayons they gave us 😬 so you can imagine the chicken scratch I’m deciphering). But here we go: 

More space does not equal happiness

I often feel like we need more space in our apartment, in our car, in a hotel we stay in.. the list goes on and on. It struck me this weekend how we were happy as clams in the tiniest of quarters, cherishing a slow pace, slow cooking, just cherishing the cozy outdoorsy vibes from inside a cute cabin in the woods. This is not a situation we would choose to live in for the long term of course, but this reminder will stop me in my tracks the next time I complain about wanting more space. Needs vs. wants are very different, and it’s a beautiful thing to have felt content with what I had for the weekend and not for one moment chase more.

Technology detox

There were little nods to emphasize unplugging and being present in order to get the full experience. The details were unmatched - I mean, this bear sticker on the toilet paper roll… can you even? They welcome you with a handwritten note, an activity guide, and a cell phone lock box:

I’m proud of myself for keeping my phone locked away for almost the entire time, but it was so hard for me at first. I don’t even realize how often I feel tempted to check it, but the urge to wore off on the second day and holy moly it did wonders for my mental health. Part of that was getting lost in my current reads without looking away. I’m really enjoying Nothing is Missing (thank you Mom) and The Comfort Book (thank you Amanda) right now and made a serious dent unwinding their themes around inspiration and mindfulness.

One of things that surprised me most in the detox was how great I felt not knowing what time it was for most of the weekend unless Colin mentioned it a couple times in relation to building his fires (lol, see below). It made the hours feel long in the best way. My life revolves around time and my calendar at home, and not caring about the time because we were just enjoying the simplicity of the day was LIBERATING. We acted like we were transformed to another point in history. Yes, we thought we were Thoreau himself.

Men and their fires

~He built a fire just to keep me warm~  got to live my best life experiencing this TS lyric when Colin (as he always is with everything) was super meticulous with building us a fire throughout different points in our stay. I already thought he was a pro but he really poured himself into perfecting these, then adorably texted with his friends to update them when the fire grew and he improved upon iterations. His inner mountain man was channeled while I enjoyed a very convenient window placement that let me occasionally see him during this process from the bed while dozing off reading:

the look of blissful lounging post-hike, post-shower

Savoring food flavor

On that note - this man went full dad mode and got a bunch of great ingredients from Wegmans for us (him) to cook our meals over fire. In a word, this part was lifechanging. The salmon. The mac n cheese. The burgers. The bacon. We spent so much time talking about it, probably will for a while because it rocked our world. Somehow this method made everything taste infinitely better. My mouth is still watering thinking about the smokey flavors that came out in every bite, the perfect seasonings he used. Everything, including my red wine and his IPA, hits different in the woods. I now fully understand the hype around this concept of prepping and cooking meals by hand over your personal fire. Going out to great restaurants is forever one of my favorite pastimes, but I’m not sure I have ever appreciated and savored flavors on this unique level where all other distractions and aesthetics are stripped down. 

Connecting authentically 

Beyond the screen time detox, the atmosphere really encourages you to slow down in the most inviting and peaceful way so your headspace becomes joyfully quiet. We played games, laughed, had intimate conversations, read lines to each other from our books, had a ton of quiet time, and even reminisced about some stories from high school and college we’d never told each other before. Through navigating how to share 150 square feet of communal space, we got to bring out new sides of our relationship and as individuals, which strengthened our bond. I know it’s cheesy but it was romantic as hell and allowed so much space for authentically connecting with each other.

Stargazing & S’mores

The most elite combo there ever was. Of course Getaway has S’mores kits available in the cabin (I’m telling you, they do not miss), so we assembled those and were reminded of how opposite we are in our marshmallow roasting preferences. We could see the entire night sky so clearly and as stargazing does, it gave a grounding perspective on how small we are in the scale of the universe. We were using Colin’s sky map app and geeking out over constellations, and it’s now a definite core memory in our first year of marriage. 

So am I saying camping could be something I actually get behind after riding such a high from this? Might be a stretch for me to stay fully outside, but without a doubt I will be looking into other variations of glamping opportunities we can explore. Thank you so much to our friends Kara and Jenna for putting this on our radar by giving us SUCH a gift of an experience. A weekend so restorative, healing, and cozy it makes me feel fine about going back to work tomorrow (that’s a rarity on Sunday evening). I’m just very grateful to have had a dreamy escape going off the grid and getting to reflect on the busy, wonderful 2023 it’s been.

 p.s. if you’re intrigued - Getaway outposts are all over the country!

Have a great week!

Jess