Family “Glamping” in Georgia
Family Glamping
Our Yurt Camping Adventure at Sweetwater Creek State Park.
June 1 officially marks the start of summer here in Georgia and THIS year I decided on taking time to explore things here in my home state. To kick things off, we rented a Yurt at Sweetwater Creek State Park! We have yet to go camping with our girls and to be honest, there is a laundry list of reasons why, but I digress …
What’s a Yurt, you ask? Well, the short answer is these circular structures are basically sealed tents and they look cool inside and out. Not every state park offers Yurt accommodations, so you have to check with the park services in your area.
After discovering that several Georgia State Parks have them, we just had to give it a try! We picked a state park just around an hour away—in case we needed to wave a white flag and drive home. The good news is we survived the night and no one had to drive home in the wee hours with our littlest one in tow.
Here are three reasons we picked Yurt Camping instead of Tent or Cabin Camping:
They are cool! Lots of campgrounds have cabins you can rent, but Yurts? You just can’t sleep in a Yurt anywhere.
Comfort - need I say more? Yurts have real furniture, so no hard grounds or air mattresses for sleeping. Also, the Yurt design keeps most of the bugs out.
Convenience is everything when traveling with young children. The Yurt is set up and ready to go, just bring your sheets, utensils, and other camping necessities. They also all have showers and bathrooms on site and a playground for the kiddos to burn off any energy they have leftover from your day's activities.
Aside from those three things, Yurts are affordable and you get a lot for your money. Our Yurt site had running water, a private deck on the lake, a firepit and grill along with a picnic table outside and dining table inside.
Sweetwater Creek State Park is just one of six parks in Georgia offering Yurt accommodations. Aside from the Yurts, we picked this location for the hiking trails. We wanted to check out the Mill Ruins and have heard it was easy for kids. Both my girls (7 and 4 years old) loved hiking. There were a few spots near the water requiring me to help them but overall, it was relatively easy. There is a spot where you can walk out on the rocks and get into the water if you like, so if you think your kids will want to get in the water plan accordingly.
Side note: I took them hiking on my own and it was fine, so if you have two parents it’s even more doable.
If you had a hankering to take your kids camping but have been hesitant, I highly recommend trying out family “glamping” in a Yurt! We enjoyed it so much we are going to go again next summer—and MAYBE brave two nights this time!