Glamping & Glamping holidays. A spot of Glamping in the Algarve this summer perhaps? Nadine and Calvin are offering luxury Tipi and Yurt holidays - kids go free by the way - in their little piece of Heaven in the Algarve, Portugal. Theirs is an "Eco Glamping" holiday experience set in a beautiful valley amidst rustic surroundings under the Algarve sun.

STRAW LOGS - Green Energy from the Isle of Wight

And yet another in Portugal - Canvas Moon is a small, intimate and secluded Luxury Eco glamping retreat, located near the Serra Da Estrela Mountains and Aguieira reservoir in Central Portugal. We have two Luxury Bell Tents both measuring 5 metres in diameter, located in secluded surroundings sheltered by pine forest with fantastic views of the mountains. The terraces are landscaped with tropical plants, palms, fruit trees, vines and  pathways and is a tranquil and relaxing location.

Well, you've arrived at this page because you are either inquisitive or you know what Glamping is. For the uninitiated, Glamping is quite simply glamorous camping, and usually this involves Yurts. Glamping in a nutshell is camping with a difference, glamorous,  luxury camping if you like, and Yurts are certainly that! Our sister site also caters for Glamping and luxury camping in France

But before we start, if you are interested in a yurt holiday in France then Limousin farm holidays, owned by Paula and Graham Grant, offers you a choice of interesting accommodation and French country food at La Tuilerie, a real working farm in rural France.

My wife and I stayed in a Yurt earlier last summer (2008) and neither of us were quite prepared for the degree of luxury that they afford. Our Yurt stood in a field with two others (so it wasn't lonely) and they were all owned by by a farmer and his wife - they wish to remain anonymous for some reason which is sad because I wanted to plug their site. I think deep down that they wished to see if they could make a go of the new business before they attracted publicity and more prospective clients than they could cope with, which is fair enough.

The yurt was lovely which is more than I can say for our neighbours during the stay who, for reasons known only to themselves, didn't appear to visit the shower block too often. Nor did their mutt for that matter, a scurvy, smelly hound as I've ever seen, and I'm a dog lover at that! This was all born out when any of then got close - within a couple of metres anyway. Worse was to come when they asked us round for a drink or two the second evening - they were friendly, I'll give em that, but that's another story.

Before this I had only ever seen a Yurt either in a Mag or on the Net and I thought how large and imposing they are in real life. The floor was a circular raised affair and was fully carpeted. We had a comfortable bed and there was a fridge and small cooker. It was all very snug in the extreme. We didn't need it but there was a small log burner with a chimney in the centre of the Yurt, and I guess that this, when combined with the wind and waterproof felt layer covering would be really warm on a cold night.

Most Yurt manufacturers try to ensure that their products are Eco friendly - indeed,  most are sourced from locally produced or grown materials if at all possible, and we even have one client in Cornwall who have solar panels on their buildings so that the campers can feel comfortable in the knowledge that the water they use has been heated by Green means. They have also gone to the trouble of offering to meet their clients from the local station, and also give a 10% discount to clients who arrive via public transport. Not only that but they offer the free use of either mountain bikes or hybrid road bikes for the duration of the holiday. Their site will be appearing on this page as soon as they are ready to accept their first customers.