Travel

Camping in Maine

Fancy-Pants Camps

Travel

Photographs Courtesy of Sandy Pines, Tops’l Farm, Seguin

Sometimes even the heartiest outdoorsperson wants to sleep outside without the backache of tenting it. And is the occasional heated pool too much to ask? These three spots are taking camping in Maine to the next level.


Tops’l Farm

Waldoboro. 435-640-6440.

The shelter: Five furnished wall tents and five A-frame cabins, each with its own picnic area and campfire ring, on an 80-year-old farm that owners Sarah and Josh Pike have brought out of retirement.

Rates: $125/night, plus a $50 cleaning fee.

The site: 83 acres of woods and meadows along the Medomak River, with communal spaces like an events barn, lounge yurt, and camp store.

Gentling it: The Pikes set out to evoke Maine nostalgia, furnishing the tents and cabins with tables, chests, and stools found at flea markets and antiques stores. Beds are swaddled in crisp linens, plaid blankets, and comforters. “It’s important to me that when our guests open that door or tent flap, they’re surprised by what they see,” she says.


Sandy Pines

Kennebunkport. 207-967-2483.

The shelter: Sixteen “glamp tents” outfitted by 12 Maine designers, arranged around a landscaped garden and community fire pit in the woods near Goose Rocks Beach.

Rates: $174–$314/night.

The site: A decades-old 60-acre campground redeveloped by the Kennebunkport Resort Collection, with a saltwater pool, bathhouse, general store, and more.

Gentling it: Each 24-by-18–foot tent has its own motif, from Krista Stokes’ Base Camp, sectioned into rooms by hand-painted drapes, to Nicola Manganello’s Blixen’s Oasis, with Danish seashell pendant lamps and a curtained four-poster bed.


Seguin

Georgetown. 857-523-0813.

The shelter: Three elevated houses (one with a cedar hot tub) tucked among the tree canopies on a hillside above the Back River. Each dwelling has a kitchen, bathroom, screened porch, and deck, housed in a series of pavilions connected by rope bridges.

Rates: $169–$299/night.

The site: 21 wooded acres, with sublime views of the tidal Back River as it winds through marshlands to the Kennebec River and the sea.

Gentling it: Co-owner Marsha Dunn wanted a fluid connection between interior and exterior spaces, so she’s kept furnishings simple and creative (think thick headboards that double as small closets). “The minimalist décor and colors enhance the feeling of harmony with the surroundings,” she says.