So with Camping in Canada and certainly in the United States being so cut throat these days how does a Glampur get the perfect campsite that will fit their glamping style? Well planning would be the way. 

Planning your camping season can go along way in ensuring that you get the perfect site in the perfect spot on the perfect day. The Glampurs start planing on Boxing Day of every year, we start to figure out how many vacation days are available to the both of us, how far we want to travel, how many days we want to be on the road, and how many trips we want to make based on our available vacation days. This basic information helps to build the foundation of our camping season. From there we start to look around for campgrounds that meet this basic criteria. Since we like to camp at the moment in either British Columbia (BC) or Alberta, we start to look at the provincial campground reservation system to identify prospective campgrounds and sites. Once we have made a list of campgrounds we want to visit we then start to look at how far these campgrounds are from Calgary. Once we have a basic idea of distance we can figure out travel times and whether or not the campground will fit into our travel Itinerary, and works with the amount of days we have planned for each trip we are going to take in a season.

Once we have identified the campgrounds we want to visit then its time to get down to business. Next we will use the Provincial or Federal reservation systems to identify sites that we are interested in by trolling the sites on line and looking at their stats, and pictures if available. We also use the campground maps to determine sites that are close to amenities or viewpoints that we are interested in. Once we have an idea of what sites and campgrounds we want to vistit we then make a list and start to put together our Itineraries, budgets and booking dates.

When all is said and done we typically will create an itinerary and budget for each trip we will make, listing out; the campground, distance, weigh points, sani-dumps, campground fees, National park fees, food, alcohol, fuel, propane, booking and reservation dates, and any other items we may need for the trip. It is a lot of work but so worth it in the end. Typically we are not disappointed with our travels when we go through this process of building our Itineraries for our camping season.

I know you may say that it is too early to plan camping in December, but I say.. Remember that National parks start accepting reservations as of January 1st in the calendar year. Provincial parks start accepting reservations anywhere between four and five months in advance of your arrival date. With so many Canadians hitting the road and enjoying the glamping lifestyle, 9.1 million at last count; If you want the best spots, and you do not want to arrive at a full campground, then a little planing will go a long way.

Happy Trails

The Glampurs