Open Air Business January 2017

ACCOMMODATION
If you are hoping to achieve that Out of Africa feel for your guests,
safari tents can provide the perfect choice of glamping accommodation.
Open Air Business investigates some of the options
Safari tents can offer a relatively
inexpensive option and a good
return on investment for glamping
businesses in terms of the potential
income they can generate and
the number of people they can
comfortably accommodate. They
can also provide a healthy longevity
if you choose the right supplier and
the materials used to construct
them are of good quality.
Once used to provide a
comfortable, movable place to
stay for those on safari, these tents
were traditionally suited to hot
and humid conditions, with liftable
sides allowing for cooling and
shade. However, the safari tents
that you now find on glamping sites
throughout the UK and beyond
have been designed to remain in
one location and to withstand a full
range of weather conditions, with
the option to add a heat source
making them an all year round
accommodation option.
As Anna Raetsen, co-owner of
luxury tent supplier Mocadazu,
explains: “Nowadays most safari
tents don’t move from one place
“WE USE
BAMBOO
FOR THE
FRAME,
WHICH GIVES
OUR TENTS
AN EXOTIC
LOOK AND
INSTANTLY
CREATES A
VACATION
MOOD FOR
GUESTS”
MOCADAZU
MOCADAZU
to another, but will remain in one
location for years. The idea of a
safari tent is that it is a tent - so that
guests feel that they are connected
to the surrounding nature - but
with all the comfort and luxury of a
proper hotel room.”
Raetsen and business partner
Bouwe Besseling set up Mocadazu
three years ago. The company
supplies tents that are eco-friendly,
have a long lifespan and can remain
up all year round. “We use bamboo
for the frame, which gives our
tents an exotic look and instantly
creates a vacation mood for guests.
The design is very different from
most other safari tents and we
have created large windows and
openings to ensure guests can
experience the surroundings at
their best,” says Raetsen.
Of course, being suitable for a
wide range of weather conditions
makes this possible, and as safari
tents are generally now a lot larger
than the original tents were, often
incorporating several rooms, they
can even include internal or ensuite
bathroom facilities.
Boldscan - under the Albion
Canvas brand name - has been
designing and manufacturing safaristyle
tents in the UK since 2008.
“Safari-style tents have become
hugely popular with all sorts of
people, but particularly with
families,” says managing director
Steve Hansford. “Having individual
bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen
and dining facilities, living areas
and sheltered outside space makes
for a superb space to spend time,
whatever the weather.”
A new six metre wide range of
tents introduced by Albion Canvas
has also opened up the market
to those with additional mobility
needs and according to the
company has already proved hugely
popular.
Mark Scott, owner of Clear Sky
Safari Tents, describes how the
glamping market opened up as
holiday parks saw a downturn in
caravan sales in the crash of 2008-
2009, which led to a drive to attract
people who wouldn’t normally
go to holiday parks and who had
higher disposable incomes.
“The glamping revolution was
starting, but yurts didn’t fulfil the
family criteria,” he says. “The need
was for a unit that fitted on an
existing pitch and had bedrooms
to allow for kids to go to bed while
mum and dad could enjoy a glass of
wine on the veranda while watching
the sun go down.”
Robin van Kooten, owner of
Outstanding - a company that has
been developing and producing
safari tents in the Netherlands since
2009 - describes those who typically
choose safari tents as families with
children of any age. He says: “Safari
tents are an adventurous way of
camping that combine the best of
both worlds; the charm of camping
with the comforts of home.”
GETTING STARTED
Once you have decided that safari
tents are the ideal choice for your
site, what else do you need to
know? First of all, you will need to
acquire planning permission.
“All structures need planning,
whether they are safari lodges,
yurts, shepherds huts or geodesic
domes,” says Hansford. “If you are
leaving a structure in place for more
than 28 days, you need temporary
structure planning,” he adds.
In order to apply for planning,
you must have a relatively fixed
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