Huttopia campground in southern Maine expands with new…

SANFORD, Maine — You can leave your tents and sleeping bags at home this summer. Huttopia Southern Maine already has a spot ready for you, once the “glamping” ground reopens on Sand Pond Road in May.

Not a typo. That’s “glamping.” It’s a relatively new term, shorthand for “glamorous camping.” According to Glamp Source online, the term itself only has been around since 2005, but the concept has existed for, well, more than a thousand years.

When you go “glamping,” you can enjoy all the trappings of camping – roasting marshmallows over a campfire, swimming in a pond, walking along trails – while at the same time enjoying the kind of accommodations normally found in the comfort of a hotel.

The Sanford site opened at 149 Sand Pond during the summer of 2019. It gained popularity in the summers of 2020 and 2021, as people sought safer, outdoor options for their seasonal getaway.

It’s reopening this year on May 14 and will be unveiling new cabins and more.

“It’s exciting to be reopening,” said Margaux Bossanne, Huttopia brand and business development manager. And to be welcoming international guests for the first time since COVID-19 stopped global travel in its tracks, Bossanne added.

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What’s new at Huttopia Southern Maine?

Anyone returning to Huttopia this year will see added features this time around, according to Bossanne.

The retreat has added six wood cabins near Sand Pond. The cabins – or “tiny houses,” as Bossanne described them – each have two bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining area, a bathroom, a fire pit, a barbecuing setup, and a screened-in front porch, complete with lounge chairs.

They have also added of a big common firepit on site for S’mores nights and more.

Every “glamper,” Bossanne said, will also have a barbecue grill at their site. Previously, just the cabins and a few of the tents had that offering.

Huttopia Southern Maine also will be adding to its entertainment appeal, according to Bossanne, with live evening shows, movie nights for adults, outdoor yoga, and children’s programs.

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And, of course, since its opening three years ago, the site has had a pool, playground, games area, store and restaurant. (You do not have to be “glamping” at the site to take in a show or enjoy a meal at the restaurant, by the way.)

Sand Pond is also located along the edge of Huttopia and you can rent canoes, kayaks or standup paddleboards.

Starting costs for cabins are $200 a night, according to Bossanne; for tents, $105 a night.

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Huttopia has more than 60 sites worldwide

Huttopia was founded in Lyon, France, in 1999 and now has more than 60 sites throughout Europe, in addition to the few here in the U.S. and just one in Canada.

In addition to the Sanford location, there are Huttopia retreats in Albany, New Hampshire, as well as in New York and California.

“Huttopia offers a selection of retreats for those who seek natural beauty, simplicity, connection to the great outdoors and, ultimately, to their loved ones,” the company stated.

Céline and Philippe Bossanne founded the family-owned company. After living in Canada for a few years in the nineties, they returned to their native France, inspired by their time spent in the Canadian and American national parks.

“It was then that the idea of Huttopia emerged,” the company stated. “They cherished being able to pitch tents in the heart of beautiful, natural spaces and sharing that experience with friends and family. And they wanted to give others the opportunity to have those kinds of experiences as well.”

Emmanuelle Gardon and Fabrice Masson are the managers of the Sanford site. For more information about Huttopia Southern Maine, visit online at Canada-usa.huttopia.com or call (844) 488-8674.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Huttopia Southern Maine expands glamping campground near Sand Pond in Sanford, ME