Tentrr, the Airbnb of the outdoors, makes camping easy for everyone

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the country, people have been itching to escape their homes after months in quarantine. Since unnecessary travel is still not recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and staying indoors at hotels or an Airbnb might make some uncomfortable, more people than ever are opting for a trip in the outdoors—a.k.a. camping.

According to a recent study from Kampgrounds of America, 43% of leisure travelers say spending time outdoors is now more important as a result of the pandemic. We’ve also seen outdoor gear like bikes, roller skates, and kayaks have been harder to find at this time, as more people are ditching their traditional vacations and spending time in the great outdoors instead. Like most, I had plans this summer that sadly did not pan out, but a whole new world has now opened up to me and I now consider myself a camper.

After purchasing a tent at REI to take on my newly planned summer excursions, I was being flooded with Instagram ads for a site called Tentrr, an affordable glamping option (thanks phone). With a few clicks of a button and a five minute speech on the benefits of going on outdoor adventures to my boyfriend, I had successfully booked a Tentrr site in a few clicks.

What is Tentrr?

Tentrr is a camping rental website that is basically the Airbnb of tents. It is a step up from regular pitch-your-own-tent camping, but still a step down from over-the-top glamping; a cozy in between to satisfy both the nature enthusiast and those who don’t enjoy sleeping on the ground. Tentrr lets you camp in style, providing you with an already pitched tent and pretty much all of the camping equipment you need, so you don’t have to shell out too much money if you would like to give camping a try. With sites on private property, as well as state parks, you can have an epic camping adventure at hundreds on Tentrr sites in 42 different states across the country.

How does Tentrr work?

Tentrr is the definition of effortless camping. All you have to do is go on their website, click on the state you’d like to camp in, enter how many campers and the dates you’d like to camp, and you’ll be perusing tons of options in no time. Since campsites are located on either private property or in state parks, each spot is extremely unique. When browsing myself, I’ve seen sites that were on rocky beaches, lavender farms, or even next to quiet ponds with hiking trails nearby. They’re all simply delightful. Depending on the type of camping experience you’re looking for, whether it be a hiking excursion, a place to kayak, or just a large outdoor space to hang with friends, Tentrr probably has an outdoorsy option for you.

Once you’ve found a campsite you’d like to book, you simply create a free account with the site, reserve your dates, and enter your credit card information. My Tentrr experience was in Maine, but I looked at nearby sites in Massachusetts, Vermont, and New Hampshire. The average cost for a Tentrr Signature Site was anywhere from $100-$150 per night, which wasn’t too expensive and pretty comparable to a night at an Airbnb. Plus, if you’re splitting the cost between multiple people, it’s even more reasonable.

After booking, Tentrr sends you multiple confirmation emails, with further information about your campsite and specifics like how to get there and how to contact your “campkeeper”—a.k.a. your host. In my confirmation email, I also got a list of restaurants nearby, grocery stores, gas stations, medical facilities, and local attractions, like a disc golf course and a popular nearby lake. This made it easier for us to plan out our trip from food to activities.

You will also get an email from your campkeeper, who is the true point of contact during this experience. It's Tentrr’s term for whoever runs the campsite, and usually, it is the person who’s private property you’ll be staying on. During my experience, I stayed on a farm in northern Maine, and my campkeeper sent me a welcome email the day after I booked, which included her phone number, _very_specific directions to the campsite, and a recommended list of things to bring with me. Since she encouraged me to text her, I gave her the estimated time of my arrival and asked for suggestions as to what to do in her area. This is where Tentrr really thrives, since you are staying on people’s private property, the campkeepers obviously know the areas extremely well, and mine kept the suggestions coming.

Is Tentrr safe?

The main safety focus for Tentrr right now is protecting both campers and campkeepers from coronavirus. Tentrr strongly suggests that you social distance as much as possible while camping, and even has a revised policy that allows trips to be fully refunded within 24 hours of your check in, should an issue arise.

Other than the current state of COVID-19, Tentrr doesn’t explicitly address safety on its site. I even called their company hotline multiple times to ask about how campkeepers were vetted, but I was never able to get a straight answer. But, if you are nervous about being on someone else’s private property, there are a few ways to figure out if others had a good experience or what sort of situation you may be getting yourself into. Similar to Airbnb and Vrbo, campers can leave reviews about each site, so you can read through to see if there are any red flags or helpful information before you book your site.

While I wasn’t too worried about safety and felt perfectly safe while I was camping, the campsite I stayed at had a Facebook page that I perused before that featured pictures of happy campers on the farm and what the owners do for fun in Maine. This gave me peace of mind while driving to Maine, because even though you can see pictures of the site on Tentrr’s website, it was further proof that where I was going was legitimate and not a tiny tent on some random lady’s front lawn.

What’s at a Tentrr campsite?

Ideally, Tentrr should be a stress-free camping experience, whether you’ve camped for years or if you have never slept in a tent before. You don’t have to worry about bringing tons of supplies and setting them up, because the vast majority of what you need is already at the site, which really appealed to me as a newfound camper.

Upon arriving at my campsite, I pulled into the grassy area along my campkeeper’s dirt driveway, where she greeted my boyfriend and I on horseback (yes, you read that correctly) and showed us the path to get to our campsite. The short path led us past even more horses to our adorable Tentrr site nestled in the woods. Our campkeeper came by on horseback again to check and see if we needed anything—and to warn us about her donkey that wakes everyone up at 5 a.m. That was the last we saw of her for the entire weekend. And yes, we heard the donkey every morning, but it added some charm to the experience.

At every Tentrr Signature Site, you’ll see a large, beautiful canvas tent on a wooden platform. Tentrr also offers campsites that are just areas of land to rent and bring your own camping gear. I chose a Signature Site for the ease this time around, which is what Tentrr is known for anyway. On the platform of the tent is also two Adirondack chairs, which really gives the glamping aesthetic of your dreams. Shout out to all the gals just trying to take cute, outdoorsy Instagram pictures, because these tents are cottagecore #goals.

There are also a few other things included with each site that makes for a stress-free outdoor experience.

Always included at Tentrr Signature Sites:

• Canvas tent on platform: Yes, this 10x12 tent is tall enough to fit Queen size bunk beds and my 6’2” boyfriend had plenty of headroom when standing up, so unless you are an NBA player, don’t worry, the tent should house you nicely.

• Dome tent: This is for groups who have extra campers and can’t all fit in the canvas tent for some extra sleep space. This was not at my campsite when I went camping, nor did I ask for it since there were only two of us.

• Queen bed: My tent specifically had queen bunk beds, each with a blowup mattress on them. While this was what was on most campsites I saw when browsing online, there are also tents with just a single Queen bed in them as well. And yes, some of the tents have real mattresses, too, depending on the site you choose.

• Sun shower: Funnily enough, this was not actually included at my campsite, so I went without a shower for the weekend. While this wasn’t an issue for me, if you want one, make sure it explicitly states sun shower in the camp description, or ask your campkeeper before you arrive on site.

• Camp toilet: I was very intrigued about what the toilet situation would be like upon arrival, as the Tentrr website is clear that toilets are provided, but not specific as to where they are located at the site. I’m definitely not a high maintenance gal, but peeing in the woods isn’t one of my specialties. Our site had a composting toilet in a small pop-up tent right next to the main canvas tent. It essentially felt like a porta potty situation, except the toilet was clean and ready to go when we arrived, and you had to zip up the tent for privacy instead of closing a door. Toilet paper was provided and apart from the insane amount of bugs in the tent, I’ve gone to the bathroom in far worse places.

• Camp picnic table with benches

• Two adirondack chairs

• Fire pit

• Wood stove inside the tent

• Campfire grill

• Grill tongs and brush

• Water carrier

• Trash can

Additionally, some campkeepers offer add-on packages with more supplies. These include firewood bundles, bedding, excursions on canoes and kayaks, or guided tours of the area, if they happen to live near trails. While browsing the site, I saw a package in Maine that offered fresh lobster from a local fisherman. Each Tentrr site is unique and filled with local flair you can choose to embrace. Depending on what kind of camping experience you’d like, I highly recommend taking the time to look through different sites to see if any offer special features you couldn’t find anywhere else.

Fortunately, my campkeeper left us plenty of firewood for the fire pit, so we didn’t have to worry about bringing any or foraging for some near our site. And while my site didn’t offer any special excursions, the campkeeper was incredibly helpful and recommended local places to go and have fun outdoors, which is really not hard to do in Maine. But she gets extra bonus points because plenty of places had extra restrictions due to COVID-19. Spoiler: we ended up going to Acadia National Park and it was one of the highlights of my entire summer.

What to bring to a Tentrr campsite

While Tentrr provides pretty much everything you need to camp, there are still a few things you should bring along with you. Although there were bunk beds inside the tent, I still had to bring sheets, blankets, pillows, and sleeping bags for bedding. I also brought my Coleman camping stove, which I would highly recommend. Tentrr supplies a grill to cook over the fire, but my boyfriend and I chose not to use it and instead cooked breakfasts and dinners on the camping stove (I could write an entire love letter about how that stove was the best camping investment I’ve ever made).

For cooking, we brought our own pans for the stove, plates, cups, bowls, and silverware. We also brought a cooler to store food and drinks for the weekend, as there was no fridge or cooler on site. We naturally brought plenty of paper towels and toilet paper just in case, but TP was provided along with the camp toilet, so we didn’t run into any sticky situations there. Since we were in the backwoods of Maine, bug spray was as essential as water, as well as sunscreen for hiking. Despite expecting a camp shower, I luckily packed body wipes, too, which I used to clean up with after a long, sweaty hike at Acadia.

Are Tentrr campsites worth it?

If you’re looking for stress-free camping, Tentrr is a great option and it manages to make you still feel glamorous while sleeping in the woods. My favorite thing about Tentrr is that it’s not a “one size fits all” experience and you could book several without them being remotely similar. Depending on where you camp and the set up your campkeeper creates, you can get an absolutely unique experience each and every time you book a site. Plus, having the campkeepers as the points of contact really added local flair to the camping trip, especially if you’re staying in an area you’re unfamiliar with.

Further proof that Tentrr is worth it? I literally cannot stop looking at their website. The Tentrr website has become my go-to site to scroll mindlessly while searching for campsites to book and spots to send to my boyfriend and friends for our next adventure. Since the outdoors is a good option for socially distanced group activities right now, and most Tentrr sites allow parties to bring their own tents, this is a great way to still spend time with friends, without being inside for too long.

Try a Tentrr campsite for yourself