Add a bit of glamping to your camping

The lakeside glamping tents at Clay’s Resort add a bit of luxury to camping and eliminate the stress of roughing it by cramming a whole family in a tent.

These striking structures at the North Lawrence, Ohio, camp resort have orange-and-white-striped canvas over a metal frame that’s on a raised wooden deck. They sleep up to five and include a hammock, a picnic table, a grill, electricity and bunk beds, a queen-size bed and a front porch, all crafted by local Amish.

“People love them,” says marketing associate Britani Eaton. “They love being able to be outside, not trapped in a hotel room, being able to have all the attractions.”

Those attractions can make a jam-packed amusing day for the kids, as the camp features a playground, tennis courts, basketball courts, sand volleyball courts, a mini golf course, a scavenger hunt and gem mining — and then there’s the lake. On the lake, kids can climb and jump off inflatable playsets, ride zip lines, go down water slides, rent canoes and kayaks and more. “We also have a splash pad for the younger kids,” Eaton says. “We have all that fun stuff.”

If you’d rather spend some downtime at the campsite, you can step out onto the front porch and enjoy the fishing lake from there. “It’s in a quiet area of the park. … You can just look over the lake,” Eaton says, adding that people can catch bass, bluegill and crappies.

The park also offers lodges, RV sites, tent camping sites and cabins. “We have more rustic cabins, and then we have more of the deluxe cabins with full showers and kitchens,” Eaton says.

No matter where you decide to stay at Clay’s, you can experience a mini vacation that’s both relaxing and exciting for the kids. And glamping tents offer a happy medium.

“People — looking to get away and not do the rustic tent life, be able to sleep in a bed — still get fresh air,” Eaton says.

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12951 Patterson St. NW, North Lawrence, clayspark.com

While You’re There

It’ll take just a few minutes to get to historic Canal Fulton, where you can learn about the Ohio & Erie Canal’s history and take a ride on St. Helena III, a replica of a boat pulled by horses that traveled there over 100 years ago. discovercanalfulton.com