For many adults, camp memories are a time capsule of the “good old days,” when the sole agenda was marshmallow-roasting and making friends. Long summer days are packed with canoeing, hiking to waterfalls, and telling campfire stories.
Though we’ve aged out of summer camp, adults can create new traditions, sans a yellow school bus and backache-inducing sleeping arrangements, but adding one-of-a-kind stays in idyllic locations. From cozy farmsteads to expansive forests, Delaware County brims with tucked-away gems to host these experiences and charming small towns nearby to roam.
Planning a sleepover camp getaway can shake up a birthday celebration or family retreat, or reinvent a nostalgic memory. To connect, unwind, and find a renewed sense of play, explore these four glamping and lodge-style stays.
Stony Creek Farmstead
1738 Freer Hollow Road, Walton
Stonycreekfarmstead.com/home/stay
Camping need not be uncomfortable—Stony Creek Farmstead provides fully furnished platform tents that feel rustic yet cozy. A dip in the spring-fed pond or a stroll through the gardens or paddocks offers a relaxing afternoon. Tents come with blankets, towels, and coffee makers. The farmstead serves wood-fired pizza on Saturday nights, drawing in a local crowd. Campers can hang with the farm animals, explore the storefronts on Walton’s quaint Main Street, or sip a cider at Awestruck Mill.
Succurro
1496 County Road 12, East Meredith
Succurro.co/stay
This retired dairy farm boasts creative stays, accommodating both indoor and outdoor preferences. The storybooklike property is home to goats, chickens, pigs, bees, and dogs, and a variety of homegrown veggies. From laidback to luxe offerings, settle into a raised-platform tent, a studio, or a one-bedroom apartment attached to a house. For the four platform tents, there’s a fully equipped outdoor kitchen, outdoor showers, and a sink. While staying in this hamlet, visit the Hanford Mills Museum or wander the serene woods, and fields surrounding the farm.
Bellfire
1477 Lower Meeker Hollow Road, Roxbury
Bellfirefarm.com
Part maple forest and part wildflower meadow, this property spans 10 acres. Bellfire is off-grid, with abundant unplugging opportunities to forest bathe and relax on the yoga deck or in the cedar sauna. Artsy accommodations with color and character include the Cosmic Nomad cabin, which is a repurposed Victorian wagon, or the Birdhouse, modeled after a real birdhouse with walls of windows for stargazing. There’s also a tipi and a yurt. Each dwelling is a one-of-a-kind creation. The nearby hamlet of Roxbury offers art galleries, restaurants, and antique shops for day-tripping out of the woods.
Camp Singers
1965 Holmes Hollow Road, Delancey
Campsingers.com
Camp Singers is the brainchild of the owners of Singers, a queer bar in Bed-Stuy. Eighty-eight acres of pastures and mossy woods welcome seasonal visitors for stays filled with nostalgic camp activities. A range of offerings includes hiking, archery, star-gazing, swimming in the ponds or creek, birding, survival skills classes, communal campfires, or guided expeditions. There’s also a cedar hot tub, sauna tent, wood shop, and a family of donkeys that roam the property. The 1870s renovated farmhouse has six private guest rooms, each full of antiques sourced from across the Catskills. For anyone who didn’t get a proper summer camp experience as a child, Camp Singers fits the bill.
This article appears in February 2025.
