Adult summer camps and the desire for wholesomeness
What this Western trend might tell us about the future of the experience economy in APAC
There’s a growing trend in the West that has us wondering about where the experience economy is headed and what it might look like in APAC.
Adult summer camps.
This concept might feel foreign to an Asian audience as summer camps are predominantly a Western behavior, but parallels can be drawn with music festivals (especially those with a camping component). Both are essentially “third spaces” that take place outside of the bustling city and in nature, to escape from reality and the responsibilities/stress of everyday life.
In the US, summer camps are a rite of passage for many youth. They’re a place for firsts – sleeping away from home without parents, making new friends outside of school, and of course, first kisses. This collective experience is well-documented in iconic coming-of-age films such as The Parent Trap, Moonrise Kingdom, and the satirical Wet Hot American Summer.
The premise behind the summer camp is simple: offering time and space for young people to escape to nature and challenge themselves physically, emotionally, sometimes spiritually. It was also a time for parents to rest during the summer months when children aren’t attending school.
So, why are adults flocking to summer camps? What is it about summer camps that strikes a chord with our unmet needs/desires as adults? Keep this on your mind as we explore two fascinating examples…
Camp Chateau
Located in Béduer in the southwestern French countryside, Camp Chateau is a women-only summer camp – the brainchild of former banker (for nearly 30 years), Philippa Girling. It first caught our attention on IG Reels in a clip by Allison Wolf (@wolvesandwaterfalls) that now has over 22.3m views – in which we see her horseback riding, watercolor painting, kayaking, picnicking (with plentiful wine and cheese), and glamping behind a backdrop of pastoral greenery and a medieval stone castle.
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The way it works at Camp Chateau is guests pay an all-inclusive fee for 6 days, which includes all three meals of the day, accommodation (a choice between bunk rooms or glamping), wine, access to the on-site facilities (pool, gardens, etc.), and electives–ranging from nature electives such as horseback riding and stargazing, to creative ones like watercolor painting and bath bomb making, to culinary ones like wine tasting and jam making.
But what sets Camp Chateau apart from your typical wellness retreat is that there is no end objective, no goal – other than to simply exist, and to revel in your existence. As Girling puts it:
“What if we could make this something that women could come to where they don't have to work on themselves, they don't have to develop higher level leadership skills, or get to another level of power—they can just be for multiple days at a time? It’s not a detox retreat, not designed for women in STEM, or open to families. It’s subversive precisely because it seeks to do nothing.”
Something Queer
Some 6,000 miles away in Northern California is a summer camp catering to LGBTQ+ adults – Something Queer. This is an annual weekend-long camp that checks all the boxes in terms of the archetypical American summer camp setting. But similar to Camp Chateau, it employs a laissez-faire approach for its guests. As co-founder Justin Boren describes:
“Our job really is just to create a container for all the magic that’s created by others. The morning starts when you want it to start. You’ll find a variety of activities that are entirely coordinated by the people who show up. This year, workshops will be things like body movement or primordial breathwork, a workshop on rope play, and one on figure drawing. Once people have explored that, then the day is left for clothesless hikes and lounging by the pool. And, of course, multiple little parties and dancing.”
Something Queer is not the only of its kind – it’s worth mentioning ‘Camp’ Camp in Maine, Camp Lost Boys (for trans men) in Colorado/Pennsylvania/Oregon, and the year-round retreat Easton Mountain in upstate New York.
The explosive demand for these camps cannot be ignored – Camp Chateau is completely sold out until 2026, Something Queer is sold out for 2024, and all three camps for Camp Lost Boys are sold out for this year.
Ultimately, what all of these camps have in common is that they aim to create much needed safe spaces for minority groups to unwind, explore curiosities/interests, express their individuality, and connect deeply with others.
And unlike music festivals which center more around partying and spectatorship, these camps are all about wholesome fun and hands-on participation. For those of us who attend music festivals, we know very well that they operate on scheduled programming which induce FOMO if you’re not at the “right” stage at the “right” time, disappointment if you don’t share ‘crucial’ moment on social media or lead you to compromise in order to ‘stick with the group.’
Instead, these summer camps allow you to just be. Time spent there is abundant, there is nothing to “miss out” on, and you have full control over what you do with that time.
Beyond the minority groups they serve, the popularity of these camps points at 2 broader needs in our culture today:
1) To escape from all of the monotony and stress of scheduling, planning and coordinating that seem to plague modern adulthood
2) To embrace learning and hobbies purely for the sake of pleasure/fulfilment – detached from hustle culture (i.e. needing to ‘monetize’ it into a side hustle or make it feel “productive”)
While APAC now offers more interesting and inclusive festivals such as Wonderfruit (TH), Sunda Festival (SG), The Air House (KR), and Rainbow Disco Club (JP), these are still largely centered around music (hence, partying).
There is still an untapped opportunity for brands in APAC to provide experiences that leverage wholesomeness without relying on wellness, and give adults the opportunity to explore their creativity and expand their knowledge with a child-like curiosity – free of any strings attached.
Speaking of youth, the original premise of summer camps feels more relevant than ever today. Young people are struggling with mental health, loneliness/isolation, and feeling disconnected from their bodies and the natural world. And we know that for Gen Z, being wholesome is aspirational. They’re moving away from drinking alcohol and towards more activities such as board games, crocheting, foraging, and hiking.
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Though not a silver bullet, summer camps could provide a solution for both youth and adults to mitigate stress and form deeper connections in healthier, more wholesome ways. Seems to be very little downside to that.
And so, the final question on our minds is: What would an Asia-focused summer camp look like? What elements can be borrowed from Western summer camps, and what should be localized?
Sources:
Sulima, Jessica. “Inside the Viral Women-Only Summer Camp in the French Countryside.” Thrillist, 11 June 2024, www.thrillist.com/travel/nation/inside-women-only-camp-chateau-france.
Ciriaco, Mike. “Clothes Optional: How Adult LGBTQ+ Summer Camps Bring a Modern Twist to a Hot Weather Tradition.” GayCities Wanderlust, 23 May 2024, www.gaycities.com/articles/87330/clothes-optional-how-adult-lgbtq-summer-camps-bring-a-modern-twist-to-a-hot-weather-tradition.
This article was written by Elena Kim, a Senior Strategy Manager hailing from the Yuzu Kyodai Singapore office. An anthropologist and storyteller, she decodes culture and consumers through a distinctly ‘third-culture’ lens. Her lateral curiosity fuels her passions for travel, beauty, art/design, music, and wellness.