The glamping sector is experiencing exponential growth all over the world, and Italy is no exception. One of the leading manufacturers in this market is Outstanding, a leading Dutch company in the production of luxury glamping tents, which in recent years has recorded constant growth in turnover in the Italian market, aligning itself with the European trend.
The Outstanding tents stand out for the use of premium materials such as the strong and sturdy 100 mm frames and the 650-gram PVC roof, the strongest on the market. Each tent is crafted with care and attention to detail, to provide an impeccable living experience while ensuring the maximum durability.
Although the parent company is in the Netherlands, Outstanding boasts several dedicated sales offices. In Italy, distribution is 100% local, handled by the recently established agency Aria Glamping run by Massimo Pecchia and Andrea Gallesi. Aria Glamping has also developed some popular options for its customers: the addition of a bidet, metal sliding entrance doors, custom-made furniture with Italian design and bathrooms for the disabled.
Constant innovation and first choice materials
Outstanding is a young company (the average age of management and administration is no more than 40) that continuously invests in research and development, to propose increasingly innovative and cutting-edge solutions. The recent “Seas-on” tent is concrete proof of this commitment: thanks to its effective insulation system, it can be inhabited in both summer and winter, with native predisposition for both air conditioning and heating, but with extremely low heat dispersion, capable of keeping energy consumption within highly profitable thresholds.
In addition to this, Outstanding offers a wide range of models to meet every need, from small to large lodges an from classic structures to modular solutions. To suit the most varied contexts, even when renovation of pre-existing installations.
“Demonstrating a particular sensitivity to social issues, Outstanding has succeeded to adapt three of its tent models present in the catalog to make them accessible to disabled people, adhering to the regulations of the Tuscany region and, recently added, to those of the Marche regarding inclusive tourism,” explains Massimo Pecchia. A concrete commitment to inclusion.
A new way to experience camping
Outstanding tents are not simple living facilities, but true oases of comfort, often immersed in nature. With its luxury tents, the company offers the possibility of creating glamping experiences of the highest standard, capable of satisfying the highest customer demands and making the accommodation extremely competitive in the outdoor tourism market.
Outstanding is part of a holding company, therefore it can count on an very effective economy of scale, which allows privileged and convenient access to high quality materials that the world of glamping shares with other sectors, such as nautical, construction, and transport.
Interesting examples come from Outstanding’s latest Italian installations. “At Terre di Sacra, in Capalbio (Tuscany, ed), we are following a particular project, in which the Seas-on tents have aluminum windows, full insulation, a large glass opening at the front and a 5-square meters veranda,” Pecchia explains. “Another case comes from Le Tegole Resort & Glamping, an accommodation facility in the province of Pisa where, to the initial 8 tents, 4 tents will be added this year and 12 next year”.
Glamping: positive numbers, unclear rules
In Italy, the glamping phenomenon is growing at a rate of about 10% per year. The leading region for the phenomenon is Emilia-Romagna, with an annual rate of 15%. There are 294 glamping facilities in Italy, with a total of about 10,000 beds. The region with the largest number of glamping facilities is Tuscany, followed by Piedmont and Veneto (source: Risposte Turismo). The size of the global glamping market has been estimated at around $2.1 billion and is expected to continue expanding at an annual growth rate of 12.5% unitl 2025 (source: Grand View Research).
Despite these very positive numbers, Italian legislation on glamping is not very clear. The current regulatory reference is Legislative Decree May 23, 2011 n. 79, which regulates the tourism market. This decree establishes the general guidelines for the opening and management of tourist facilities, including campsites and portions of property that can actually be used for this purpose.
However, each region in Italy has the power to regulate certain aspects of tourism. The Liguria Region, for example, recently approved its “Consolidated law on tourist accommodation facilities and short-term rentals” which provides for the possibility for accommodation facilities other than campsites to have a limited number of pitches.
The characteristics of glamping tents that make them similar to a real house, such as connections to the sewage system and an internal electrical system, have however given some municipalities the foothold not to issue permits for the installation of new structures in absolutely suitable spaces, effectively rejecting the relevant legislative decree, and in some cases also the regional regulation.
These are actually isolated cases, mostly relating to cities of art with a widely consolidated hospitality ecosystem, but precisely because similar uncertainties exist it is important for those who choose to install dedicated glamping facilities to turn to experienced manufacturers who offer high-quality products, who on the one hand are able to best handle all local regulatory aspects, and on the other can guarantee full support in the event of changes in legislation.
