Skip to main content

This 1,000-square-foot luxury tent costs more than some houses

We all have those friends (or maybe we are those friends) who refuse to go camping unless there is, at the bare minimum, some sort of yurt situation. Be it the bugs or the cold, hard ground, communing with nature isn’t on their list of the top 10 ways to spend a weekend. The Autonomous Tent might be the answer to their glamping (that is, glamorous camping) demands.

Designed by Harry Gesner and Patricia DiMario, the structure is meant to be both luxurious and low-impact, meaning it doesn’t require a foundation and you can take the solar-powered tent with you when you leave the wilderness. That’s good, because it will set you back $100,000 for the smaller, 700-square-foot Cocoon version and $200,000 for the 1,000-square-foot Tipi. That’s more than a few nights in some five-star hotels, but the creators envision its wealthy clientele will be more intrepid and take the tent off the beaten (or paved) path.

Included in that six-digit price tag are steel or aluminum tubes or laminated beams and “high-tech, translucent fabric, which is mildew, rot, and pest resistant,” according to the company. It’s built to withstand 90-mile-per-hour winds and heavy snow. Both designs sit on raised decks.

With the solar panels, the tent can run LED lights, pumps, water filters, and a composting system. Either solar water heater panels or a propane water heater make showers a possibility, with a graywater system filtering the H2O for a greener experience.

If you can’t afford to buy one yourself, there are a few resorts that have them set up. For $495 a night, you can stay in a 500-square-foot version at the Treebones Resort in Big Sur, California, according to Dwell. Complete with a sink and shower, it also has a gas fireplace and comfy bed.

We can almost imagine Phyllis Nefler deigning to spend a night here. Almost.

Editors' Recommendations

Jenny McGrath
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Jenny McGrath is a senior writer at Digital Trends covering the intersection of tech and the arts and the environment. Before…
Watch more than 1,000 robots dance their way to a world record
robots dance for world record dobi dancing robot

Someone in China recently had an idea to attempt a world record for the most robots dancing simultaneously. If you think that's an odd thing to try, then bear in mind that Guinness World Records also has listings for the heaviest weight lifted with an eye socket (16.2 kg), the fastest 100-hundred-meter-hurdle run wearing fins (14.82 seconds), and the most nails hammered with the human head in two minutes (38). Best you don't try that last one at home. Or anywhere, for that matter.

The dancing robot record seems tame in comparison, but Guangzhou-based WL Intelligent Tech clearly felt it would be an excellent way to bring some attention to its "Dobi" humanoid robot. And the company was absolutely right.

Read more
This luxury electric car won’t have 1,000 hp, but it won’t cost $100K either
Lucid Motors Air

The Lucid Air electric luxury sedan debuted last year with a claimed maximum range of 400 miles, 1,000 horsepower, and a rumored price tag in the six-figure range. But apparently, those figures only apply to the high-end version.

While a fully optioned Air will cost more than $100,000, the base model will start at $52,500, Lucid confirmed on Wednesday. That's after the $7,500 federal tax credit for electric cars is applied, so the true base price is an even $60,000. With that savings come some more down-to-earth performance figures.

Read more
New Epicurious app puts more than 1,000 food videos at would-be chefs’ fingertips
epicurious recipes and food videos 14925253 10157727854755204 6763092295472901682 n

Do you have a mind for all things culinary and are you curious to learn more? There's an app for you. On Tuesday, Epicurious launched a new app for iPhone and iPad that brings recipes into the 21st century by way of video. Meet “Epicurious Recipes & Food Videos,” the app that promises to put "more than a thousand food videos directly at your fingertips."

Ninety new recipe videos are now available on the app, because while the art of cooking may be millennia old, we shouldn't have to rely on the same old methods to learn new techniques. “We believe that the future of recipes is video,” said Eric Gillin, executive director of Epicurious and head of product for the Food Innovation Group. “When you open Facebook, when you open Instagram, more people are learning to cook and getting inspiration for their next meal from food videos than before.”

Read more