I hate camping. I hate sleeping on the ground. I hate bug bites. I hate backaches. I hate going to sleep at sunset and waking up at dawn. I hate fearing for my life while wondering if an animal (or unhinged human) is going to murder me. But I do like the idea of camping—communing with nature, feeling at one with the universe while stargazing, consuming dozens of s’mores—and I recently learned that everything I dislike about camping can be easily solved by booking a reservation with Timberline Glamping Sarasota.

Like me, Timberline owners Anayancy and Alex Escarpanter love nature, but weren’t eager to camp until they experienced glamping—a portmanteau of the words “glamorous” and “camping”—at Hillsborough River State Park in Thonotosassa, Florida.

“We love nature, especially with our kids. It calms them,” says Anayancy. “But, ironically, I don’t own any camping gear. We would spend time in nature, but not spend the night. The first time we went glamping was a eureka moment for us: a clean bed elevated off the ground with air conditioning, a mini fridge and a coffee maker. We love and respect true-blue campers, but these little touches allow you to focus on the rest of the nature.”

The glamping sites at Hillsborough River are run by Timberline Glamping, a company founded in 2018 that operates glamping sites in Georgia, Alabama and Virginia, in addition to Florida. After their experience glamping at Hillsborough River, the Escarpanters decided to partner with the company to bring the Timberline experience to Oscar Scherer State Park in Osprey.

Timberline Glamping Sarasota launched in October with two permanent “glampsites,” one with two queen-sized beds and another with a king-sized bed and two sets of bunk beds. The two sites—Nos. 105 and 106—are each outfitted with a wooden platform topped with a canvas safari tent that’s then draped with a waterproof tarp to keep glampers dry.

The bedding is soft and cozy, and the pillows rival that of any nice hotel I’ve stayed at. The air conditioner keeps you cool on hot days, and a heater can warm you up in the winter. Outside the tent, you’ll find a picnic table, a charcoal grill and a fire pit, plus plastic Adirondack chairs.

When you’re not at the glampsite, Oscar Scherer offers miles of walking trails through Florida scrub habitat, plus bicycle-accessible roads that connect to the Legacy Trail. It also has a little lake where you can rent canoes or kayaks or even swim, if you aren’t terrified of alligators like I am. The park is also near loads of restaurants in Osprey and Nokomis if you want to take a break from the campfire and search out a piña colada.

The Timberline experience doesn’t include everything you’ll need. Plan to bring your own food, toiletries, bug spray and the like. The company’s welcome email, which arrives when you book your tent online, outlines all the necessities to remember. And if you’d like to step things up, you can add extra touches like a pop-up gazebo ($65), bicycles ($45) and even a charcuterie box ($80-$120).

While there are currently just two glampsites at Oscar Scherer, Timberline will be adding two more permanent sites in March at Nos. 19 and 20, each outfitted with the same features as the existing sites.

I stayed at 105 for two nights last week. Somehow, after the driest summer our area had seen in years, it rained all 36 hours I was there. But guess what? I woke up dry. And even though I couldn’t enjoy the park amenities, it didn’t matter. I had no desire to leave my nest, and the sky even cleared up just long enough to start a fire and make one single s’more. I still hate camping—but do I love glamping? You bet I do.

For more information about Timberline Glamping Sarasota, visit sarasota.tlglamping.com