Going Glamping: An interview with Native Bell Tents
Interviews 04.05.2022
Ash Barton can sleep about 50 people give or take a few. But if you want ALL your wedding party to stay over and continue the celebrations the next day, having guests camp – or glamp – in our grounds is the way to go. So we were pleased to catch up with Ellie of Native Bell Tents recently who, together with partner Vaughan, has quite literally set up camp for various Ash Barton weddings over the years.
What do you most love about a wedding held at Ash Barton?
"The setting is hard to beat and working alongside people such as Katie the wedding planner at Best Day Ever makes it such fun. We love to hear feedback about how much people enjoyed their stay in our bell tents. Sadly, we don’t really get to experience the weddings as we tend to be all set up before everyone arrives!"
So what day do you usually set up?
"If it’s a weekend wedding, we usually set up on the Thursday morning as soon as the previous bridal party has left. Sometimes we set up around 20 tents so need a full day to have everything ready for the couple’s arrival in the afternoon and their guests on the Friday."
How long has Native Bell Tents has been in operation?
"We’re now in our tenth year off the back of 30 years working locally in the surf industry. We also have a surf hire outlet in Braunton."
And do you operate all year round?
"We usually begin operating at Ash Barton each year from April onwards because it’s just too cold before that. However, just at the end of March, we did a wedding with 11 tents!
"Most people seem to be fine camping between April/May right up to end of September and even October."
And what kind of tents do you provide? Do you have different sizes?
"We have high quality cotton canvas bell tents, which stand up to most weathers and look wonderful set up as a whole village of tents. And we have 4m tents which sleep up to three people and a 5m size tents which sleep up to four."
Are they only for sleeping in?
"Mostly yes. But some people do make use of our 6m bell tent as a boudoir tent for guests to get ready in or as a bridal bell. We don’t offer these out as guests’ sleeping accommodation anymore due to the likelihood they might experience wind damage. But we tuck them somewhere sheltered at Ash Barton and all is well."
And do you create those gorgeous interiors as well?
"Yes! Vaughn is the creative genius behind our interiors and sources fantastic finds, some that are fair trade or vintage. He upcycles trunks and tables to make bespoke looking furniture and each tent is unique. We like to be colourful and uniform in our layout. We have upgraded to camping beds now too. We add chalk hearts with guests’ names on at the doorway and have bunting blowing in the breeze outside too. It looks really pretty (in my opinion!)."
It does look pretty! What’s been the most unusual or memorable wedding you’ve provided tents for?
"We used to attend a venue in Somerset that had no real track leading to their wild camping field and the team used to have to heave huge great tents and all the kit by hand up the track/stream bed! We like the ease of access at Ash Barton for sure!"
And finally. What advice would you give to Ash Barton couples thinking about providing a camping/glamping option for their guests?
"It’s easy to do! We create a personalised PDF for each wedding so that the couple can pass these to their guests. It has their booking reference, size and prices of tents etc and it saves the couple a lot of time if they don’t want to carry the weight of organising all their friends and family. The guests book directly with us quoting their requirements. But couples can also handle the whole booking too and send us over a list of names and tent requirements.
"We have lots of FAQs on our website which explain deposits, refunds and the duration of bookings.
"We’re flexible, helpful, experienced and creative with lots of ideas and recommendations for other suppliers too. Vaughn is super safety conscious when it comes to location of tents and the wind too.
"We love our business, and we love Ash Barton and look forward to creating many more lovely bell tent villages in the years to come!"