A few months ago I flew down to Tennessee to walk a 25-acre campground Michelle and Ryan bought for $575,000.
It sits against the Cherokee National Forest, near whitewater rafting, and within driving distance of Atlanta. It’s gorgeous. And they are building a glampground on it as I write this.
I made a video about this trip and posted it on YouTube this week. It’s a great watch if you want to see real owners at actual glamping properties making real decisions being made in real time.
If you want the full context, you can watch it here:
👉 Watch the YouTube video
What stood out most wasn’t just the land. It was how intentionally they approached their first season after they bought this existing campground.
They didn’t rush development.
They didn’t overbuild.
They simply ran the campground themselves first.
Scaling a Glamping Business Starts with Clarity, Not Speed
Year one was about learning.
They wanted clarity on:
- How guests move through the property
- Where demand shows up
- What creates operational friction
- What unlocks long-term upside
That season delivered exactly that.
They saw where the booking system limited flexibility and they saw how marketing could do more of the work.
Most significantly, they saw how glamping could elevate a strong asset without changing what made their land and location so special.
Nothing was broken necessarily. They were just ready to make better decisions and grow the potential of their campground.
Clarity Creates Better Decisions and Scale
The best operators don’t just move faster. Instead, they slow down long enough to see clearly.
So when they reached out about joining us and making this a Ferncrest location, I knew it was not a hasty decision, but one made with a lot of thought.
And that’s also why my time on-site with them focused on making their business better while embracing what makes this campground special in the first place. Instead of trying to reinvent everything, we focused on:
- Layout and flow
- First impressions
- Where wellness belongs
- How parking, paths, and amenities interact
- How pricing evolves as experience improves
Because when you get these things right, everything downstream gets easier.
So if you’ve found yourself thinking:
- “I want to invest in a property like this”
- “I prefer phased growth over rushing”
- “I want glamping layered onto a solid asset”
- “I don’t want to reinvent systems and branding”
Then this may resonate for a reason.
I’m hosting a live Ferncrest Franchise Opportunity webinar today at 12:00pm ET where I’ll walk through how we think about site selection, phased growth, and partner support. Everything about working with us and owning a Ferncrest of your own.
If you’re curious, you’re welcome to join.
And if nothing else, watch this weeks YouTube video. It’s a real look at this stage on the ground.
Happy Glamping,
Brian
