Picnics, s’mores and the great outdoors! Can we ask for anything more from an amazingly summer getaway?! We think not. A luxury tent camping venue, Vail Collective Retreat is one of the best spots for just such an experience and we’re feeling all the summer nostalgia after flipping through these pictures.
Colorado might be one of the best destinations for people who love to adventure, hike, bike, horseback ride, camp, or simply enjoy all of Mother Nature’s bounty. If the idea of getting back to the land has inspired a trek to the mountains, Vail Collective Retreat could be totally up your alley. While most people think of Vail as a winter destination for skiing and snowboarding, there’s no shortage of awesome things to do in the spring, fall and summertime too. This permanent glamping spot closes up shop for the season this year around October 14th and reopens again around May 11th. So, there’s still a little bit of time left to have that last vacation hoorah of 2016, or start planning next summer’s family getaway, friendcation or bachelorette bash.
Kaitlin Chad from The Every Hostess recently popped in on us with a little Q&A sesh and gave us all the details of her shoot at Vail Collective Retreat with Amanda Lee of Pure Lee Photography. And quite frankly, we haven’t been able to stop fantasizing about a trip to the mountains since!
Words by Kaitlin Chad of The Every Hostess Images by Amanda Lee of Pure Lee Photography
Tell us about your stay at Vail Collective retreat - some of your favorite things about your time there? What are the special touches that The Vail Collective Retreat offers?
Everything was amazing! You felt like you were in the middle of nowhere even though you were on this beautiful ranch with many activities to choose from and even a winery to visit walking distance from your tent. Vail Collective Retreat was so wonderful to us from the moment we drove into the ranch. They made sure we had everything we needed when we arrived and even took our luggage up to our tents for us so we did not have to walk it up. The tents accommodated all of our needs from coffee and tea (even a kettle!) to bathrobes. You truly had five-star hotel service being in a tent. 
Tell us about your fun picnic & s'more bonfire, morning coffee and breakfast?
The picnic we had the first night was by far my favorite activity. Vail Collective Retreat offers a "BBQ in a Box" which contains the meat of your choice (you get three options) along with sides. They set up these adorable tables with the boxes waiting for you by the barbecue. We cooked the meat on the grill, which happened to be these amazing Bison burgers, while enjoying a bottle of wine which we bought from the winery on the ranch. After dinner we were treated to a bonfire with "S'mores in a box"!
In the morning when we opened the door of our tents to enjoy the view with our coffee we found a little basket full of fresh made banana bread, jam and fruit! We later ventured up to the chef tent where we had a delicious breakfast of any eggs we would like, pancakes and bacon!
What did you pack? Any packing tips?
Since I was there to take a bunch of photos for my blog I definitely over packed a bunch of outfits! The things I was most glad that I did pack though were coats and sweaters for the evening. You are in the mountains so it does get chilly at night! Oh! And a rain coat! It poured a couple of times in the evening unexpectedly so it was a life saver having that!
Did you do anything in the town while there?
We ventured to East Vail to do a hike (Booth Falls - which is so beautiful!). But other than that we stayed on the ranch. They have everything you need there. The best part was the winery! They do tastings until 5pm. The owner of the Vail Winery is great and very knowledgable about wine. He will give you a tour of the wine making process and let you taste some wines in the barrel. 
It looks like you went fishing/hiking/horseback riding - can you expand upon some of the activities you embarked on?
This was a great aspect about the location of Vail Collective Retreat. It is next to Four Eagle Ranch which accommodates all of your summer adventure needs. From zip-lining to horseback riding and more, you could sign up for any activity. We went horseback riding one afternoon through the valley behind the campsite which was so stunning! The guides were so wonderful and made sure we had a great time. I would honestly say it was my favorite horseback riding experience. 
Why does this spot make the ultimate group getaway destination?
With it's location not only close to Vail but also on Four Eagle Ranch, they cover all your outdoor adventure needs. Whether some people want to go hiking or other go horseback riding, everyone can sign up for whatever they feel like doing during the day. Have everyone meet up at Vail Winery at the end of the day to try some wines then venture to the barbecue to make a delicious dinner OR they also offer a chef prepared farm to table dinner that was incredible! Done by a local chef, he created some of the most delicious dishes using all local flavors. To end the evening the campfires and s'mores make for a great group activity! 
Design/Styling: by Kaitlin Chad of The Every Hostess | Photos by Amanda Lee of Pure Lee Photography
