5 Summer Camps For Adults You’d Probably Love

Looking for summer camps for adults? You're in the right place! Whether you want to travel solo or you're just looking for fun travel ideas, adult summer camps and retreats can be tons of fun!

My mom is awesome for any number of reasons.
1. She makes a mean lefse
2. Her two favorite tv shows are Antiques Roadshow and Arrested Development
3. A few years ago, she and a friend started attending what can only really be called Summer Camp for Grownups

They share rooms, they make crafts, they eat in a big mess hall, they take walks around the lake … and I am toooootally jealous. My only summer camp experience was at safety patrol camp (!!!) so I’d like a do-over, please.

If you, too, want a summer camp redo – or you just want to relive the awesome – here are five amazing grownup summer camps I found for you.

5 Amazing Summer Camps for Adults

1. Camp Grounded

The fact that they’ve got a cleverly filmed promotional video almost makes me worry that this camp will be filled with people who look down on my appreciation for Ke$ha.
But then I saw the origami classes and pickling classes and woodworking classes and decided I don’t care because I really just need to master my fiddler crab origami. Also, they don’t allow cell phones, internet, tv, or computers – and couldn’t we all benefit from that?

2. Tortola Surf Camp

I’ve always wanted to be one of the Cool Women Who Surf but every time I’m somewhere surf-worthy the instructors are either deeply dicey or I construct another excuse. But if I carved out a week to learn? Well, then I’d have to do it, right?

This camp has a 3:1 student/instructor ratio and they promise things like “We will surf a beautiful beach break on Tortola, have a night time moonlit dinner on our own private island, and watch the most amazing sunsets in the Caribbean.” OH, OKAY.

Culinary camp for adults

3. Biltmore Culinary Boot Camp

I’m a pretty decent cook but my skills are mostly limited to carbs with cheese on them; I have no idea how to cook meat. This camp teaches you how to do that fast, impressive chopping and leads you through recipes like Hamachi Pineapple Tiradito and Citrus & Oregano Marinated Split Whole Chicken with Corn Souffle and Pickled Onions. Whaaaaaat?!

You’re winning every dinner party ever from here on out. And they’ve even got two different levels so you won’t be intimidated by a class full of people who know how to pronounce Beurre Manié.

digital photography and videography camp for adults

4. Digital Media Academy’s Documentary Filmmaking Camp

We’ve all got causes we’re passionate about and changes we’d like to see. What if we actually did something about it – like, make a movie?

You get to use super-fancy equipment like Canon HD cameras, pro audio gear, portable lighting kits, professional tripods and Final Cut Studio for post-production and editing. And you’ll learn the ins and out of interviewing and even how to script around technical problems.

dance camp for adults

5. Joy of Motion’s Dance Camp

My inner 15-year-old needs to attend this camp, like, yesterday. For $295, you get eight hours of instruction for five days straight. YOU WILL HAVE SUCH A GREAT BUTT BY THE TIME YOU’RE DONE.

In their own words “In the spirit of Gene Kelly and Judy Garland, experience this week long intensive where students dance, learn, and sweat, while working to put on a show like a true Broadway star. Participants will learn two performance pieces inspired by the work of such notable choreographers as Bob Fosse, Jerome Robbins, and Michael Bennett, to name a few.” Also: costumes.

Would you ever go to a summer camp for grown ups? And if you know of any other awesome camps, leave links in the comments!

Edited to add: MERMAID CAMP!!!

photos via dawna stone // ocean drive // pedro ribeiro simoes // john henderson // peter hubert // autumn mott // jenelle bell // cc

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16 Comments

  1. Liz Halle

    I love this post – was a camper and counselor at a sleep away camp growing up. Would love to try this out!

  2. Vanessa

    This passed September I sort of went to camp! There's a great organization called First Descents (firstdescents.org) who take young adult (18 to 40) cancer survivors (like me!) on awesome trips. I went on a rock climbing trip through Upstate New York.

    Other programs include white water kayaking and surfing. You stay in a nice cabin, they have two personal chefs who use only organic food, and there's an FD rep, a nurse and two volunteers taking care of stuff the whole time.

    It was a life changing trip for me. I finally got to meet other people who were young and fun and had cancer too. I wish I had more space to talk about it in my interview with you, Sarah, but it really changed my perspective on a lot of things. I've got the itch to go climbing again.

  3. katielookingforward

    I went as a kid..but I would love to go to Concordia Language Villages again, what a fun idea!

  4. Kate

    That Camp Grounded looks AMAZING.

    I recently went to Africa with G Adventures. It was a group tour thing but it was camping and safaris and all sorts of amazing stuff. I had been a bit worried about the whole 'group tour' thing before I went, but actually, after reading this post, I realised it was a hell of a lot like amazing summer camp for grown-ups.

    Everyone has a job every day, everyone pitches in and helps each other and acts ridiculous and plays games and tells stories and everything you do when you're camping and travelling. You meet such awesome people and do loads of amazing stuff together and then it's really, really hard to leave. It's one of the best things I've ever done and I will absolutely do it again somewhere else. I totally recommend it! And they run trips quite literally all over the world, so you can do anything you want with people who want to be doing that too. (And of course there are lots of other companies who do the same kind of thing, they're just the ones I have experience with.)

    Also, Re: the dance thing – I have been taking social swing dance lessons and it is SO. MUCH. FUN. And don't think you need to have rhythm to do such a thing. I have none. I am learning and having a total blast. The swing dance community is super friendly. PLUS it's a workout. I can't fault it in any way, really.

  5. Domestic Kate

    I'd love to go the dance camp and the documentary camp. I've always thought the idea of camps for adults is great. I'd love to learn how to play a sport like soccer (at age 34), but there aren't many opportunities to learn and practice a new skill like that as an adult. I once took a "family garden" class to learn the basics of gardening, but it was obvious everyone already knew the basics and the class was way too advanced for me.

  6. Reni

    What?! They have camps for us grown ups? I'm so in!! Thank you for this post!! I'm so excited!
    the little lion girl

  7. Emmy Hornburg

    OMG I need to go to the movie and dance camps!!!!!

  8. Shireen

    SO COOL!!! Gahh I just wanna go! Too bad I can't get my parents to pay for it 😉

  9. Kelly

    My mom and I went to the Folk School (https://www.folkschool.org/) a few years back, which is basically like craft camp for grown-ups. You pick a craft (there are different classes offered every week), stay in the dorms, and eat amazing family-style food in the cafeteria. It's in the woods in Appalachia, so it's beautiful+little cell phone reception. So fun!

  10. Rosemary

    Doesn't wandawega have a camp for adults?

  11. Anonymous

    Vegetarian Summerfest is also a great time 🙂

  12. michael hardy

    Perfect summer camps places for adults. I organize different summer camps and trips in schools. And agree with you the places you shared above are best for adults. For organising summer camps for children and adults this is the trips organizer http://www.tipsontripsandcamps.com/summer-programs/sleepaway-camps/ I always consult them for any trips and camps.

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