Luxury safari tents pitched in pristine Midwest prairie land entice you to get your glamp on and immerse yourself in nature. At Camp Aramoni, outdoorsy diversions are plentiful, and you’ll have eagles, owls and deer for neighbours.
The luxury safari concept gets a quintessentially Midwestern twist at Camp Aramoni – and brings something brand-new to Illinois hospitality. The joint passion project of local husband and wife team Jennifer and Tim Bias, this glamping-plus collection of 11 nattily appointed all-weather tents, custom-made in South Africa, sits on 96 secluded acres of prime prairie land in rural Illinois’ LaSalle County, just 90 minutes’ drive southwest of Chicago.
The scenic site, formerly home of the 19th-century brickyard Ristokrat Clay Products Company, is named for the bordering Vermilion River’s original Miami-Illinois Native American denomination – and that of the red-clay soil local people would use to decorate their bodies. Opening in its current incarnation in 2022, the campground invites guests to immerse themselves in untamed space shared with eagles, hawks, blue herons and deer, and hike, cycle, canoe or fish at leisure in perfect prairie peace.
Ramblers love the hiking trails that intertwine with the grounds’ two scenic creeks (bicycles are also available to borrow for on-site exploring), and water babies are spoiled with stretches of the serene Vermillion where it’s safe to wade and canoe in a handmade craft on Ristokrat Pond. Wrapped in stands of mature trees, Camp Aramoni is also a great spot for birdwatching, with hundreds of indigenous species well worth your binoculars’ bother.
Relics of the former brickyard buildings can also be found around the site, such as the remains of the coal-fired brick kilns, now imaginatively repurposed as the picturesque events space Bricks & Stones. But four decades of loving rehabilitation have left the land, which knits seamlessly into the panoramic prairie horizons, the star of the show.
| Perfect for | Fly into | Right on time |
| The Adventurer | ORD | GMT -6 |
| While you’re Out There |
| Just seven minutes away via IL178, Starved Rock State Park spectacularly gives the lie to Illinois’ rep for being all pancake-flat prairieland. Dramatic sandstone canyons formed by glacial meltwater, awe-inspiring rock formations and idyllic waterfalls feature in this gloriously raw 2,600-acre wilderness area, where you can spot white-tailed deer and bald eagles from the network of hiking trails. And there’s fascinating Native American and settler history to discover here, too. |
The spacious tents are nicely pimped with hardwood floors, dreamy king-size beds – we loved waking to birdsong, and drifting off to the calls of crickets and owls – seating areas and bijou bathrooms, and each comes with its own private campfire. Simple but succulent breakfasts and dinners using produce from the on-site kitchen garden and chicken coops are served in The Barn, the camp’s gathering space and restaurant, run by celebrated Chicago chef Cleetus Friedman (don’t be fooled by the simplicity, though: Cleetus also leads a programme of on-site cooking demonstrations, guest chef pop-ups and wine tastings that show just how serious Camp Aramoni is about excellent produce with a focus on local suppliers). Room-service meals and champagne picnic hampers can be booked through the front-of-house team, as can in-tent massages.
Camp Aramoni also makes a handy base for exploring nearby state and wildlife parks such as Starved Rock near Utica and Wildlife Prairie Park close to Peoria, where black bears and bison roam. Close too are local towns which, wrongfooted for a while by the demise of industry, have in recent years begun to sprout characterful business and leisure communities based on revitalised local creativity and entrepreneurialism. Two great examples can be found a 20-minute drive away in the former manufacturing centre Peru. Star Union Spirits, a craft distillery serving outstanding cocktails and hearty comfort food was the first of more than 20 small businesses to breathe new life into the stunning 1917 shell of the former Westclox clock factory in recent years. Thyme Craft Kitchen, meanwhile, just across the street, has put unfussy but high-quality farm-to-table dining on the local food map (diver scallops with black garlic molasses- just sayin’).
Back at camp, the homemade s’mores waiting for us in our tent were just one of many touches that added homespun charm. Another was the repurposed 1961 Airstream – the Burlington, named for the railroad that once serviced the brickyard – that both served frothlicious morning lattes and mixed a mean nightcap cocktail.
Photography courtesy of Camp Aramoni
