Stay in a Yurt!

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Love the Outdoors? Try a Camping Yurt!

Yurts were invented thousands of years ago by nomadic Mongols, but the circular homes are seeing a modern resurgence with campers. You can now live like a Mongol and stay in a yurt at private and state parks throughout the country.

What is a Yurt?

Camping yurts are a new variation on a traditional structure

Merriam-Webster describes yurts as, "a circular domed tent of skins or felt stretched over a collapsible lattice framework and used by pastoral peoples of inner Asia; also : a structure that resembles a yurt usually in size and design."

Traditional yurts are homes built by nomadic herders of Mongolia. They have a lattice-wall framework with a covering of felted wool.

The modern canvas yurt is an adaptation of the traditional structure that incorporates nontraditional elements, but keeps the traditional flavor.

Rent a Yurt!

You don't have to visit the steppes of Mongolia to sleep in a yurt.

Yurts are becoming popular as alternative camping structures. Here are a few places you can spend a night in a yurt:

Oregon State Parks

Washington State Parks

Delaware State Parks

Idaho State Parks

Kachemak Bay State Park in Alaska

Ocoee Yurt Company - Tennessee

Idaho State University

Books About Yurts

If you're thinking about buying a yurt for a vacation home or regular home, here are some books that can help you decide whether the circular life is for you.
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Family Portrait Outside Summer Yurt in Kyrgyzstan

A traditional yurt

Yurt Videos

Learn more about yurts with these videos

yurt tour
by benjinds | video info

116 ratings | 75,906 views
automatically generated by YouTube

More Unusual Hotel Options

If a yurt isn't quite exotic enough for your sleeping pleasure, you might want to consider one of these places.

Out 'n About Treehouses in Oregon will let you spend the night in one of several (pretty fancy) treehouses.

At Jules Undersea Lodge in Florida, you can sleep in an underwater hotel - if you're a certified scuba diver who can dive 21 feet underwater to reach it.

In Idaho, you can bed down in a beagle. Yes, a beagle. Dog Bark Park Inn is a hotel shaped and painted to look like a giant beagle. Just don't tell your cat where you spent the night.

Yurt Photos

Don't know what a yurt looks like and whether you'd really want to sleep in one? Check out these photos for some yurt pics that'll show you what to expect.

yurt by DanielBL
Chasing Chickens by DanielBL
Yurt by DanielBL
Yurt frame by Paul Stainthorp
A yurt in the garden by Paul Stainthorp
Putting up the yurt by Paul Stainthorp
Spirtual Houses of Occupied London by Andrew Stawarz
Igloo....ish. by jronaldlee
Flowers at a resort by kriswho
Dusty in steppes of Inner Mongolia by Cory M. Grenier
Shelter from the storm by jronaldlee
20110928 32 Yurt by davidwilson1949
20110928 31 Yurt by davidwilson1949
Camels in Gobi Desert - Dornogovi Province - Mongolia by David Berkowitz
Camels in Gobi Desert - Dornogovi Province - Mongolia by David Berkowitz
Camels in Gobi Desert - Dornogovi Province - Mongolia by David Berkowitz
Camels in Gobi Desert - Dornogovi Province - Mongolia by David Berkowitz
Camels in Gobi Desert - Dornogovi Province - Mongolia by David Berkowitz
Camels in Gobi Desert - Dornogovi Province - Mongolia by David Berkowitz
Yurt by vastateparksstaff
automatically generated by Flickr

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About the Author...

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lisadh

I'm Lisa, a Giant Squid with two kids, two dogs, four cats, and a Squidoo addiction. You can learn more on my lensography.

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Yurts in the Orkhon Valley, Mongolia 

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