Paws Up Tent Homes: Luxury Safari Living in the Wilds of Montana

Glamping: Camping meets luxury in posh tent accommodations in remote, wilderness settings.

Among the guest residences at The Resort at Paws Up, a 37,000-acre luxury western resort based in Montana, are such fabric-encased shelters, tricked out with electricity, air-conditioning, full baths, and eye-catching Bohemian-style decor.

“The Resort now has one-, two-, and three-bedroom tents to accommodate anyone from solo travelers or honeymooners to larger families,” said The Resort at Paws Up owner Larry Lipson. “Our newest glamping camp, North Bank Camp, opened in June 2017, and it can accommodate families and groups with four two-bedroom, one bath tents and two three-bedroom, two-bath tents. Anyone with an appreciation of nature and ‘roughing it like a royal’ is a good candidate to stay in one of The Resort’s luxury glamping tents.”

No, The Resort at Paws Up doesn’t offer private home ownership, but, it’s a great place to experience a unique vacation and glean design ideas if you’re looking to expand accommodations at your ranch or mountain home. Here’s a look: 

The Area

The Resort at Paws Up is located 35 minutes northeast of Missoula, Montana, in Greenough, in the heart of the Blackfoot Valley. The Lewis and Clark Trail passes near the land that makes up The Resort at Paws Up today. There are journal entries by the explorers that identify specific landmarks on the property.

The Resort

Opened in 2005, the 37,000-acre (more than 60 square miles) stunning property features untamed Montana wilderness steeped in Lewis and Clark history, and ten miles of river front on the famed Blackfoot River (of A River Runs Through It.) 

Summer visitors will find 120 miles of designated hiking, mountain biking, horse, and ATV trails. Activities offered in the summer glamping-friendly months include fly-fishing, cattle driving, rock repelling, whitewater rafting, bird and wildlife watching, and sporting clays shooting. The Resort is open year-round.

No ranch experience would be complete without horseback riding. The Resort at Paw Up boasts the largest equestrian center in Montana. It’s a working elk and cattle ranch with dude ranch activities cowboys at heart will love. 

The Tents 

The Resort offers half a dozen different tent options, from multiple tent camps for groups, to private honeymoon tents, to luxury homes with adjacent tents perfect for housing kids.

Here’s a look at North Bank Camp. To the left is a shared dining pavilion:

And here’s a closer look at a tent:

The attached baths are permanent structures:

The camp’s central pavilion is covered space for gathering and dining:

And a fire pit for gathering under the open sky:

All of this is surrounded by open terrain:

Lipson sums up what The Resort has to offer: “A primary goal of luxury camping at Paws Up is to provide guests with a base to explore the wildlife, beauty and pristine majesty of Montana. Paws Up combines five-star amenities with the authenticity of a historic cattle ranch and the scenic beauty of a national park. It also provides a natural environment for family bonding, a gateway for personal discovery and exhilarating wilderness adventures that can lead to a true life “reboot.”

Contact The Resort at Paws Up to book a tent or traditional home.