Glamping with the stars: Inside Aman's ultra-luxe Utah desert camp

They startled me more than I thought they would. A meteor shower cast strands of cosmic debris above us, a jarring effect against the dark sky blanketed by a billion luminous dots.

With post-dinner whiskey in our hands while nibbling on s’mores in front of a crackling fire pit, my friend and I halted our conversation to look up and allow the universe to overwhelm us. We marvelled at the ­visibility of the Big Dipper and a smudge of Milky Way partly obstructed by a flat-topped mesa’s silhouette, as we kept watch for shooting stars in this remote swathe of southern Utah.

I retreated to my “tent”, reminiscing about childhood camping outings that involved sleeping bags under mesh, poles and polyester. Once I had passed my personal plunge pool and outdoor shower (there’s an inside one, too) to enter my camp quarters, I realised the grown-up me might prefer this reimagined version of “roughing it”.

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This is Camp Sarika, the new, rugged offshoot of ultra-luxe desert design icon Amangiri and one of 2020’s most anticipated hotel openings. With just 10 pavilions scattered across 55 acres of barren canyon country, Camp Sarika has become the inadvertent poster child for socially distant getaways during the life and times of coronavirus.

My apologies in advance if this review feels like a tease, since UK travellers cannot enter the United States under FCDO regulations and border controls. I might be doing you a favour, though. Despite costing £2,600-plus per night (prohibitive for most), the resort – operating just six of the 10 pavilions as a precaution – is booked to the gills for the next few months. Keep your reservation fingers at the ready for 2021 and beyond, though.

The pandemic disrupted Camp Sarika’s original April 2020 debut, but the resort officially opened in July with Covid-19 protocols in place. All of the staff wear masks, from the drivers shuffling guests between Camp Sarika and neighbouring sister Amangiri, to the massage therapists. Guests undergo temperature checks at the security gate and cleaning protocols are reassuringly thorough.

Who is staying at Camp Sarika? It’s difficult to tell when most are cocooned in their self-contained pavilions. It will likely attract a similar cohort to Amangiri: tech tzars, mega-celebrities (Kylie Jenner and the Biebers are among the guests spotted there this summer), West Coasters and international magnates seeking the utmost privacy at any cost.

Most of them arrive here from Las Vegas, Phoenix or Los Angeles – either on a scenic road trip through the Grand Circle, or on private jets which land on a tiny Arizona airstrip 25 minutes away from the resort.

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The camp’s main “base” is the only place where you will find signs of other human life. Tanned concrete walls and steel frames housing the reception and restaurant – overseen by chef Orean Currier with fantastic grilled cuisine – pay homage to Amangiri’s minimalist profile. Alongside it is a large heated ­outdoor swimming pool sprinkled with loungers and two spa treatment rooms, flanked by an imposing, ochre-striped mesa wall.

Defining Camp Sarika’s one- and two-bedroom pavilions as “glamping tents” is a loose interpretation. Underneath each flamboyant, outstretched canvas roof – woven from recycled plastic bottles and able to withstand 12 tonnes of snow – is a lodging with concrete walls. Built for year-round stays, each of the pavilion has zoned air-con units too.

Designers Luxury Frontiers – based in San Francisco and Johannesburg – ­fashioned the pavilions, placing them 330ft or more apart and connecting them to a winding dirt track accessed via personal golf carts. Some of them face the towering mesas closely bordering the resort; those with the finest views look towards the widened desert landscapes and the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.

Interiors are understated and industrial-lite, with white, canvas-lined walls and furniture made of walnut with leather trimmings. The glass doors fronting the bed are the scene stealers: waking up to a private view of jade-coloured sagebrush, mesas and the ­occasional jackrabbit during sunrise is a rather fabulous way to rise and shine.

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The term “sarika” is Sanskrit for “open space” and “sky”, which I felt was quite apt once I ventured on to my outdoor deck. In front of my private pool, telescope and fire pit were expansive views of wilderness unsullied by signs of civilisation. The only stranger that might have seen me skinny dipping in the hot high noon was a young coyote prancing in the distance.

Guests of Camp Sarika also have the coveted privilege of accessing the facilities at nearby Amangiri. The property is a scenic ­five-minute drive away via one of the resort’s SUVs.

It’s worth it just to use that pool, a swimming hole encircled by a curvy 165 million-year-old sandstone escarpment, regularly seen on the Instagram accounts of the rich and famous.

Camp Sarika is far less showy than its sister, yet more sumptuous in terms of space and in-room amenities (all of the pavilions have private plunge pools, while only the more expensive suites at Amangiri have them). Families and small groups would find Sarika to their liking, as would honeymooners.

Both resorts allow guests to explore the 600 acres of private land, mostly via hiking trails. The most challenging is the Via Ferrata, where one scales hundreds of feet of rock wall (with cables and rungs) atop a mesa connected by a network of suspension bridges high above the canyon. You have to climb down the same way you climbed up – my anxious legs felt like jelly by the time I returned to solid ground, but what an experience it was.

And, rest assured, the resorts aren’t actually as isolated as they appear. A half-an-hour drive brings you to some of the ­American West’s finest sights such as Horseshoe Bend on the Colorado River, Antelope Canyon (which is closed at the time of writing) and Lake Powell – all points of natural beauty that are popular with visiting daytrippers and adventurous (authentic) campers.

All this prompts the question of whether a stay at Camp Sarika is actually worth it. Surely, the same starry night show that I witnessed would have appeared the same from a DIY campsite elsewhere in Utah. But it all comes down to wanting to explore one of the world’s most extraordinary desertscapes in unbridled luxury – and I might be biased, but this bar-raising glam camp made those gooey, flame-roasted s’mores seem tastier than anywhere else on the planet.

Pavilions start at £2,605 per night (aman.com). Rate includes all meals and non-alcoholic beverages, Page Airport transfers, group fitness classes/hikes and unrestricted access to Amangiri.