Beneath Canvas Columbia River Gorge overview

For about 80 miles between Portland and The Dalles, Oregon, the Columbia River snakes by means of the Cascade Mountains previous rocky cliffs, towering spires and dashing waterfalls to type a spectacular river canyon. The Columbia River Gorge, which marks the border between Oregon and Washington, is claimed by each states as a pure surprise. It boasts infinite outside recreation alternatives, to not point out fruit selecting, arts and tradition, and breweries and wineries galore.

Whereas the world has all the time been a straightforward day journey from Portland, it has lacked the lodging choices for points-savvy vacationers to unlock multiday journeys — till now. On the finish of Could, Beneath Canvas Columbia River Gorge grew to become the thirteenth property within the glamping model’s portfolio, which joined World of Hyatt final summer season. Its proximity to the Gorge landed it on TPG’s most fun lodge openings of 2025.

Whether or not you are a camper on the lookout for a extra comfy outside keep or a resort fanatic attempting one thing new, this inside take a look at the property will assist set your expectations for an satisfying keep.

First impressions

As you exit Interstate Freeway 84 and start to wind your method into the mountains, it turns into a reputable problem to maintain your eyes on the street as an alternative of on the spectacular views of Mount Hood and, later, Mount Adams. Fortunately, views are in no brief provide when you arrive at Beneath Canvas. As you ascend the gravel street main as much as the property, you may first glimpse its tents from above, nestled right into a valley beneath Hood’s hovering peak.

When you drive down into camp, you may seize a short-term parking spot and enter an inviting check-in tent full with upscale furnishings, board video games for borrowing and a curated assortment of meals, drinks and merchandise. Steps away from check-in are the property’s frequent areas, which embody a big fireplace pit with Adirondack chairs in addition to indoor and outside lounge areas. I arrived simply after sundown to witness visitors sharing bottles of wine, households roasting marshmallows collectively and children enjoying with new mates beneath the alpenglow on Mount Hood.

After listening to about potential wildlife encounters — bears and snake sightings are doable, although unlikely — you may signal a waiver; you may additionally give any meals you will have introduced with you to the check-in crew to keep away from critter encounters in your tent. (Don’t fret, the workers refrigerates it and can seize it for you any time you need.)

When check-in is full, you may transfer your automotive as much as the principle lot and certain enlist the assistance of a workers member and golf cart to move your luggage, because the stroll could be pretty far relying in your tent location.

The tents

Beneath Canvas gives tent sorts to swimsuit numerous get together sizes, together with tents particularly outfitted for youths. They vary from two-person Deluxe tents to the Mount Hood Suite, which joins two tents by a personal deck and sleeps as much as six adults.

I stayed in a Stargazer tent, which includes a strip of skylight above the mattress, ideally positioned to provide you a view of the cosmos if you’re mendacity down. Whereas it is solely meant for 2 adults, the tent was extraordinarily spacious and comfortably match me, my husband, our canine and my 9-month-old daughter (plus her pack-and-play crib and numerous different gear).

Outdoors the tent, there was a small deck and two chairs good for studying or admiring the view. There was additionally a lantern hanging outdoors the doorway that indifferent so you might use it to navigate after darkish. Simply contained in the door flaps — which pulled again for extra airflow — was an outdoorsy, stylish dwelling space with two extra butterfly chairs, a woven ottoman and a cowhide rug.

The sleeping area featured a king-size mattress with luxe linens flanked by nightstands sporting lanterns, followers and USB battery packs for charging. On the foot of the mattress was a large storage chest, and there was a tray full with eye masks, towels and earplugs ready for me on the mattress once I arrived.

The icing on the cake was a propane hearth. Different Beneath Canvas properties have wood-burning fireplaces, however right here, I had solely to flip a swap to get the hearth going. The cool nighttime temperatures have been good for it.

On the opposite facet of a sliding picket barn door was the ensuite toilet, which included a rest room, sink and bathe. All three had nice water strain, and the sink and bathe have been fast to warmth up. Contained in the bathe have been natural bathtub merchandise in pump bottles.

General, I discovered the tent rigorously thought-about, well-appointed and cozy. I liked that it had the whole lot I wanted however nothing superfluous. Do not sleep on the attention masks and earplugs: The solar rises very early throughout peak summer season, given the northern latitude, and the tents, whereas non-public, are shut sufficient to listen to loud night breathing neighbors and crying infants.

Eating at Beneath Canvas Columbia River Gorge

The principle eating choice on the property is Embers, a cafe-style idea with seasonal choices for breakfast and dinner. Given the property’s distant setting, I discovered each the choice and high quality at Embers spectacular; the menu spans starters, sides, entrees, children’ choices and desserts.

For dinner, I liked the PNW rice bowl with marinated inexperienced chickpeas and black garlic shoyu ($18), and my husband loved the wild king salmon ($32). In the meantime, the trio of dips and pita ($19) was a success with my 9-month-old daughter, who notably appreciated the smoky candy potato hummus.

Breakfast includes a full menu of espresso drinks and classics like avocado toast ($16), brown butter pancakes ($16) and breakfast sandwiches ($16). Bottomless espresso and tea from Portland-based Smith Teamaker are included. Observe that Globalists don’t get complimentary breakfast at Beneath Canvas or different Mr & Mrs Smith resorts.

Embers shouldn’t be open for lunch, as visitors are usually out and about through the center of the day. Your finest wager is to move again down towards the river to the charming city of White Salmon, the place White Salmon Baking Co. is a private favourite for sandwiches. Throughout the river on the Oregon facet, Hood River is a bigger metropolis with a number of eating places, breweries and meals vehicles to select from.

Away from the principle eating space, Beneath Canvas gives complimentary nightly s’mores in addition to an array of snacks for buy close to check-in — assume potato chips ($3), path combine ($10), cheese sticks ($2) and brownies ($5).

Whereas the property does not but have its license to promote alcohol, it anticipates with the ability to promote alcohol someday this season. At the moment, a curated choice of craft beer, wine and spirits might be accessible to buy, with an emphasis on regional and native producers. Within the meantime, nonalcoholic beer is offered, and visitors are free to usher in alcohol they’ve bought elsewhere.

Facilities and repair

• Service: I discovered the service pleasant and useful all through my keep. Employees members have been all the time fast to supply a hand or a golf cart experience, and I liked chatting with them.
• Expertise coordinator: An on-site expertise coordinator is offered to assist visitors plan native actions like rafting, biking and canyoneering.
• Programming: Company can entry a calendar of every day actions, with choices starting from dwell music to meditation to arts and crafts tasks.
• Actions: Beneath Canvas has video games, a telescope and a guitar for visitor use.
• Fireplace pit: The property has a communal fireplace pit the place you may make complimentary s’mores nightly. I liked the way in which this shared amenity fostered dialog amongst visitors.
• Non-public bogs: Along with the in-tent bogs, there are just a few single-stall bogs with shops you might use to plug in a hair dryer, for instance.
• Pets: The property welcomes canine for $35 per canine per evening. Based on the Beneath Canvas web site, this payment features a bandana, although we weren’t supplied one. Whereas all canine are completely different, my princess of a pitbull positively most well-liked the big tent and actual mattress to our typical tenting setup.
• EV charging: I took benefit of the principle car parking zone’s Rivian Waypoints electrical automobile charging stations, that are suitable with any EV.
• Connectivity: There isn’t any visitor Wi-Fi on the property, which supplies an ideal alternative to disconnect and immerse your self in nature. Nevertheless, if you happen to want it, I did discover I had sufficient reception to name, textual content and do some easy web searches on my telephone.

Household friendliness

Beneath Canvas is a good place for a household journey, catering to children of all ages. The communal areas supply a number of area for youths to run round and play video games, and the property supplies particular tents particularly outfitted for youths. It additionally gives children’ menus, family-friendly programming and no-cost, pack-and-play cribs for infants.

Nevertheless, there are a few issues to bear in mind if you happen to’re bringing youthful youngsters. Most of the property’s facilities are shared amongst visitors close to the camp’s entrance, which means adults supervising youngsters cannot take pleasure in them after their children fall asleep. It is a completely different expertise from staying at a campsite, for instance, which might usually have a person fireplace pit and eating desk outdoors every tent.

The tents may also get highly regarded through the day, and whereas temperatures should not pose an issue for these out and about having fun with the Gorge, I can see them making issues difficult for households with youngsters who have to nap.

Location and logistics

Regardless of its Washington deal with, the simplest option to get to Beneath Canvas Columbia River Gorge is to fly into Portland Worldwide Airport (PDX) and drive. The roughly 77-mile journey takes about an hour and a half to finish, and far of that’s spent on a panoramic stretch of I-84 that follows the Columbia River.

Whereas it is doable to make use of a ride-hailing service to journey from the airport, I do not advocate it, as you may want a automotive when you arrive. For these trying to discover the Gorge as a part of a broader Pacific Northwest street journey, Beneath Canvas is about three hours from Bend, Oregon, and 4 and a half hours from Seattle.

What it prices to remain at Beneath Canvas Columbia River Gorge and the best way to guide

Beneath Canvas is a part of Hyatt’s Mr & Mrs Smith assortment, which means you may earn or redeem World of Hyatt factors when reserving your keep. Hyatt costs Mr & Mrs Smith awards dynamically, so you may see costs and factors fluctuate all through the season, which matches till late October and resumes in late April. By the tip of the season, I noticed base Deluxe tents for as few as $252 or 18,125 factors, however it can save you on that money fee with a 20% “Secret Season” promo occurring for dates this fall.

When reserving Beneath Canvas Columbia River Gorge, you may need to use one of many bank cards that earn probably the most factors for Hyatt stays, in addition to one which probably gives computerized World of Hyatt elite standing for value-added advantages. These embody:

Whereas sure World of Hyatt member advantages like late checkout and complimentary bottled water will not be accessible at Mr & Mrs Smith places, visitors with elite standing can earn nights and bonus factors at Beneath Canvas as they usually would, and Globalist members are eligible for tent upgrades at check-in if accessible.

Accessibility

An Beneath Canvas consultant shared with TPG that every Beneath Canvas location gives accessible tents, parking choices, bogs and foyer tents; Columbia River Gorge is not any exception. We advocate reaching out to the property immediately to verify particulars about accessibility options on-site.

Moreover, needless to say the property’s roads and paths are primarily grime or gravel, which can be difficult for visitors with restricted mobility, particularly throughout inclement climate.

Backside line

Beneath Canvas is a good addition to the Columbia River Gorge, notably for factors vacationers who now have an choice to earn and burn with World of Hyatt whereas benefiting from all the world has to supply. You could not ask for a greater location or views, and all kinds of programming, meals and facilities make it a enjoyable place to remain for visitors of all ages. I will positively be returning.

When you’re used to tenting, you may love luxurious touches just like the in-room bathe, gasoline hearth and actual bedding. When you’re not, it is necessary to keep in mind that Beneath Canvas shouldn’t be your typical lodge: On the finish of the day, you are still sleeping in nature, and you will be doubtlessly topic to noise, mild, critters, warmth and air high quality points. Whereas the workers does its finest to mitigate these components, you may have a a lot better time if you happen to alter your expectations accordingly.

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