This sounds like an interesting idea. But I have a hard time imagining myself completely taking 2 weeks off to go to an adult summer camp. Like, just a week is kind of a big commitment for any adult

So make em one week, or optional 1-2.

but especially so if you have kids...if I'm going to uncommit myself from my life for 2 weeks, I could go backpacking in the Himalaya or hang on the beach in Thailand instead.

People with kids have a hard time just going to a comedy show compared to people without. Kids just complicate shit, it is what it is. They'd have just as hard of a time with a backpacking trip in a faraway land as a cabin in the woods in-state (I mean, clearly the trip would actually be way harder). Hell, make it nearby to a kids camp, schedule both at the same time, bam childcare, and probably still cheaper than a flight across the world and a wilderness camping trip, especially for the inexperienced in camping who may have to also buy gear they aren't familiar with and yadda yadda also could die. And a solitary wilderness trip across the world doesn't exactly spell "meeting people" as well as "local summer camp with group activities," they're entirely different beasts.

While I'm not a fan of Theil, his event had appeal because of the people you would expect to be there - the rich and powerful and megalomaniacal..

Sure I guess if that's your thing. I'd just like to meet a nice woman with a decent job they've had for like a year, a nurse or vet tech or fucking grocery store manager lol, anything. My last few exes have been the "can't keep a job for more than 3mo and ride the jobless period until the proverbial gun is to our heads" types. I'm now at a spot where I'm good (not great but I'm living alright) but I'm not trying to adopt a child, I just want an equal. A megalomaniacal influencer type isn't exactly what I'm seeking. Don't make it an exclusive secret society cult deal, just make it affordable for people who can get a little PTO and like lakes.

Burning Man.

Long dead, a shell of its former self.

Or Comic Con.

Great and they have a rope swing into a lake, a scavenger hunt in the woods, archery classes, campfires, smores, and cool cabins?

No? Just sweaty nerds dressed as yellow suit Wolverine? Hardly seems similar to me.

Or Bonnaroo.

Tbf this seems like it would have the largest overlap of interested people out of things listed, but you can see why this isn't the same vibe at all same as ComicCon, right?

Or the Highland Games Championship.

I'll be honest I'm entirely unfamiliar with this but "championship" is a big enough clue that it isn't a "summer camp."

I'm a rock climber. I know quite a few places where you can post up for months at a time and live cheap with other climbers and just go climbing every day (to the point where we've deemed one of our favorite spots "adult summer camp").

Neat. Everyone else might not be. Maybe I'd rather play tug of war with Squad B and then go fishing. I don't really even like non-stable heights actually, but I do like hiking and taking pics of snakes. Do you have instructional classes on the local flora on Wednesdays at your camp or is there maybe room for both, you're welcome at ours if you want to learn!

I'm also a backpacker. If I want to, I can head to a popular long trail and start walking, and every night for weeks or months share a camp with others passionate about walking a long ways out in nature.

Hell maybe you'd like to volunteer! You seem like a perfect person to help lead hikes for those less experienced!

Or if you care about cultivating local community, you can go to a city street festival, or attend art classes at a community center.

That sounds like a great idea for when I get back from camp! Still not seeing any drawbacks here lol.

So clearly, there are a lot of other options to choose from.

"You can eat steak, why would you ever eat a burger?"

And the big question on my mind is - what kind of people would this attract?

Fun ones probably, that don't try to hate on shit just because they're more experienced than another person at wilderness.

After all, if you like canoing, you can just buy a canoe and go down a river for weeks with your friends.

Yeah you really do have all the money, trips to the himalayas and thailand, buying everything you may be interested in just to try it, jfc my guy you wanna donate to my ko-fi?

(Tbf to some degree I have to do the same due to lack of "trial" options for most things these days, back in my era you could rent stuff for the day, these days...

And you still clearly are doing way better than me! I'm saving up for a camera lens myself, should have it by Feb...

Still bringing back those olden ways isn't bad. Quite the opposite.)

If you like shooting guns, you can buy a gun and drive to the middle of no where and shoot until you run out of ammo.

Criminal too? Daring I see. That's so illegal, get caught shooting on someone's land without permission and it won't matter how remote it is, you might not make it off.

Or you're just rich as fuck (which we already know you can quit bragging) and you own that land, then you can legally shoot, but refer to last rebuttal.

So I can't help but think that the sort of people this would attract would be the people who just want to be at summer camp.

Soooo fun people? Cool.

They don't want to canoe or shoot, they just want to relive the summer camp experience.

The summer camp experience of canoing and shooting, yes. You need a hug?

They want to relive the summer camp experience so bad that they are willing to take 2 weeks off and shell out oodles of money for it.

Well that was the whole point of the "not charging trip to himalayas money" of the thing. Keep it affordable for normals and volunteerable for us poors. I think you might be too rich to get it.

Which makes me think that it would attract a crowd that has some kind of especially strong desire to regress into childhood,

I think you're assumptions might be projection.

hashed with a general desire to not plan or make descisions - ie, the all inclusive resort/cruise/big bus tourism crowd

Besides the decision of going to this all inclusive lake summer camp resort (I mean, in a sense, it'd share little similarities with Sandals but your meals are served in the Mess Hall, there are structured activities but instead of massages there's ghost stories around a campfire, etc)? Idk man it sounds like not everyone is you and as such maybe this entirely different thing to what you do would be enjoyed by some.

Have fun in the Himalayas, I wanna play tug of war in Appalachia.