Recent data on the increase in the number of tourists in the outdoor tourism sector led to the need for greater attention to this phenomenon relating to environmental impact. Campsites and administrations deal with the sustainability issue regarding land use, climate and landscape, adopting sustainability protocols and applying a sustainable tourism approach. Among the main challenges is the need to deal with the local landscape. Campsites must define settlement systems that find site-specific solutions in compliance with the morphology, climate, and vegetation as environmental impact mitigation strategies. This study examines three case studies of campsites rethinking for environmental protection, starting from the settlement system of the maxi-caravans cluster. La Rocca Camping Village (lake) fits into the landscape following its morphology; Spiaggia e Mare Holiday Park (sea) contrasts the climatic element using a directed settlement; Agriturismo Fattoria la Palagina (hills) replicates the existing landscape by generating an integrated one. The case studies follow fundamental parameters for a landscape approach of campsite design: morphology, land use, biodiversity, sustainability and heritage. The paper aim is to demonstrate the sustainability of outdoor tourism, with respect to the landscape. The research results offer strategies for planning and regeneration of campsites to respond to sustainability issues.

This study investigates the role of glamping within outdoor tourism as a potential tool for preserving and enhancing local landscape identity. Despite its rapid growth, glamping remains weakly defined within regulatory and design frameworks. The paper aims to explore whether a design-oriented approach can redefine glamping as a landscape-based practice rather than a purely market-driven phenomenon, with particular reference to the Italian context. The research adopts a qualitative research-by-design methodology, combining a critical literature review with the development of two pilot projects located in distinct settings: a natural hilly landscape and a rural agricultural context. These projects function as experimental tools to test spatial, ecological, and perceptual design strategies, focusing on settlement density, landscape integration, and experiential quality. The findings identify recurring principles that enable the codification of the glamping–landscape relationship, including low-density configurations, reversibility of structures, respect for existing morphology, and reinforcement of landscape identity. Landscape elements such as topography, vegetation, and visual relationships emerge as primary drivers of design. The study contributes to the discourse by reframing glamping as a landscape design practice, proposing a reversible and context-sensitive model of temporary inhabitation that supports sustainable tourism development.