Four hours out of New York City, the bus pulled into a campground on the edge of the Pocono Mountains in Equinunk, Pennsylvania. At first glance, it could have been any traditional summer camp: rustic log cabins tucked among tall pines, a sweeping green lawn wrapped around a glittering lake, and a flagpole standing proudly at its center. But the illusion didn’t last long. A Dunkin’ Donuts truck was parked by the water, handing out caramel iced coffees, pickleball courts replaced open fields, and coolers of La Croix lined the pathways. This wasn’t Camp Walden from The Parent Trap — this was Camp Social.
Camp Social is the brainchild of 28-year-old influencer Liv Schreiber, who first launched Hot and Social — a community and events company for people in their 20s to 40s — after struggling with loneliness when she moved to New York City at 21.
“My parents had spoken of New York City as such a welcoming, inclusive, easy-to-make-friends city, and then when I arrived, I was like, ‘Were they lying?’” she tells The Independent. She said that although making friends had always come easily to her, in New York, she found she could no longer just walk into a bar and strike up a conversation. “I was kind of bummed, I just wanted to meet other people,” she says.
Her experience resonated with thousands of young adults who have been swept into the so-called “Loneliness Epidemic.” 21 percent of U.S. adults feel lonely, and 73 percent attribute it to technology, according to a recent report from Harvard Graduate School of Education. The entrepreneur therefore decided to create events of her own, where the only requirement was to show up by yourself and leave with a friend.
From the Hot and Social events, which ranged from co-ed pickleball parties to private dinners, spawned the idea of a women-only summer camp. “I went to sleep-away camp growing up, and I realized that adult female versions of fun are so not fun,” Schreiber says. “We have to put on makeup, we have to do our hair, we have to pick an outfit, we have to look cute and put together. We have to get the content. It's so perfectionist and fake.”
However, one of the ironies of Camp Social is that despite its ethos of removing 21st-century pressures, Schrieber wants campers to get the “influencer experience.” Arriving in their dormitories, campers can expect to find Lands’ End tote bags stuffed with sponsor swag: a Dunkin’ gift card, a mini bottle of alcohol-free Chardonnay, dried fruit, facial wipes, a scrapbook with supplies, and a flashlight. It’s just one of the ways Schreiber justifies the $883 price tag for a two-night stay (women can also pay an extra $599–$699 for a private room). “What other camp has Dunkin’ as a sponsor?” Schrieber asks rhetorically, “And is giving out a Lands’ End tote bag with over $500 worth of free gifts? It can’t be compared to just another sleep-away camp.”
As soon as we’d dropped our luggage off at the bunks, the weekend took off at full speed. The first itinerary was pinned to a bulletin board in the heart of camp, offering activities from arts and crafts to paddleboard yoga and rock climbing. I ended up running into the woman I sat next to on the bus, and she introduced me to a small group of her cabinmates. We spent our evening exploring the camp’s campus while taking advantage of the shortest lines for activities we could find, leading us to tie-dye T-shirts and paint candles.
There was a short break before “cocktail hour,” filled with an elaborate charcuterie board and drinks courtesy of Blake Lively’s brand, Betty Booze. Conversations flowed easily — where people had come from (several had flown in from abroad), what drew them here, what they did for fun. “I went to sleep-away camp as a kid and really loved all of the friends I made there,” 25-year-old Taylor Kahn told me. “This is my second year here because last year was just so fun.” For someone who had arrived feeling terrified about knowing no one, I began to realize how quickly strangers could feel like friends.
Schreiber told me the most popular age group this year was women in their mid-30s to 60s. “Camp is meant for women who don't look like me, who aren't my age, my background, my ethnicity, so I feel like it's really succeeded with finally attracting people from around the world of all ages and backgrounds,” she said.
After a buffet-style dinner of pastas and salads (with donuts for dessert), we gathered around for a welcome message before the bar opened, and we were split into our bunks to participate in an MTV-style lip-sync battle. Everyone then danced the night away to a local band that played covers of Taylor Swift and the Jonas Brothers, which was the perfect opportunity to re-live my childhood sleepovers where my friends would jam out and dance to CDs on my Little Mermaid CD player.
The next day started bright and early, with the option to participate in a 7 a.m. cold plunge into the lake or a yoga and pilates class, the latter of which I impressively managed to drag myself to. Participation was optional; you could dive into activities or sleep off the previous night. By mid-morning, the camp was alive with a minimum of six activities offering everything from archery and rock climbing to lakeside painting with mimosas and friendship bracelet-making.
Through each activity, I bounced between the friends I had already made while adding to my circle by talking to whoever was sitting next to me. Before I knew it, women were approaching me left and right just to see how I was doing or if I was interested in following them to the next activity.
More traditional camp favorites were also in play: a Color War with volleyball, human foosball, and team flag-painting; a pool party featuring a giant waterslide and lake inflatables. Dinner that night was barbecue-style, followed by a pajama-themed dance party and an outdoor screening of The Parent Trap under the stars — we were at camp, after all — complete with classic movie snacks and late-night curly fries and mozzarella sticks.
As much as everyone seemed to love their time at Camp Social, there were some constructive criticisms. Alyssa Wysocki, 30, told me three days didn’t feel like enough to enjoy everything the camp had to offer. “It’s hard to just sit and take in the scenery with all of the activity options,” she said. “I wish it was more like Thursday through Monday instead of Friday through Sunday.”
Rebecca Taylor, 30, admitted to wanting more ice-breaker activities to deter people from sticking to their cabin groups. “I still wish there were more networking opportunities,” she said.
“A lot of people I met were from New York, so I would’ve liked grouping together everyone who lives near me or another area.”
By Sunday morning, exhaustion had caught up with most of us (myself included). Campers shuffled between activities like zombies or caught up on rest after two late nights. When it came time to leave, there was a scramble to snap last-minute photos with new friends before buses pulled out between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
I can’t lie that after finally getting off the bus in New York City, I didn’t know what to do with myself. What do you mean, my friends and I couldn’t go to the barn and finish decorating our scrapbooks? To make matters worse, I’d somehow mostly managed to make friends with women who lived across the country and not near me in New York.
Despite feeling skeptical when I arrived, it was hard to say goodbye. Schriber’s slogan that “99 percent come solo and 100 percent leave as friends” was indeed ringing true — my camp group already has a group chat set up with plans for a virtual craft night for next week.
Camp Social may be quite a bit pricier than a traditional camping trip, but what it offers is a truly unique experience bolstered by an unrivalled range of activities. It’s an environment where women genuinely cheer for each other and don’t care about appearances.
There’s a common misconception that groups of women inevitably splinter into cliques or “mean girl” dynamics. I never witnessed any of that at Camp Social. Maybe it’s the price tag. Maybe it’s the self-selection of women eager to connect. Or maybe it’s genuinely the magic Schreiber has tapped into.
Whatever it is, I felt nothing but welcomed, supported, and rooted for throughout the weekend. As cheesy as it sounds, I left with a group of friends I never would have met in New York, each of them priceless in their own way.
If mansplaining is just how men talk, maybe they need to be taught the art of conversation
The office v home working debate that is dividing workers
Gen Z thinks ‘marrying rich’ is the easy option – trust me, it’s not
Why Anastasia Miari wants you to live like a Mediterranean nonna
The ‘performative male’: Should we just embrace this new-age masculine attitude?
Bruce Willis’ ex-wife Demi Moore says her position is ‘interesting’ amid his dementia
