than two decades will open to guests. The Daniel's Head Village will bring a new concept in vacations, with visitors staying in tented cottages dotted on the Island's most western peninsula, reporter Tim Greenfield meets the man behind the plan.

Although eco-tourism is the most common word used to describe the village taking shape at the former Canadian base, visitors will not find themselves using candles for light or a compost unit for a toilet. The emphasis will be on getting "back to nature'' rather than immersing themselves right into it.

Inside the 96 tented cottages it will be similar to a large hotel room, with a queen size bed, sitting room, bathroom and verandah -- and the 17 over the water will have a glass viewing panel of the marine life underneath. The guests will have some modern conveniences, like a ceiling fan, but there will be no air conditioning, and the entertainment on offer will be the natural world outside.

Lew Geyser, whose Destination Villages company is behind the project, believes there will be no shortage of vacationers eager to experience something different.

"There is a group of people out there who prefer not to come to an air-conditioned place where everything is shut up. In these places, you are not sure what country you are in because they are all the same,'' he said.

"People of any age, kids especially, will get a real kick out of it. And people who like to go camping, we are offering them a cross between the two -- comfort and nature.'' The resort will offer a balance, for those who want to get away from it but also knowing there are restaurants, activities and transport should they want them.

Without wanting to sound snobbish, Mr. Geyser says it should attract a more educated kind of tourist, one who is keen to learn about Bermuda and its culture.

An artisans centre will provide local craftsmen a place to display their wares and interact with the visitors.

"It is for people who are interested in finding out what others do, not just going to stay in a hotel and play golf.'' According to Mr. Geyser there is already strong interest from the UK and US, and although he is not making any predictions on the first season, he is confident it will take off.

"I think it will be a success, it will make the front page of every travel magazine, you just can't get this experience unless you have a big boat moored on the ocean.'' Open all year round, the structures are made of aluminium and an acrylic material designed to look like canvas -- complete with Bermuda-style roofs.

Mounted on huge wooden poles, they are stressed to withstand hurricane force winds of 100 mph.

Mr. Geyser, from Santa Barbara, California, is also planning to build two more similar villages, one close to Yosemite National Park and the other in Hawaii.

With his financial partner, Excel Legacy Corporation, he has ensured the project made it through to this point after the originator, Stanley Selengut parted company with the plan. Mr. Selengut, said Mr. Geyser, cooled on the idea and wanted to build just six units at a time before finally deciding last January that he didn't want to be involved with the project at all.

"It was up to me to do something or let it die,'' he said. "With all the work that'd gone on I thought we should do something.'' Now it's heading towards completion and Bermuda will soon see a new type of tourism development take shape.