Australians trade social media for medieval weekends in the forest
Participants spend weekends in Armidale forests role-playing medieval soldiers seeking authentic human connection away from digital life.
In an Armidale pine forest, groups dressed as medieval soldiers, merchants and knights spend weekends recreating life around 1450-1470. Participants eat simple food like bread and cheese, engage in hand-to-hand combat, and keep watch through long nights.
Event organizer Luke Binks says the appeal is escape from digital life. "People are really craving some realism, they're craving escape from what feels like a lie to us sometimes," Binks says.
Amanda McCaughey, with six years of experience, says these events offer genuine presence. "If you get stuck in a doomscroll forever, how is that real?"
she says. Professor Tom van Laer notes that the events bring back human connection in its truest sense: humans in the same space doing something together.
- Armidale pine forest
- Location
- 1450-1470
- Time period recreated
- 4 days
- Camp duration
Why it mattersDigital fatigue is pushing Australians to seek unmediated human connection and escape from social media's algorithmic feeds.
AustraliaCommunities across Australia are organizing immersive role-play events as more people reject algorithm-driven content for offline experiences.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 3 h ago
Open this story in InSnip →
