dude ranch

American  

noun

1. a ranch operated primarily as a vacation resort.

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dude ranch British  

noun

1. a ranch used as a holiday resort offering activities such as riding and camping

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Etymology

Origin of dude ranch

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

A few years later, Henson and his wife, Gayle, opened a dude ranch in Santa Barbara County called, in a stroke of eventual marketing serendipity, Hidden Valley Ranch.

From Salon • Jun. 1, 2025

At the all-inclusive dude ranch, summer outdoor activities include fly fishing and paddle boarding.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 24, 2024

And we’ve stayed at a dude ranch in Arizona, riding horses, swimming laps, dishing on guests and wranglers.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 28, 2023

The facility was like a dude ranch, where the nobility played winemaker for a day.

From Science Magazine • Apr. 19, 2023

Jerry G. carried the cross downstairs, heaved it back into the station wagon, and drove a half-mile south through sagebrush land to the dude ranch incinerator.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols