It's called Hub-and-Spoke touring and allows you to explore and get to know a new area without the hassle of packing up and moving or carrying all your stuff with you every day.

My first organised tour like this was the Logan's Pass tour put on by the Elbow Valley Cycling Club in Calgary. We all camped in a spot on the west side of the Going-to-the-Sun Road (near West Glacier, Montana) over a long weekend, and each day we decided where we wanted to ride. The first day we broke up into 3 or 4 groups, the second day I think we only broke into a couple groups, and the third day we were all together.

It was an excellent opportunity to explore the area in our own way, and we were all together for breakfasts and dinners.

And I couldn't have done it from my house, as my house was nearly 600 km away.