As fall and then winter approaches, the number of camping participants will significantly decrease. Now is the time to begin needed repairs and renovations of campgrounds. The changes that you make now will affect your customer satisfaction and stay rates come spring time. Camping is an extremely popular spring and summer activity. The overwhelming majority of surveyed campers said they are planning an average of 4.9 camping trips, with two thirds planning three or more trips. These are some of the most important renovations and changes that you can make.
Update your lodging accommodations
Camping can include a tent, RV, or a cabin. People tend to have different camping preferences, so you need to ensure that all of your camping accommodations are up to date. This means caring for the land nearby tent camping. It means upgrading RV hookups. It also means ensuring that all of the cabins are in top working shape with running water and a good source of electricity. Your camp resort will be judged on the lodging accommodations and the low guest counts of the fall and winter are the perfect time to make these needed upgrades and changes.
Ensure safety to your campers
Safety is another concern when it comes to camping. There is a thrill to sleeping outdoors. However, campers also want to feel safe when they are sleeping outdoors. While a campground cannot entirely prevent accidents or injuries on the campground, they can create camp resorts that are safe and low risk. This means regularly spraying for bugs, creating plans to keep rodents and snakes out, and having an emergency call system nearby. For cabin campers, it can be useful to provide locks on the doors so that campers can lock their belongings inside of the cabin. Additionally, creating shady campsites areas can prevent extreme temperatures from harming the campsites and the campers.
Make the campground child friendly
More and more people are planning family camping vacations. Some of these families will also be camping with young children. In fact, among current camping participants, 85% took their first trip between birth and age 15. After age 15, the chances of being introduced to camping were slim. Similarly, 57% of campers participated in regular activities as children, while a just one quarter of non participants were exposed to the outdoors. Making your shady campsites child friendly is a great way to attract family camping. When families are planning family camping vacations, they are concerned mostly about safety and then about the availability of child friendly outdoor activities.
Pay attention to community houses
Campsite community houses can be a useful resource to campers. These community houses often include things like food, water, and shower facilities. While many families enjoy camping, most do not enjoy entirely roughing it. Upgrading your community houses can help to attract more campers. Current campers traveled an average distance of 186.7 miles for camping trips. The little things, including the shady campsites, the upgraded community houses, and the safe campgrounds are what encourage families to travel a little farther when choosing a family campsite.
Stand out from your competitors
Your direct competitors are those campsites within a short drive from your location. You will want to pay attention to what is different about their campsite. These features could be what are attracting campers to their site, and not to yours. It could be something as minimal as more shady campsites or it could be the availability of nearby activities. Find out what sets your competition apart and make changes as needed.
Camping participant numbers drop during the cooler months of the year. A successful campsite owner uses this time to upgrade and improve their campsite so that they can attract higher numbers during the popular summer camping season. Specific things to pay attention to during these months are creating a safe campsite, upgrading community houses, creating a family friendly and child friendly campsite, and understanding your competition. Making these changes now will prepare you for a successful and busy summer season.
