We recently came across an economic study of the caravanning and camping industry analysing the views of 790 UK campsite owners + 7,501 campsite visitors (circa 2018).
The study answers the question: “what really makes the campsite business profitable?!”
[NOTE: It has views from both sides of the fence: the providers & the customers.]
The study crunched tons of data to provide unmissable take-home points for EVERY campsite owner to learn from.
Dive in…
Firstly, a UK campsite market overview
- There are an estimated 6,243 holiday parks or campsites in the UK.
- This amounts to 438,076 pitches.
- Producing 171,448 full-time equivalent jobs.
Takeaway: a highly competitive industry with very few added-value differentiators. A significant driver for the UK tourism economy (£5.3bn per annum or 8% of all tourism).
A bit about UK campsite owners
- 33% owned their sites for between 10-24 years.
- 34% owned their sites for over 25 years.
- 18% owned their sites for less than 5 years.
- 15% owned their sites for 1-5 years.
Takeaway: 2/3 campsite owners in the UK are experienced. Once bought in, they tend to hold on to their assets for over 10 years. 1/3 are relatively new to the industry.
What do the campsites look like?
Common amenities
- 53% of very small sites (1-5 pitches) had a shower
- 38% of very small sites (1-5 pitches) had WiFi
- Larger parks almost always have a toilet and a laundry
Takeaway: very many, very small sites now have bathing facilities and internet. Perhaps these features are being seen as non-negotiable.
On-site activities
- 39% of all sites offered no on-site activities at all
- 26% of all sites offered fishing
- 21% of all sites offered a swimming pool
- 51% of very small parks (1-5 pitches) had on-site activities
Takeaway: activities are no seen by campsite owners as vital for success. Setting up such activities tends to involve high capital expense. Perhaps smaller sites are looking to differentiate more with on-site activity.
Off-site local activities
- 95% of all parks and sites have local area cycling/walking routes
- 86% of all parks and sites have local area fishing
- 75% of all parks and sites have local area golf/pitch + putt
- 69% of all parks and sites have local area swimming
- 66% of all parks and sites have local area horse riding/pony trekking
- 50+ of all parks and sites have local area watersports, bike hire or tennis
Takeaway: the favourite British outdoor pastimes go hand in hand with a campsite and holiday park business model. Sites are feeders of such complementary practices.
Opening times
- 58% of all parks open seasonally (69% of these open March to October)
- 42% of all parks open year-round
Takeaway: the season is largely defined by the academic calendar. With low booking activity expected throughout the offseason, many simply shut their doors. But remembering the frequency of bookings from visitors – are there long term benefits to be gained from repeat out-of-season bookings?
Occupancy rates
- 70% occupancy in August
- 12% occupancy in December
- 30% occupancy in March
Takeaway: expect a bell-shaped curve of occupancy throughout the year as an owner. Perhaps you’ll even see a complete drop off of income during offseason months should you be shut down. Cash flow smoothing management will help you meet obligations when your income takes a dip.
Employment
- 14.2 full-time staff ave. across all (very small sites with 1-5 pitches had 0 staff across the board)
Takeaway: household family help suffices small sites (1-5 pitches). Above this complexity, staff is typically required.
What do the visitors look like?
Some general visitor stats
- 44% of visitors stayed on a campsite or holiday park at least 5 times in the last 12 months.
- 76% used their own: tourer, motorhome or tent.
- 16% rented a caravan
- 5% used a rented lodge/chalet/cottage
- 2.4 people – the average group size
- 25% of all visiting groups inc. children
- 35% brought a pet (usually a dog)
Takeaway: almost half of all visitors are REGULAR campers. It’s habitual – a handful of times per year. 3/4 have their own accommodation. Children and dogs are often onboard. 2 to 3 guests per party is to be expected.
Length of stay
- 23% of visitors stayed for 3 nights
- 14% of visitors stayed for 7 nights
- 3% of visitors stayed for 10 nights
- 2% of visitors stayed for 14-15 nights
Takeaway: over 1/3 visitors will spend the typical number of nights on-site (either 3 nights or 7 nights). Outside of this, there are exceptionally short and long visits. But they are to be expected from time to time.
Booking popularity by month
- 23% began their trip in May
- 8% began their trip in April
- 14% began their trip in June
- 13% began their trip in July
- 18% began their trip in August
- 13% began their trip in September
- 4% began their trip in October
- 3% began their trip in March
Takeaway: May and August show particular peaks of interest for bookings. Bank holidays and a looming return to school perhaps might have something to do with this. A short getaway to the country being the prescribed tonic.
Visitor spend
- £55 per day on-site for renting UK visitors
- £46 per day off-site for renting UK visitors
- £101 per day total spend for renting UK visitors
Takeaway: UK visitors will spend on-site in preference, compared with spending off-site.
- £53 per day on-site for UK caravan owners
- £36 per day off-site for UK caravan visitors
- £89 per day total spend for UK caravan owners
Takeaway: UK visitors will spend marginally more than UK caravan owners.
- £1,050 per visit (~£500 on-site per visit) for international renters
Takeaway: International bookings are worth over twice the income per visit compared with UK visitors. However, the return factor of locals could compensate for this.
Visitors choosing sites to visit
- 30% were visiting the area
- 27% were revisiting the area
- 13% had visited the region before, but not the area of the campsite
- 11% were visiting family and friends
- 11% saw an advertisement for the park in a magazine, newspaper or website
- 11% were recommended the site by someone they know
- 13% visited a site because their camping club membership communication mentioned it
- 7% visited a site to take part in specific activities in the area
- 6% visited a site because of an event or festival taking place nearby
Takeaway: location is a critical factor for campsite success. The popularity of the area, personal recommendation, advertisement or other local amenities all impact the decision to book. It literally pays to your homework before investing in a campsite business.
Go To Part 3: https://campsitebusinessplan.co.uk/knowledge-base/campsite-owner-interviews