Camping as a way to spend your holiday has for many years now been transitioning from a low-end kind of vacation option to the more luxurious type of holiday. The word “camping” once stood for an old tent, caravan, or motorhome set up in an emptied back yard that sported only the most basic amenities and was maybe situated next to a body of water. Now camping encompasses one of the most versatile ways of spending your holiday. There are so many different options where to stay, what to do, what level of luxury is offered that perhaps new words should be invented for the different segments within the camping industry. However, they almost all have one thing in common — the campfire. In the evening campers of all ages and backgrounds are drawn to it to socialize and share stories.
Travel trends are not something that spring up each January and are then cast aside in December. However, there are small shifts into existing directions and alterations into new ones. So which directions have the trends been taking this year?
- Foray into luxury
We began this blog by talking about how very basic camping was at the beginning. While basic or dry camping is again a growing segment, the opposite trend is also rising — glamorous camping. Glamping has been around for many years now and has taken up completely new and innovative forms. If we go glamping now, it does not necessarily mean staying in a luxuriously made-up tent with breakfast served on a pristine lawn. Retired vehicles, from old buses to old planes, have been converted into accommodation facilities and even an odd UFO has landed here and there. Tree houses are also on the rise. They offer many of the luxurious accessories found in royal suites of 5-star hotels plus a wonderful view of the surrounding nature. Even hotel chains are recognizing that high-end guests have started to get a taste for camping. That is why they are building campsites of their own.
2. Back to basics
While on the one hand camping has paddled into sumptuous waters, another segment has been trending back towards the basics. This is happening both in the motorhome market, where smaller and nimbler B-Class campervans are on the rise, as well as with tents and caravans, where dry camping (as long as it is legal) is growing. This segment is more often than not connected with activities in nature like stargazing, which is also a new trend. This is not to say, though, that back-to-basics camping means shabby equipment. New materials are making it tougher, more durable and better suited for extreme weather conditions.
3. Rise of local
It is always nice to travel to foreign countries and see new places. However, in the last few years, we have been witnessing a shift towards local and small. Travelers have come to prefer local cuisine, handicraft, and culture more than the global trends, as they seem to be the same everywhere. In countries such as France, Italy, or the UK, far more than half of all the guests in campsites are domestic tourists and the campsites are operated by domestic operators. The trend of going and valuing local is not only visible in travel but also in other walks of life, but this is a topic for another blog.
4. Ecological stamp
Being eco-friendly and sustainable is all the rage now and a campsite that does not boast one or more eco-friendly stamps will slowly feel its guests trickling away to ‘greener’ playing fields. Of course, this does not mean that campsites need to be 100% sustainable and self-sufficient with water and energy, but it does mean that they have to recycle the waste, maybe heat the water with heat collectors and at least post ‘water-saving’ stickers next to the wash basins and showers. The eco-friendliest campsites will display a whole array of novelties, like everything made of wood, recycled grey water and even black water sometimes, or rainwater collectors. Of course, the eco-friendly price we pay for the accommodation isn’t always purse-friendly, too.
Are these the trends you have noticed on your early camping trips this year? Leave your thoughts in the comments sections below. And if you liked the text, please consider sharing. thanks!
