Glamping Accommodation

A brief history

‘Glamping’ (glamorous camping) is a relatively new, trendy, and widely used buzz word, however what it stands for is not a new phenomenon or concept and has been around in some shape or form for many years. For example, individual or small clusters of yurts could be found scattered around the UK countryside and usually in isolated locations during the 1990s’. They offered a wide range of accommodation experiences from back-to-basics to high-end luxury with 4-poster beds and the like.

Glamping is still considered to be a form of camping, but generally offers standards of accommodation and facilities of a more luxurious nature than the traditional camping holiday; often an experience combining hotel luxury and camping; some even have hot tubs! Glamping is also sometimes referred to as ‘luxury’ or ‘boutique’ camping and even ‘posh’ camping.

Today the glamping market offers a wide and ever-increasing variety of accommodation types including – pods, safari tents, tree houses, bell tents, cabins, dens, micro-lodges, tipis, shepherd huts, yurts, vintage caravans and more, with numerous operators each striving to create a unique glamping service and experience for their guests.

Changes and trends in the market

In more recent times and particularly as the international financial crisis took hold in the early years of the new millennium, holiday markets began to change, and new trends emerged. Travel overseas became more expensive and often cost-prohibitive, so value for money along with the continued desire for quality and luxury became a prime consideration for many holiday makers; and so, the staycation trend emerged and grew.

Glamping feeds a hungry staycation market and with an already buoyant UK domestic tourist market, coupled with additional demand following Brexit and through Covid-19 recovery and beyond, it is anticipated that demand for glamping accommodation will continue to be strong and will undoubtedly grow.

NI residents took 1.5m domestic holidays in 2019, spending £234m. These figures represent growth of 15% and 9% respectively on 2018 domestic holidays and associated spend.

Glamping is for everyone and attracts a wide variety of people – families, friends, couples, and solos; more recently it has brought a new, younger demographic to the market who are not attracted to the more traditional types of holiday accommodation.

Holiday makers are seeking experiences, and aspects that attract them to Glamping include:

• The outdoor way of living with some luxury.
• Back to nature, but with some comfort.
• Cost effective holiday at home rather than travel abroad.
• Travel ‘light’ – no need to pack the car to the gunnels, erect / dismantle your own tent or tow a caravan.

Opportunities for the holiday park & campsite sector, and others

Existing holiday park and campsite operators are often well placed to take advantage of the many opportunities entering the glamping market can bring them, including:

• Existing land holding and infrastructure.
• Experienced providers of holiday accommodation
• Utilisation of areas not easily accessed by traditional units.
• Complimentary to existing accommodation offering.
• Increase park occupancy and provide a new revenue stream.
• Cost effective utilisation of existing operating resources.

Many rural businesses and landowners are venturing into glamping, seeing it as an ideal means of rural diversification. These enterprises range from a single glamping unit on a relatively small landholding to multiple units on larger farms and estates.

Many businesses in other sectors also now provide glamping accommodation as a means of expanding and/or complimenting their existing offering, for example – attractions, hotels, wedding venues and pop-up glamping at events such as festivals and outdoor shows and events.

The initial investment and ongoing costs required to set-up and operate a glamping operation varies tremendously depending on - availability of assets and infrastructure, the size of the enterprise, the type of accommodation and operational requirements. That said, returns on investment can be lucrative from a quality, well marketed enterprise in the right location, which will command high-end fees and achieve high occupancy rates. For example, camping pods are a popular form of glamping accommodation (even in their most basic form) and in the right location can produce a return on investment in as little as two years.

Key considerations before setting up a glamping operation include:

• Choice of location – surrounding environment, privacy, and accessibility. If part of a wider operation, then a secluded bespoke area is preferable.
• Provision of infrastructure - water (hot & cold), drainage, electricity, Wi-Fi
• Planning permission required? – not always, but more often than not. It is best to check with the local planning authority, most of whom will encourage and support tourism and rural diversification enterprises, particularly in terms of the benefits they deliver into local economies.
• Certification - depending on the facilities provided within the glamping accommodation Tourism NI Certification may be required. A number of Glamping sites in NI are already Certified, and Quality Graded, under categories such as Guest Accommodation (the provision of ensuite accommodation) or Self Catering (the provision of fully self contained sleeping accommodation with living and dining space and fully equipped kitchen facilities). If you are unsure if your accommodation requires Certification by Tourism NI please email QA@tourismni.com to discuss your accommodation facilities specifically or more information is available on our accommodation categories here which may assist you.
• Product offering – what will make it unique, stand out and attract attention?
• A solid business plan – supported by a robust marketing plan.
• Seek expert advice – there are several specialist companies and consultants that can assist in key areas, such as feasibility, design, planning applications, etc. and there are some who will take on the whole process from concept to delivery; all can be found on the internet.

Useful Links

• www.glampsites.com
• www.campsites.co.uk
• www.glampingassociation.co.uk
• www.glampingbusiness.com