Kampgrounds of America’s (KOA) January Monthly Research Report projects 70% of 2021 campers plan to do so again in 2022.
With 22% of KOA campers booking their trips three to five months in advance, the company sees a strong outlook for another year of camping industry growth. However, tent camping appears to be faltering as the dominant camping entry point, KOA said.
More and more campers are looking to stay in cabins or other glamping accommodations, KOA’s January report stated. Tent camping still forms the primary way for campers to get out, but these new camping and glamping options are impacting campers’ preferences.
RVing continues to be a way for many campers to get out during the cold weather months, whether it is snowbirding or cold weather camping, KOA found. This year looks to be like past years with the vast majority of campers planning their trips well in advance and include stays at KOA national and state park campgrounds.
Whitney Scott, KOA chief marketing officer, said the company anticipates the popularity of camping to continue as the leading way to enjoy the outdoors in 2022.
“It is encouraging to see intent to camp remaining strong in 2022,” Scott said, “with both veteran and new camping markets.”
As campers begin planning for another year of travel, KOA found most are booking their trips at least one month in advance. Another 20% of campers book one to two months prior, and 17% prefer to book their camping trip a full six to 12 months in advance.
“It is no surprise that more campers mean more advanced bookings,” Scott said. “Our advanced reservations are up over 51% over 2021 numbers. While it is certainly possible to reserve great campgrounds on short notice, we are seeing the booking window lengthen.”
As an organization, KOA.com is adapting to the demand by making sites in regions easier to find and easier to book.
In 2022, factors impacting camping plans —whether positively or negatively — include surging COVID cases, with 33% saying this had changed their plans, and another 28% citing weather conditions (28%). However, KOA noted 29% of campers said nothing is changing their plans for the year.
KOA found top travel destinations for the year include Colorado, California, Florida and Pennsylvania. The KOA report additional cited campers plan to spend the most camping nights at national parks, state parks and private campgrounds.
There are approximately 4.24 million households planning to camp in January, the report stated.
To view the full findings of the report, visit koapressroom.com.
