Kampgrounds of America, Inc. (KOA) released its latest report on glamping as part of its annual Camping and Outdoor Hospitality Report series.
“Glamping continues to grow in popularity with 34% of new campers identifying as glampers. This report provides a deep dive into the emerging trends in glamping,” KOA said.
The Glamper Profile key findings include:
- Nearly half of those who tried glamping for the first time in the last year were millennials with disposable income, 37% reporting a household income of $100,000 or more.
- One out of every three new glamping households in the last year included Black (20%) or Hispanic (13%) guests.
- One-third of new campers said they tried glamping in 2023 and of those first-time glampers with the intent to glamp again, 80% sharing they will continue camping or glamping.
- Four out of 10 glampers say that the idea of safety is one of the factors that attracts them to glamping. Among those who choose glamping due to safety factors, the demographics skew younger, with 61% being millennials or Gen Zers, 58% of campers having children in the household and 41% being people of color.
“In the past five years alone we’ve seen glamping grow exponentially, and that number only continues to trend upwards as the industry evolves and demand rises for unique experiences alongside increased need for human connection,” said KOA President and CEO Toby O’Rourke. “Glamping is a great way to introduce new campers into the camping and outdoor hospitality space, and our research shows once they try glamping, they become very loyal to outdoor hospitality.”
Glampers expect more when it comes to outdoor hospitality, KOA said. They place a large importance on self-guided services, guided trips and outdoor food services, and 84% of glampers favor either a dedicated glamping outdoor resort or a full-service campground, providing amenities like bathrooms, showers, on-site activities, a store, food service and Wi-Fi.
The preferred style of accommodations for glampers is a cabin, typically favored by the boomer generation and guests without children.
In 2024, glampers are more interested in taking trips that include natural events, food tourism, all-inclusive outdoor resorts, agritourism and wellness travel.
Enhancing physical and mental well-being is also a heightened interest of the glamper, many seeking experiences such as water-based experiences, outdoor yoga or meditation and mindful strolls. Glampers also find the idea of digital detox appealing.
Technology is an important benefit for glampers, as this traveler appears to be more tech-savvy. Glampers have used AI or plan to use AI to help them plan their trips more frequently than other campers.
To view the full 2024 Glamping Report, visit http://koa.uberflip.com/i/1522877-2024-koa-c-oh-report-glamping/0. Additional supplemental reports will be released in the coming weeks, exploring several topics more in-depth, available at KOAPressroom.com.
The results of the most recent iteration of the North American Camping and Outdoor Hospitality Report are based on a total of 4,100 surveys completed among a random sample of U.S. (2,900) and Canadian (1,200) households. All surveys were completed only via an outbound solicitation sent to a randomly selected cross-section of U.S. and Canadian households. To calculate overall incidence, the sample of respondents was statistically balanced to ensure that the results are in line with overall population figures for age, gender and ethnicity.