During 2020, glamping went from trendy to mainstream. I have spoken about the topic at several travel industry conferences, and recently wrote this trends piece for the 2021 Wellness Hospitality Real Estate Report.
Glamping is defined as an elevated form of camping that allows travelers to stay in unique accommodations (tents, treehouses, tiny houses) with services and amenities more often experienced at four or five-star resorts. Certainly, the pandemic helped glamping leap from niche to more mainstream. Glamping-style resorts have witnessed explosive demand due to their ability to provide socially distant, stress-free and secluded sojourns with immersion in nature.
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| Glamping in the bush in Australia australia.com |
During the past year, numerous scientific studies have highlighted the inherent mental and physical benefits of being outside. At the same time, the use of outdoor wellbeing experiences to improve the quality of life has been increasing exponentially. In a forecast released prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, the global glamping market size, valued at $1.8 billion, was predicted to expand to $5.41 billion by 2028. Grandview Research’s Glamping: Market Size & Trends also forecasts an annual growth rate of 14.1 percent from 2021 through 2028.
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| Glamping in Istra, Croatia campng-adriatic.com |
Given the boost the sector has received during the Covid era (one of the few hospitality sectors that actually benefited from the pandemic), those forecasts may now be on the low side. In fact, glamping, a high-end form of camping that appeals to a broad range of travelers looking to spend more time outdoors, appears to be the right product for the right time. While the type of safari tents often used by glamping developments were once solely associated with trips into the wilds of Africa, today, we see glamping resorts popping up throughout Europe and North America.
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| Some U.S. resorts, like Eastwinds in New York's Catskills, are adding glamping units to their offerings. |
Europe has the biggest current revenue share (34.9 percent) of the global glamping market, but the North American glamping market is predicted to expand at a faster annual growth rate (16.7 percent) through 2028. Non-Covid factors fueling the growth of the sector included easier access to exotic, unconventional landscapes; the ability of social media to promote small, remote glamping sites at a low cost; and greater interest in outdoor adventure among luxury travelers.
The glamping proposition is gaining traction among the investment community thanks to high EBITDA margins and low upfront development costs. Hospitality operators who invest in tented projects can expect to generate a quicker return than their bricks and mortar counterparts. As a result of such attractive numbers, and the growth of interest in glamping among travelers writ large, industry players have been able to secure multi-million dollar deals from the investment community.
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