For the third year in a row, we at CampingVillage.Marketing have published the Observatory, a permanent study of outdoor tourism, created to identify the most important trends that are shaping the outdoor vacation market.
Data from the requests that tourists send to Italian Camping Villages every day allowed us to draw an overview of new trends in the sector based on numbers. Knowing these statistics and comparing them with data from past years helps us understand in which direction demand is moving, enabling those in this industry to arrive prepared to face the future.
The annual Observatory is based on the analysis of hundreds of thousands of requests sent by tourists to Italian open-air facilities throughout 2023 through the CampingVillage.Travel network of portals.
Here is an excerpt of four key data points that emerged this year:
Shorter vacations, but more sought after
Travelers seem to prefer shorter stays, concentrating requests between 4 and 7 nights (53.92 percent in 2023, up from 49 percent in 2022). This certainly does not mean that tourists are traveling less, in fact, rather the opposite seems to be true: although the average length of vacations has decreased, the overall number of requests to Camping Villages is clearly growing. Indeed, it appears, as other market surveys conducted in early 2023 found, that more and more people are choosing to move several times during the year for shorter periods.
July wins out over August
Contrary to traditional belief, requests for longer vacations in 2023 are concentrated in July (9.2 nights on average) compared to August (6.78 nights). This trend may be influenced by the list price increases implemented by many campgrounds and resorts in 2023, which may have prompted people to anticipate or shorten their August vacations.
Advance reservations
In 2023, people moved up their stay requests from an average Booking Window of 69 (average 2022) to 72 days. This data is crucial: understanding when people are looking for information and booking is essential to effectively promote your Camping Village through targeted campaigns and promotional activities.
For example, knowing that bookings for June came in an average of 64 days before arrival at the facility means being aware that you need to organize well in advance for this month’s sales and be ready and operational to intercept and accommodate most requests as early as March.
New family profile
We can confirm that families with children always account for the majority of requests arrived at en plein air facilities (75.52%). What we were able to observe in 2023 is an increase in the average household composition: each request now involves an average of 3.65 people, a statistic driven by the increase in children per request. In fact, many facilities are already adapting, offering more spacious accommodations or interconnecting mobile homes to meet the needs of large families.
These are just a few highlights from the 2023 Observatory, which is available free of charge for industry professionals interested in exploring all the trends that have emerged. The full version can be downloaded online at this link: https://www.campingvillage.marketing/it/osservatorio-2023
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