01 · Traveler profile
Tour operatorsWho is this traveler?
KOA's 2025-2026 North American Camping & Outdoor Hospitality Report puts the industry's economic impact at roughly $66 billion, with camper households remaining stable at over 50 million in the US after the pandemic-era surge. Campers skew younger than a decade ago: Gen Z and Millennials now represent nearly half of new campers, drawn by affordability versus hotels and flights. Frequency is high, averaging multiple trips per year, and value-seeking rather than luxury-seeking behavior dominates, per KOA's Cairn Consulting Group survey data.
- Millennial and Gen Z households with children under 18
- Dual-income couples in their 30s-40s seeking budget travel
- Retired Boomer RV owners doing extended-stay travel
- First-time campers who entered during 2020-2022 and stayed
- Solo van-lifers and remote workers
- Lower cost per night than hotels or resorts
- Access to nature and disconnection from screens
- Flexibility to change plans and routes last-minute
- Family bonding through shared chores and campfire time
- Pet-friendly travel without kennel costs
02 · What they seek
HotelsWhat they expect from a hotel.
- Clean, reliable bathhouse and shower facilities
- Level, well-drained RV pads with 30/50-amp hookups
- Reliable Wi-Fi for remote workers and check-ins
- On-site camp store for forgotten essentials
- Easy online booking with real-time site availability
- Fire pits and provided firewood
- Dog parks and pet washing stations
- Glamping or cabin upgrade options on the same property
- Playgrounds and family activity programming
- Laundry facilities for multi-day stays
- Noisy, overcrowded sites with no spacing buffer
- Unclear cancellation and weather-refund policies
- Poor cell signal with no backup connectivity
- Sites advertised as shaded that are exposed
- Hidden resort or amenity fees at checkout
03 · Activities
Tour operatorsWhat they actually do on the trip.
Hiking and short nature trails
Campfire cooking and communal grilling
Kayaking, canoeing or fishing on adjacent water
Stargazing and astronomy programs
Mountain biking on nearby trail systems
Van/RV road-trip touring between sites
04 · Destinations
DestinationsPlaces currently winning this segment.
Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming
Flagship US camping destination with the highest brand recognition and dense campground network
Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee/North Carolina
Most-visited US national park, drawing heavy drive-market camping demand from the Southeast
Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada
Anchor of Canada's camping season with Parks Canada reservation system and premium backcountry sites
Black Forest, Germany
Core of Germany's strong domestic camping culture, Europe's largest camping market by nights
Vercors and French Alps campgrounds, France
France records the highest camping-night volume in Europe per Eurostat/INSEE data
Moab, Utah
High-growth van-life and overlanding hub near Arches and Canyonlands National Parks
05 · Economics
HotelsHow the money flows.
KOA's 2025 report estimates average nightly camping costs remain well below hotel rates, with tent sites averaging under $40/night and RV sites near $55-65/night in North America, while total trip spend including gear, fuel and food commonly reaches several hundred dollars for a long weekend. According to KOA, camping's total US economic footprint is about $66 billion annually, reflecting site fees, gear purchases and local spending in gateway communities near parks and campgrounds.
Popular national park and coastal campgrounds book out 4-6 months ahead for peak summer weekends; private campgrounds and off-peak sites are often booked within 1-3 weeks of travel.
- Direct campground and KOA.com bookings
- Reserve America and government park reservation portals
- The Dyrt and Campspot marketplace apps
- RV park membership networks (Good Sam, Thousand Trails)
- Word-of-mouth and repeat-visit direct booking
06 · Competition & opportunity
HotelsWhere to play. What to avoid.
Camping is a mature, high-penetration category in North America and Western Europe, with tens of thousands of established campgrounds and RV parks; per IBISWorld, the US national parks and nature institutions sector alone crossed a record 331 million visits in 2024. Competition is high among private campground operators, but premium and hybrid formats (KOA Terramor, Under Canvas, glamping resorts) are outpacing basic tent-site supply growth, showing where margin and differentiation remain available.
- Add glamping/cabin tiers to diversify beyond basic tent sites
- Guarantee connectivity (Starlink or mesh Wi-Fi) as a booking differentiator
- Bundle gear rental for car-based first-time campers without equipment
- Build shoulder-season pricing and programming to offset summer-only demand
- Partner with nearby national/state parks for shuttle or permit bundling
- Overbuilding basic RV pads in already-saturated drive markets
- Underinvesting in bathhouse/shower quality, the top driver of negative reviews
- Ignoring extreme-heat and wildfire-smoke closures that are shortening viable seasons
- Pricing opacity (resort fees) that damages trust in a value-driven segment
07 · Emerging signals
Tour operatorsWhat's quietly rising inside this behavior.
Premium 'glamping' and boutique campground brands expanding fastest within the category
Remote workers extending camping stays into workcations, driving demand for reliable connectivity
Overlanding and off-grid van conversions growing faster than traditional towable RV sales
Wildfire smoke and extreme heat reshaping peak-season windows toward spring and fall
Younger campers favoring rental gear and app-based site discovery over ownership
References · Sources & methodology
How this trend card was built.
- [01]2026 North American Camping & Outdoor Hospitality Report
Kampgrounds of America (KOA) / Cairn Consulting Group · 2026
Annual survey of camper demographics, spend and trends
https://koa.com/north-american-camping-report/
- [02]KOA Report Reveals Strong Growth in Camping Industry
KOA Pressroom · 2025
Press release summarizing 2025 report findings
https://www.koapressroom.com/press/2025-camping-outdoor-hospitality-report/
- [03]KOA's 2026 report reveals the 'Open Road Era' and $66B economic impact
KOA Pressroom · 2026
Economic impact figure for US outdoor hospitality
https://www.koapressroom.com/press/2026-camping-hospitality-report/
- [04]National Parks & Other Nature Institutions Industry Analysis
IBISWorld · 2026
2024 record visitation figure of 331 million
https://www.ibisworld.com/united-states/industry/national-parks-other-nature-institutions/1643/
- [05]Statistical Abstract 2024
National Park Service · 2025
Official visitation and camping-nights statistics
https://irma.nps.gov/DataStore/DownloadFile/722329
Google Trends — Search demand & keyword data. Markets: —.
Curated by runners. Sections 01–06 and 08 are written and reviewed by practitioners of this behavior, cross-checked against the sources listed above.
Growth YoY, market size, avg ticket, trip length and opportunity score come from an internal curated dataset. See sources above for supporting references.
Figures are directional estimates for strategic planning, not audited market data.
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