As Covid-19 and government restrictions force many Brits to holiday at home, glamping accommodation has become increasingly popular. For landowners, there is a great opportunity to meet rising demand and convert rural spaces into a glamping site. To walk us through how to approach such a development, we invited Edward Busby, co-founder of Crown and Canopy, to share his expert view.
With the effects of COVID-19 limiting travel abroad, we’ve seen growth in the staycation industry and in particular glamping accommodation. Over the past ten years, the industry has experienced exponential growth. In fact, if we have learnt anything in 2020, it’s that demand is far outweighing supply. A study at the end of 2019 by industry specialists and International Glamping Business Crown and Canopy showed that there were around 3,000 glamping sites in the UK, an increase by 500 on the previous year. Meanwhile, bookings are increasing 30% year on year.
When working with clients, we are often asked if they have missed the boat or if the market is saturated. The answer is simply no. Now is a better time than five years ago to get into the industry. The main reason is that five to ten years ago, the standard of accommodation kept changing. You would build a site, and a year later it would need updating to meet the latest trends such as outdoor bathing and luxurious new features.
It’s all about the location
When considering a location, guests are looking for a luxury experience, in a natural environment. Any accomodation situated close to a busy road will not make for an ideal location. But if you have land in a more rural part of the UK, it may be worth looking into glamping opportunities there. The different types of environments that suit glamping are:
- parkland
- meadow pasture
- woodland
- lakeside
- riverside
- coastal
And far reaching spectacular views make for a unique selling point to any site.
Footfall for the business doesn’t just come from London. Most major cities in the UK represent a good market and research shows that guests are prepared to travel to get away and not just opt for the convenience of staying local. Where we run sites in rural Herefordshire, we found that most guests had travelled more than three hours. This makes most areas in the UK a possible location.
Planning permission for glamping accommodation
If you already have a hospitality business on your land, gaining planning permission should be relatively straightforward. What’s more, there could be an opportunity to develop permanent structures if you wish. That being said, when starting out from scratch, temporary units are often the most feasible solution. This can be anything from a canvas structure that operates seven months per year, to a portable pod or cabin structure that operates all year round. In any case, commercial accommodation will require planning permission.
The benefits of creating a bespoke unit
It’s good to think outside of the box when developing glamping accommodation. Look at a bespoke approach to your unit to set it apart from the competition. This is also useful when approaching agencies, as identical units will limit how many they market on one site. Therefore a variety of accommodation types can be important. Unique, custom built units have the greatest income potential as they offer more creative freedom with the design and build, and result in a unique product.
As in all new business ventures, you will want to produce a well thought out and realistic business plan that stress tests the figures, whether funding is being borrowed or not. Advice is important from an early stage for all aspects of a glamping accommodation project – design, feasibility and planning.