Canadian campers intend to increase their net camping trips by 18 percent in 2016, according to the 2016 North American Camping Report, an annual independent study supported by Kampgrounds of America, Inc. (KOA).
Optimism toward camping remains high in Canada as four out of 10 Canadian campers also intend to spend more nights camping this year, and two-thirds intend to upgrade their accommodations.
Consistent with past findings, the incidence of camping in Canada remains higher than the US overall. Canadian campers say the top reasons they camp are to escape the stress of every day life and because it’s an affordable vacation option. Canadians also strongly associate camping with helping them lead a healthier lifestyle.
“The outlook for the 2016 season is strong with both Canadian and US campers indicating a desire to increase their camping trips this year,” said KOA chief operations officer, Toby O’Rourke. “The research tells us that in Canada specifically, people camp for a variety of reasons from emotional to financial benefits and, importantly, this year more campers say they’d like to upgrade to an RV. As we look further out, this enthusiasm for spending time outdoors bodes well for the long-term viability of camping.”
According to Canada-specific data, campers are optimistic with one in four saying they plan to take more camping trips this year, citing spending time with family and friends (64 percent) and exploring new areas (61 percent) as the most impactful reasons. Other key findings related to the Canadian camping market and campers’ plans for the season ahead include:
- Consistent with the 2015 season forecast, an overwhelming number of Canadian campers are likely to visit provincial parks in 2016 (73 percent). Additionally, 1-in-7 Canadian campers say they intend to visit a US national park during the Centennial Celebration of the US National Park Service in 2016.
- Looking at Canadians’ plans to upgrade their accommodations in the year ahead, optimism is up with two-thirds of campers saying they would like to upgrade in 2016 (68 percent, compared to 62 percent in 2015). Of these campers, 21 percent indicate that they would like to buy a motorhome and 16 percent mention upgrading to a travel trailer.
- Enthusiasm for RVing is strong, and growing, across the Canadian camping market with more than one-fourth of all Canadian campers saying they would like to try out a motorhome this year (27 percent, up from 17 percent in 2015).
- Overall, Canadians camp more than people in the US (65 percent of Canadian households camp compared to 59 percent).
- Seven in 10 Canadian campers say that camping is a way to escape the stress of everyday life (70 percent) and is an affordable vacation option (69 percent); another 65 percent of Canadians say that camping helps them to lead a healthier lifestyle.
The results of this year’s report show that the distribution of new campers is much more diverse, and this is being driven primarily by millennials. Among North American campers:
- One in five new campers are black.
- Hispanic campers are now 8 percent of the overall North American camping market; campers of Asian descent are now 5 percent.
- Millennial campers throughout North America are far and away the most likely to say they plan to camp more in 2016 (58 percent of millennials, compared to 46 percent of GenXers, 35 percent of Baby Boomers and 30 percent of mature campers). According to these younger campers, key reasons for camping more include spending time with friends and family (26 percent), the desire to explore new areas (22 percent) and an increase in free time (21 percent).
