How to Extend Your Glampsite Opening Times
With more people seeking a short, more local getaway instead of a pricier week-long or foreign vacation, it makes sense to extend your glampsite open season. In what is set to be another great year for UK glampsite owners, we take a look at some of the ways you can accommodate the higher demand for a domestic holiday.
It’s always the climate that means a season is over – while some sites are open year round many close for the late autumn and winter due to lower demand for holidays during these times. It is worth staying open past the autumn half-term though, because if you can make the right provisions then you’ll have no trouble filling your accommodation with people desperate for a break. The sites that stay open tend to have glamping pods or shepherds huts – insulated, solid walled accommodation which doesn’t take a battering in a sudden downpour. Whilst some yurts and safari tents are sturdy enough to weather a storm, they just don’t have the same insulation as a solid structure.
Consider installing glamping pods, or retro-fitting insulation to fabric structures. A log burner is essential for an autumn or winter break, so look at installing these where you don’t already have them. A log burner doesn’t have to be restricted to a solid structure, there are plenty designed to be installed in fabric structures including bell tents. A real bonus here is the facility to boil a kettle for a hot water bottle at night – consider including a couple of hot water bottles per person as part of the amenities. Glampers need not worry about staying warm at night with these facilities.
Rain is the glampsite owner’s enemy – it makes high traffic areas muddy and dangerous, and this can affect the ground and grass into the next season if the problem is not carefully managed. Look at temporary flooring solutions like rubber matting to help retain the structure of the ground, or bark chippings and sand along pathways. If you don’t provide a safe walkway, your guests will walk on the grass thereby increasing the area that needs to be reseeded in the spring. You might consider installing wooden paths with chicken wire or other grippy materials as a solution, and an attractive feature of your site. Motion activated solar lights along a dedicated pathway are a nice touch for atmosphere and safety.
One major thing that makes a glamping holiday less feasible in colder, wetter weather is the cooking facilities. While grilling on a barbecue or open fire is lovely when it’s nice out, it’s much less fun in the cold and rain so do look at your kitchen facilities. If it’s not possible to provide indoor cooking facilities for each individual accommodation then a communal kitchen is vital (and a good facility to have year-round). Consider extending any communal cooking areas so that several guests can use them at the same time. Commercial ovens and stoves have several burners and oven compartments, making them ideal for sharing. A pizza oven is also a nice touch, and perfect for sharing between small groups.
It is also worth looking at communal social spaces, or providing outdoor shelter for each pitch so that people can spend time outside their accommodation in the evenings – fire pits are needed here too. There are many raised fire pit designs that don’t damage the grass underneath but on dedicated glamping land it’s not a problem to have a more permanent place for a fire. Providing warmth, indoor cooking facilities and ways to fight back against rain and mud are the keys to keeping your glampsite open for longer, and you won’t need to worry about demand in 2022.
