During a mini-summit on Wednesday (April 29) at the 2026 Florida & Alabama Outdoor Hospitality Convention & Expo, three industry leaders spoke on industry trends and data, along with common misconceptions.
The summit was hosted by Scott Bahr, president and founder of Cairn Consulting Group; Sandy Ellingson, founder of Sandy Ellingson Consulting; and Robert Preston, co-founder and CEO of Climb Capital and Unhitched RV.
Bahr highlighted key data points that showed camping interest remains strong, although camper behaviors have changed.
He noted that park operators may be misreading normalization as decline, and that success in today’s market now requires precision, not shortcuts.
“If you keep operating like you were in 2021, you will keep underperforming in 2026,” he highlighted.
Other key points of the presentation:
— While the industry is still ahead of the pre-COVID years, there has been a slow decline in the number of active camper households over the past couple of years. Bahr also noted that a broader audience is entering the market.
“Parks are also competing with a broader travel market,” he noted. “Other parks aren’t necessarily your competition; it is hotels and rentals. But, there is still a lot of opportunity out there.”
— Campers are taking fewer trips, Bahr highlighted, which is something the industry has been noticing for a year or so. Along with this, booking patterns are shifting.
“Camping is still at 56% of all leisure travel,” he said.
— While some people say park quality has declined, Bahr noted that overall campers remain satisfied with their campground experiences, according to recent data. What has changed is how people enter the industry, with 39% of campers now entering through the glamping segment, with 49% reporting that their first camping experience was at a resort or higher-end park.
“This is where it is important that the experience and the value match,” noted Ellingson.
— Bahr highlighted that not all guests expect luxury. Safety and Security, along with clean bathhouses, are driving the most decisions.
“81% expect to pay more for amenities such as a pool, food service and recreational facilities,” Bahr said. “Campgrounds that charge a premium risk losing trust and loyalty if the experience doesn’t match the cost.”
For his part, Preston tackled what operational issues park owners should look at, including the repairs park owners can make that might not be the most photogenic adds to their parks, but offer the biggest return in guest satisfaction.
Things like rebuilding bathhouses, pedestal replacement, entrance signage and more.
“I am not completely sold that WI-FI is a key amenity anymore,” he noted. “With services like Starlink, more campers are bringing their own equipment.”
He noted that when park owners are looking to sell, they need to understand that the “Big dumb money is gone.”
“The era of institutional capital overpaying for parks, papering over operational gaps and bailing out mediocre operators with a clean exit — that era is over,” Preston said.
He offered three tests for park owners thinking about selling.
- The Five-Year Test — Do I still want to be the one running it in five years? Underinvested parks lose value faster than any cycle ever will.
- The Capital Test — Am I capitalized to invest through the cycle? Coasting through a soft cycle is the most expensive thing an owner can do. “You don’t want to coast,” Preston noted.
- The Legacy Test — Will the buyer operate it the way it deserves? “I approach the way we maintain our parks by ensuring every other operator would be proud of the parks I own,” said Preston.
RV Parks and Glamping
During a session on Wednesday afternoon, Chris Bonds, vice president of sales for North America for RMS, said consumer interest in glamping continues to grow and that the glamping market is expected to reach $1.3 billion by 2030.
“Glamping is growing across every region, across every age group,” he said, adding, “Glamping is one of the cleanest revenue plays available to you right now.”
Park operators also need to keep both luxury and sustainability in mind when targeting the glamping consumer.
Bonds cited statistics indicating that 64% of glampers want to connect with nature, without sacrificing luxury, and that 89% of glampers consider sustainability when making their reservations. Parks that showcase their investments in water-saving devices and glamping products that are made using sustainable materials have a distinct marketing advantage over those that do not.
Consumers also prefer to book their RV sites or glamping accommodations directly through the park’s website rather than using an OTA, Bonds said, adding that parks must have mobile-friendly websites since most people make their reservations using a mobile device.
“If your site doesn’t look good on a mobile device, you are losing guests,” he said.
Thursday at the Conference
Today, the conference will be hosting even more educational sessions, including an even deeper dive into industry data.
During a special luncheon, legislative updates will be provided, along with a legislator panel discussion.
The association will also be handing out its annual awards.
An expo with over 100 vendors is also set to be hosted.
There is always a lot to keep track of, and App My Community has built a conference app that helps attendees navigate all the events and activities planned for the conference.
With the conference app, attendees can:
- View the full schedule of sessions and events
- Favorite sessions and receive reminders before they start
- Access the tradeshow floor map
- Browse the list of exhibitors and speakers
- Receive important conference updates through push notifications
To download the app, click here.
Jeff Crider contributed to this story.
