If you were looking for a posh campsite

[CampingInStyle]

We're thinking about buying a property with land.
And we would like to put static camping arrangements there.

It is in the UK, though I'd rather not say where.
It is an appealing area for holidaymakers, inland but less than 10 miles from the sea.

There are about 3 or 4 acres spare for pitches.
We're thinking glamping, with privacy for each pitch. Somewhere between camping and an Airbnb.

We're thinking of buying some small, old Roma-type caravans.
These would have enough room for each pitch to have privacy, a basic kitchen and bathroom.
These would be designed with couples in mind.

If you were a couple would this appeal to you?

Should we have a glamping, bell tent field for families with DCs?

I'd be glad of your opinions, though please don't be too harsh, some of the money for this came from a recent bereavement and I am still devastated.

We were going to move anyway, the small-scale glamping has always been a dream.

I'll be completely honest that the idea of these type of sites has always appealed but when I've looked into them the cost has been prohibitive as you can stay in a hotel or "proper" house for the same price (or less) and the uncertainty of the UK weather puts me off being potentially stuck in a very small space if it's wet / windy.

We're thinking of buying some small, old Roma-type caravans.

You'd have to have replica's made, not many of the traditional ones exist. They won't have room for a kitchen and bathroom, they're tiny.

Stick to bell tents, much more room!

I've been glamping twice, once in a bell tent and the other in a pod. It was nice but a bit of a pain wandering to the loo block in the middle of the night. Bell tent was better than the pod which felt very tight once the beds were down.

One site had a small cafe which was great (I'm not a big fan of cooking on the tiny camping stoves). Also like an outdoor eating area and fire pit.

I'm possibly not the best target market as I'd rather stay in a hotel.

Needs an individual fire pit per pitch

Communal shelter with a massive bbq area and Washing up area so groups can congregate and make friends maybe with a microwave and communal fridge :freezer

Am no expert but my suggestions are:

• Forget about the caravens, do bell tents.
• Decide whether your target market is young couples on a sexy weekend break but can’t afford a hotel, or families with DC. Do not pursue both markets.
• If going for young couples, make sure you have a sexy ambience with simple high quality furnishings and consider getting a hot tub, having a fire pit, maybe a telescope for romantic stargazing, etc.
• If going for families, don’t worry too much about making the tent interior pretty but do have a small playground, maybe a water sprinkler, ideally also a barn with a bit of wet weather soft play equipment, giant jenga, skittles etc. Maybe also animals that children will be interested in eg a shetland pony for rides or an alpaca or micropig for walks. Something that makes your site a bit different from your competitors.
• Also for family market: baby equipment in tent ie available on request: cot, changing table, microwave.

Personally I’d go for the family market. Young couples are stingy but families will play anything for a place that might interest toddlers.

I do agree with pp that I've always been shocked at the price of glamping sites and how they are comparative to b&b prices. But for many, the idea of being out in the open countryside is what draws them to it.
Are you thinking that the caravan pitches will be for owners or to rent on a short term basis?

Lovely idea. I agree with a PP, decide on a target and stick to that ie don't try to mix couples with families.

My negative input is to say that to be honest, if I was camping with kids I would want to be a hell of lot nearer than ten miles from the beach.

Best of luck with it all, sounds exciting.

I've done loads of camping on these kind of sites. I'd also go for the family market.

You want a big barn with fridges & microwaves, table tennis/football, games, books, charging points etc for wet weather. Fire pits and seating at all pitches. Visiting food vans and a communal outdoor space for people to hang out. Woods/meadows for kids to play in. And preferably walking distance to a pub! Have a look at Wowos near Haywards Heath, they've got a mixture of glamping & camping for this market and they make an absolute killing.

Also I agree with PP, I don't know why couples would go for this kind of thing when they could get a hotel or a quirky b&b, whereas families are drawn to the idea that the kids can run around, make noise, get a bit of freedom and make friends whilst the grown ups socialise by the fire.

I would love it though I probably wouldn't go as we have a great tent. Don't forget a lot of people have dogs these days, so you need to take that into account. Agree re offering charging points (we booked our last campsite of that point alone).

Family market and bell tents you will possibly be limiting for occupancy rates and may be very quiet out of school holidays and October to April . Additionally I would expect your wear and tear to be higher as that comes with the territory with younger children

As a couple with adult dc now gone we love a posh glamping cabin. Much better than a hotel / bnb if you have privacy and no noise from neighbours . We happily go anytime between November and February as usually slightly cheaper but love hunkering down when the weather is pants

We like a fire pit , comfy furnishings , a proper bed and ideally a wood burner and / or log fired hot tub .

Two favourites just to get an idea

www.ashwoodsretreat.co.uk

bentleysfrenchmoor.co.uk

It very much depends on how busy you want to be in terms of changeovers and income . Personally I would go for the luxe adult option with a minimum 3/4 night stay and just 2 sites . Maximise the income and minimise the work

I like the idea of two fields. We are both tall so a small old cramped vintage style van definitely wouldn’t appeal to us.

We have stayed at Catchpenny Safari lodges in Fife and they were lovely. The beauty of them was hearing and looking out at the sea. They were also warm, photo friendly, luxurious, clean and very well
equipped. But also extortionately priced ensuring we haven’t been back again.

I would be looking for space, warmth incase the weather was cold, comfort, privacy (wouldn’t want to be too close to neighbours) but above all cleanliness. No vintage moth ball smells.

This is the link to somewhere we have stayed but I imagine the start up costs would be very high.

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=catchpenny+safari+lodges&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-gb&client=safari&dlnr=1&sei=gskuZIbANoPE8gLGiJKgCg

@Hoolihan I agree unfortunately. Without kids I don't do camping or mobile homes or glamping- with kids I would do it , but want lots of family friendly facilities and plenty of space and not at high end hotel prices- that's just me though- maybe others feel differently

Also agree go for the family market. This kind of holiday isn’t something I would have contemplated pre dc.

Something like this https://blackberrywood.com/ might give you some inspiration.

https://www.canopyandstars.co.uk/find/#!filter=Treehouse+availability&display=list

Have a look at this website especially the ‘inspiration’ tab to get an idea of all the options available.

How you crunch the numbers long term is another story. Also being in hospitality / tourism / working with the general public is something you need to be realistic about - and how competitive and fickle this can be - always on at the mercy of a bad review because you didn’t respond to a text at 3am or they didn’t like the weather / toilet paper etc.

Long hours / need to be available throughout weekends and season when you might want to be doing stuff with your own family and friends.

Wonder if you can rent tents / pods rather than buy if you want to test the market and your own endurance rather than sinking a lot of in recoverable costs up front

Since our DCs have grown DH & I don't go camping!

The house (we are considering buying it) has 8 acres and no agri tie.
We don't want or need an 8 acre garden, though want a big house because DGCs stay.

The land is an exaggerated figure of 8 IYSWIM?
Lends itself well to two separate sites.

The Roma style caravans appeal to me because I come from a Roma family. There's obviously some sort of pull there .

I work in the public sector, there is a trend for loads of couples - young and old - to go glamping in huts or Roma style vans or pods & other similar structures.
A few couples I know have had their marriage proposals there.
If we went for that market we would have high start up costs because we'd want each one to have a hot tub. I suppose we could start with a few & see how it goes?

My two real concerns with bell tents and the family market would be wear & tear and that the whole land is bordered by a stream.
Obviously, the stream is the greater concern.