When a campground owner is trying to make their property more profitable the first thing they usually do is increase the site rates. Here are 14 ways to increase your campground’s non-site revenues. This can be effective but also dangerous because expensive site rates can turn off people from coming to your campground. Instead, they may opt to go and stay at your competitors down the street for a cheaper rate.
Thankfully site rates are not the only way to gain revenue at your campground. We’ve come up with 14 ways to earn more money from your campers while they are at your campground. This list of 14 ways to increase your campground’s non-site revenues may help you and your campground.
Low Effort Income Streams
The first list of ideas are those that require little to no effort to manage. With this list of 14 ways to increase your campground’s non-site revenues you already have a full-time job running a campground. Instead, see how many of these you can implement in your park and start making more money this month.
1. Laundry
One of the top amenities that travelers are looking for at a campground is the ability to do laundry, especially if your park attracts full-time or monthly tenants. We’ve seen laundry rates anywhere from $1.00 to $4.00 per load in the washer or dryer this is one of the easiest of the 14 ways to increase your campground’s non-site revenues.
Once you have the machines set up you can check as needed to collect the quarters from the machines and also make sure that people aren’t abusing the machines for example by washing dog beds in them.
2. Internet & Cable Entertainment
An important amenity that campers look for at a park is the entertainment. Since 93% of campers bring their mobile devices on camping trips they want to be able to share their experiences on social media, watch cable channels, and stream the latest Netflix series.
You can sell campers different levels of speed and data plans for entertainment.
3. Vending machines
It can be such an inconvenience to make a trip to the grocery store especially if you just need a snack, soda, or emergency toilet paper.
Setting up vending machines around the park is a great way to make a few more dollars and save your campers an unnecessary trip to the store.
4. Storage
If your campground has any excess land you may be surprised by how many people need places to park their toys. Why not keep them at their favorite campground for a small fee?
A few of the common things that campers could possibly store on your land are:
- RV’s & Trailers
- Boats & Four Wheelers
- Storage Units
5. Arcade
If you have a lot of families that stay at your park it can be difficult for parents to keep them entertained all the time. Perhaps they are exhausted and just want to take a nap which can be hard with a lot of people in a small rig.
This is where having an arcade is a great way to help keep kids entertained and out of trouble. Similar to providing laundry machines this is a good way to gaining the pocket change of your campers which can really add up over time.
6. Sponsorships & Ads on Your Campground Maps
A creative solution to bring in more money is to sell ad space on your campground maps. This is one of the 14 ways to increase your campground’s non-site revenues and is a great way to introduce campers to local RV mechanics, restaurants, and other services your campers may need. You can either charge them a flat rate for the ads or a revenue split of services you send to them.
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7. Local Experiences & Tours
While people are at your campground they often want to explore and experience the local community. You can build relationships with these businesses and tour companies so that each camper you send their way you get some kind of compensation.
Here are some businesses you could strive to build relationships with.
- Local wineries
- Hikes and trails
- Local tour guides
- National parks & museums
High Effort Income Streams
These ideas can bring in a lot more money but also require more financial investment to start and possibly additional employees to run them as well.
1. Campground Store
For many campers, the store at the campground can make or break a trip! Saving on doing extra trips to Walmart or Camping World by just walking to the park grounds store means more time they can spend relaxing and enjoying their vacation.
You can check out our list of the essentials to include in your campground store.
2. Equipment Rentals
Depending on what activities are available around your park will allow you to be able to rent out equipment to your visitors.
If you’re by water you could rent paddleboards, tubes for floating, or even kayaks. If you are landlocked you can still rent out golf carts or bicycles for your happy campers.
3. Gas Stations
Having fuel on-site can be a great additional source of revenue for your park. Gas stations are a successful business on their own and you can add one onto your property. This makes it so you can make money off of people who are not even staying in your park.
4. Propane Refill Station
If your campers use a lot of propane for barbecuing or for keeping their rigs warm it can make sense to keep a propane refill station on the property. The convenience of being so close can allow you to charge a premium on the fuel this is just one of the14 ways to increase your campground’s non-site revenues.
5. Restaurant
While on vacation people like to enjoy good meals. If you have experience in the food industry this could be a good additional venture for your park.
If you don’t want to bother managing a restaurant you can have local food trucks come to your park for a small fee. This is a win-win for you and the food truck.
6. Events
Providing events for your campers to attend while staying at your park is a great way to help them build memories and want to come back every year. Here are a few campground event ideas.
- Ice cream social – pay per a scoop
- Bingo – pay per a card
- Movie night – popcorn and refreshments
7. Yurts
A lot of campgrounds already have cabins on them. If you’re looking for a way to add more occupancy without breaking the bank think about using yurts instead.
Yurts are popular with the glamping crowd and do not cost as much to build as a cabin.
How Do You Make More Revenue?
These are some of the ways we have found to make more money at our park, but we are interested to hear what works for you.
Any additional ideas that we missed? Please let us know in the comments!
