New research reveals huge surge in camping holidays

A 4WD RV and camper trailer on the Barkly Highway in Queensland, Australia. Motion blur on vehicle and trailer.
By Alexandra Coulton


It looks like 2020 is the year of the road trip, with new research revealing a 125 per cent increase in winter camping holidays.

Camplify, which is essentially Airbnb for caravans, has released a new report outlining travel trends among Australians during May and June 2020 compared with the same period last year.

While the travel industry continues to feel the pain of COVID-19, the study found that confidence in travel has begun to increase.

By the end of June, bookings on Camplify had increased by 1,125 per cent compared to two months prior, when lockdown restrictions were in place, suggesting Aussies were keen to get back out there and travel. 

Having missed the Easter holidays due to COVID-19 shutdowns, Aussie families were eager to make up for lost time once restrictions were lifted, resulting in an incredible 115 per cent increase in demand for winter camping bookings in June compared to 2019.

Both hard and soft floor camper trailers, which are usually less popular during the winter months, saw some of the largest increases in booking rates (almost 200 per cent compared to 2019).

As one of the first states to make announcements about lifting restrictions, Western Australia saw a surge of early bookings in May equating in over a 1,200 per cent increase in bookings compared to April.

South Australia and NSW also saw increases of 711 per cent and 543 per cent in bookings respectively in May, and when local travel restrictions were lifted in Queensland, bookings increased by 140 per cent in June, accounting for almost a third of Camplify bookings across Australia.

The average age of people searching on the site has also decreased significantly. Almost 30 per cent of users now fall within the 25-to-34 age category, and there has been significant growth in the 21-to-24 category.

Featured image source: iStock/travellinglight

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