More and more campers are using online websites to help plan camping vacations or weekend getaways. Per ARVC’s 2021 Generational Camping Report, three in four respondents state they use an online search to find the right campground. The report also reveals that 80% of Millennials are the most likely to use an online tool, followed by 73% of Gen Xers and 63% of the Boomer/Silent Generations. About half of the respondents (46%) prefer to book their campground completely online. These users are now branching out their searches to include RV trip planning websites, such as AdventureGenie, one of the newest, most immersive, innovative, and intelligent adventure planning websites.

As a campground owner/manager, you want to ensure the best information about your campground is highlighted on these sites.

Take time to peruse trip planning websites and look up your campground(s) or resort(s).

Notice how your campground is listed. Is your campground near a major destination location? Does that location or point of interest show up on the route planner? Does your campground populate as a search near the location? If not, can you add area attractions to your website that will help planners consider your location for more than just a stopover or way-point trip? Do you showcase your campground features to appeal to families? Perhaps your campground is more serene for the empty nesters or Baby Boomers. Do you capture amenities, such as a dog walk for those campers who travel with their beloved animals or a pool or jumping pillow for the younger campers? Most RV trip planning sites will gather information off your website when listing your campground to their viewers. Be sure what you want highlighted is prominently displayed on your website.

Read the reviews or user comments on the trip planning website about your campground.

Many trip planning websites will attempt to capture a few reviews of your campground to display to their users. The reviews may or may not portray your campground in a favorable way. Be sure you have positive reviews from happy campers on your website that can quickly dispel any negative reviews that may be shown elsewhere. AdventureGenie has Genie Summaries, which are AI-generated summaries based on reviews found anywhere on the web, so the more reviews you have posted to your website (or other websites) from happy campers, the better! A great suggestion would be to ask a satisfied guest to write a positive review of their experience at your campground and submit it to one or more trip planning websites.

Determine where your campground appears in their search function.

Do other campgrounds in the trip planner appear first or higher in the search than your campground? Can you advertise on the trip planning website and therefore have your campground appear higher in their rankings? Many sites may allow that option and you should complete a cost/benefit analysis of that approach. AdventureGenie created GenieMatch, which specifically matches campers’ preferences and camping styles to the best campground for them in the desired location. GenieMatch informs the camper of the likelihood that any given campground is a great match for their personal preferences. That’s one reason why listing all your great amenities and features really helps push you to the top of the campground search.

Consider partnering with a trip planning website.

AdventureGenie has several creative ways they partner with camping resorts to help highlight your campground. For example, AdventureGenie allows campgrounds to sponsor GenieTrips on our website. Sponsoring a curated trip in your area, that also highlights your campground as a preferred stop, is a wonderful way to gain even more exposure to potential campers searching for camping trips and things to do in certain locations. Advertising your other overnight options, such as cabins, yurts, glamping tents, rental campers, park models, etc. on the RV trip planning website may also help non-campers choose your campground/resort as an option when staying in the area. Another way to partner with a trip planning website is to co-link websites. For example, at AdventureGenie, we list a campground and allow users to “click-through” to that website while at the same time, the campground links AdventureGenie to their website and allows their visitors to “click-through” to our home site. An increase in web traffic is beneficial to both parties.

As an increasing number of campers rely more on the growing popularity of RV trip planning websites and on-line searches to find campgrounds and their camping destinations, give your great campground or camping resort an advantage by being proactive in how your site and information is displayed on these on-line tools. Even non-campers are using them; make it easier to find you. If you would like more information on partnering with AdventureGenie, contact us at Sales@AdventureGenie.com or visit our website.