RV industry gets camper insight

Each weekend millions of RVers pack up their rigs, their kids and the family dog and head out.

Last year the folks who own RV campgrounds wanted a snapshot of just who all those people are, where they go, and what they enjoy doing once they get where they’re going.

“We wanted a benchmark for our industry,” said Linda Profaizer, president of the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds.

“We wanted to find out why people go camping, what they like about the places they visit, and what they are looking for in future trips,” she said.

In 2005 the research and marketing firm of Yesawich, Pepperdine, Brown and Russell in Orlando, Fla., conducted telephone interviews with 1,602 active adult campers and RV owners nationwide.

“What definitely hit home again and again is that camping is solidly a family activity,” said Profaizer from her office in Falls Church, Va.

RVers “value family life and children as nearly nine in 10 agree that family life is important to them,” states the survey’s executive summary.

A significant majority said they traveled with children, often as an extended family and with a group of friends.

It is not surprising that “Boomers” (aged 41 to 59) and “Matures” (aged 60 and above) make up 80 percent of RV owners.

In fact, two-thirds of RV owners surveyed are grandparents and half of them have taken their grandchildren on trips.

Why they go, what they do

The survey confirms that most people go RVing to simply get away and into nature.

Nearly seven in 10 RV owners agreed that “vacations are very important to their well-being,” according to the survey.

“In majority,” the executive summary continues, “they prefer two weeks of vacation rather than two weeks’ salary.”

They also agree it is extremely important to experience new activities, learn something new and discover different places.

High on the list of desirable things to do while camping are “having fun with friends” and “cooking over a campfire.”

Nearly half of RV owners mention fishing as their most popular physical activity on a camping trip.

Other activities that people rank high are exploring nature, camping near water, swimming, hiking, visiting a cultural or historic site, and bird or animal watching.

As for future plans, more than two-thirds of the RV owners say they will do more camping as they get older and approach retirement.

As for immediate plans, 90 percent of RVers plan to take seven trips in the next year.

Fuel cost

“The survey showed that gasoline would need to be $4 a gallon before it would significantly change people’s camping plans,” said Profaizer.

“We’ve been through gas crises before,” she continued, “and people do change their camping patterns. The good news is that people continue to camp. They tend to stay closer to home or they stay longer in one location. Those aren’t bad things for our industry.”

Other findings

Based on “The American Camper: Profiles and Perspectives” survey:

• Active campers and RVers tend to be Caucasian, married and have an annual household income greater than $50,000.

• As for types of RVs, 70 percent own towables with the most popular being travel trailers, then fifth-wheel trailers, followed by folding campers and, bringing up the tailgate, truck campers.

Of the 30 percent who own motorized RVs, type A coaches lead type C motor homes two to one, with the smaller van-conversion type B’s a distant third.

• On average, RVers paid “just over $20 per night” for a campsite and spent around $40 per day on all other expenses.

For information

• The National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds represents more than 3,900 privately owned RV parks and campgrounds throughout the United States and Canada. Learn more about the group by going to its Web site at www.ARVC.org.

• Information about ARVC’s member parks, an online directory of parks and other camping services can be found at www.gocampingamerica.com.

• Additional information about RVs and RVing can be found at www.gorving.com.