Camping statistics

Whether it’s cooking dinner on the BBQ, or getting out on walking and cycling trails, or exploring somewhere new, us Brits love a camping holiday! The history of camping for leisure in the UK can be traced all the way back to the early 19th century, though since then, the way we holiday in the outdoors has evolved a great deal of course - most recently with large RVs, roof tents and luxury glamping accommodation.

According to the GBTS (2024), 5.8 million camping, glamping and touring trips were taken in 2024. These trips lasted an average of 3.46 nights, adding up to 20.1 million nights in total. These stays helped the English holiday park and campsite sector generate £12.2bn in visitor spending (Pitching the Value 2024, though that includes static caravan hire as well).

COVID-19 also encouraged many people to try camping for the first time. More than one in five adults (22%) have been camping since the start of the pandemic (Mintel 2022). Of these, 38% were ‘newcomers’, taking their first-ever camping or caravanning holidays during this time. That adds up to around 4.5 million new campers. Although the pandemic changed how we holiday, the love of camping has continued. By Quarter 3 2021, turnover for camping grounds and other short-stay accommodation had recovered to more than 70% above its pre-pandemic level (Hospitality industry and Covid 19 - House of Commons Library).

The figures for 2024 are broken down in more detail in The Great Britain Tourism Survey (GBTS), and include:

• Tent camping holidays: 2 million trips taken over 6.7 million nights, with a value of £438 million
• Campervan and motorhome holidays: 1.8 million trips taken over 6.7 million nights, with a value of £415 million
• Touring caravan holidays: 1.4 million trips taken over 5.4 million nights, with a value of £364 million
• Glamping holidays: 600,000 trips taken over 1.3 million nights, with a value of £128 million