Canvassing opinion on a great way to holiday

MANY years ago at one of the earliest Lisdoonvarna music festivals as hundreds of us busily erected our tents for the weekend, an old farmer leaning on a gate neatly summed up the scene: “No doubt about it, there’s a lot of scope for sin and scandal underneath that auld canvas.”

Given that the vast majority of us were aged somewhere between 18 and 25 at the time, he probably wasn’t all that wide of the mark. Regardless of whether your thing is the Electric Picnic or a family adventure in the wilds of Connemara, camping remains an activity with an appeal for all ages.

In this less than glorious summer of 2011, the urge to commune with the great outdoors continues on a steady upward arc as a new generation discover the joys of planting that groundsheet, pegging those guy ropes and unfolding their own little home from home in some of Ireland’s best beauty spots.

Bolstered in no small part by the availability of cheap and reliable outdoor equipment, the business of camping is no longer confined to a niche market of seasoned canvas campaigners. Despite the mixed weather, the summer has seen thousands of enthusiastic new staycationers take budget breaks, keeping the camping renaissance firmly on track.

“We got off to a great start to this year with the good weather in April which definitely got more people into sites and parks earlier than normal,” says Niamh D’Arcy, chairperson of the Irish Caravan & Camping Council (ICC), representing more than 100 sites around the country.

Caravan and camping generates close to €100 million for the local economy and accounts for 10% of all bed nights in the hospitality sector.

“We have noticed a definite increase in EU visitors this season, particularly from Germany and the Netherlands, and undoubtedly we would expect a greater interest in Ireland after the queen’s visit, but it may be 2012 before we really feel the full impact,” she says, adding that the English, like the Irish, are now deciding to holiday at home.

ICC members have seen a jump of 10% in the numbers of Irish staying in their parks over the past two years and are expecting similar increases this year. In 2009, Irish camping had 2.4 million bed nights, divided between the domestic market at 1.5 million and foreign visitors at 932,000. The biggest overseas market was the British at 30%, followed the Netherlands, Germany and France, with 80% of visitors coming between June and September.

At her family’s Morriscastle Strand Caravan Park in Wexford, Niamh D’Arcy has charted the changes of camping over the past decade. “The traditional Easter to August season is changing, with more and more people camping all year round,” she says.

“Off peak months are becoming very popular with better deals on offer. People seem less put off by the winter weather, and more parks are keeping sections of their sites open to cater for this.”

Most campsites have seen increased investment in facility upgrades bolstered with a more diverse range of activities from kids clubs to adventure options.

“Gone are the days when customers were welcomed, pointed to the local shop and pub, and then left to their own devices,” she says.

“There’s much more going on in parks nowadays, and we really try to have offerings for kids, adults, and grandparents.”