The glamping market is clearly expanding and is projected to do so annually. If you're thinking about starting such a business, now is a fantastic moment to do so because of the rising need. You can make a smart investment and generate a sizable income stream by starting a glamping business.
Thus, it’s important for you to understand glamping management systems to successfully handle the business. Having a management system can ensure that you can fulfil the tasks required to achieve your objectives with your glamping business.
What's Glamping?
First, let's get to know what exactly is glamping. Although many people would like to spend more time outside, not everyone possesses the adventurous spirit or the willingness to give up comfort and luxury. Glamping was created for this reason. Glamping, which stands for "glamorous camping," is a kind of camping that mixes the outdoors with all the conveniences of a five-star hotel. It allows you to take advantage of the great outdoors without sacrificing convenience or comfort.
The size of the global glamping market was USD 2.73 billion in 2022. From 2023 to 2030, it is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.2%. Even though the number of people who want to 'glamp' is growing all the time, there aren't enough places to do it. This gives property owners the perfect chance to take advantage of this exciting chance.
Read also: Glamping Booking System - 5 Important Features that You Need
Glamping VS Camping
Glamping and camping both focus on escaping busy lifestyles to appreciate nature. Both can be enjoyable depending on what kind of experience you are interested in. The main distinctions between glamping and camping are listed below.
Glamping Management System
For a glamping business to start up, it needs a management system to handle vital task like making reservations, guest check-in/check-out, tent assignment, room rate management, and billing. Here are three important systems you may need to handle a glamping business:
1. Booking Engine Management (BE)
A booking management system allows guests to make online bookings. Users can browse the inventory of property rooms in real-time and make direct reservations to secure their stay. Additionally, it is intended to assist operators in running their business more effectively from a single location.
With a booking management system, you can reduce your admin workload, maximize your reservations and reduce no-shows. Besides that, your business can be running 24/7 as guests can make bookings at any time without interfering with your time. They will handle the payment and organize all the reservations. So, it saves you a lot of time and effort while getting double the profit.
2. Property Management (PMS)
A property management system is an easy-to-use front desk software that makes daily property operations easier. It is a management tool used by properties to handle daily operations like bookings, front desk work, housekeeping, maintenance, billing, and invoicing.
With a PMS, you'll spend less time on administration, have more time to do chores that have been put off, and, most significantly, have more time for yourself. With PMS, you'll have more free time to do other important tasks like analyzing booking source performance or doing marketing to boost revenue.
3. Centralized Management / Channel Manager System (CSM)
A channel manager facilitates the management of online travel agencies (OTAs) and other online distribution channels used for online room sales. A channel manager is a piece of software that synchronizes availability and information across all platforms while connecting your property to OTAs.
With a channel manager, you can eliminate the risk of overbooking at your glampsite. They reduce manual work by syncing reservations with OTA's so you'll have more free time. Besides that, they help increase your revenue by selling at maximum inventory. With a CMS, there is no need for you to log in to each OTAs dashboard and manually update the availability or rates.
Examples Of Glamping Management Systems
1. Glampmanager
GlampManager is the best option for all types of glamping accommodations because it was created and customized exclusively for glampsites. They offer:
Booking Engine System
- Create bookings quick and easy
- Check availability with an interactive booking chart
- Send instant confirmation emails
- View invoices and payments easily
- Capture guest reviews
Online Booking
- Simple booking process
- Secure payments
- Mobile friendly
- Provide deposit and cancellation policy
Channel Manager System
- Sync availability and allocation across all channels
- Connect with distribution channels like OTAs
- Prevent double booking
See GlampManager in action yourself by booking a demo and see how their Booking Management & Online Booking Software works.
2. Lodgify
With Lodgify, you can manage reservations, administer your business, and streamline guest communications. It also has a complete camping and glamping booking software solution. They offer:
Booking Engine System
- Integrated with popular payment gateways
- Effortless booking process
- Flexible rate
- Instant quotes
- Full control over rental income
- Can integrate with your website
Property Management System
- Receive all bookings in one place
- Schedule tasks and automate processes
- Manage property on the go with their mobile app, Lodgify Mobile
- Financial statements are automatically updated by the system
Channel Manager System
- Connect Lodgify with the top online travel agents
- Sync all information with integrated channels
- Connect calendar with channel manager
- API integrations available
- iCal integrations
Watch also: Lodgify's Vacation Rental Channel Manager
Get started with Lodgify with their 7-day free trial account with no credit card required. You can also choose to either start with a free trial, request a demo account, or book a demo call.
3. Softinn
Although Softinn focuses on hotel management, it can also cater to other accommodations like glamping. Their many useful features will enable glamping automation. Their features can integrate with many channels even self-service kiosks. Softinn offers a great solution for an affordable price. They offer:
Booking Engine System
- Can get more direct bookings
- Can be integrated with Wordpress, Facebook, Whatsapp, and HTML website
- Smart Review system
- Recapture abandoned bookings
- Promotional code system
Watch also: Softinn Hotel Booking Engine
Property Management System
- Handles day-to-day operations like reservation, maintenance, housekeeping, and tax
- Provides business reports to assist in decision making
- Pre-arrival web check-in
- User friendly
- Can be integrated with self-service kiosks and channel managers
- Can redirect to Whatsapp
Watch also: Softinn Hotel PMS
Channel Manager System
- Sync reservation OTAs
- Sync room rates and availability with OTAs
- Best work integrated with Softinn's PMS
- Record booking modifications and cancellation filed guests
Watch also: Overview About Softinn Channel Manager
If you are interested in Softinn, head over to our website and get a free trial. You have the option to choose whichever and how many features you want access to - booking engine, PMS, or channel manager.
4. Guesty
Guesty is a full-service property management software for people who run short-term rentals. Capterra gave them a high score of 4.5, so you should check out their features. They offer:
Channel Manager System
- Long list of integrations with channels like Agoda, Airbnb, Booking.com, and Expedia
- Manage every channel on one central hub
- Useful onboarding feature will automatically import reservation information
- Ongoing data synchronization to avoid double bookings
- Has Guesty Open API feature for integration
- Answer all inquiries through your Guesty inbox with their Unified Inbox
Automation Tools
- Auto messaging and response to guest
- Automatically adjust prices according to your specifications
- Automate the review process
- Guesty can activate payments reservations by assigning specific payment rules
Mobile Management App
- Do all property management tasks on the go
- Has custom notifications to keep you alert
- Stay connected with Guesty's mobile Unified Inbox
- Keep track of how each task is going and let employees update
Guesty doesn't offer free trials as they are a pay-as-you-go service. But, you can request a demo of their software that is specially tailored to your property.
Case Study
Are you still doubting whether having a management system is worth it for your glamping business? Let me paint a picture for you.
One night, a family is interested in going on a glamping trip. They go on an OTA page and find your property there. Thanks to your channel manager for integrating with OTA, you now gain a new potential customer. They find your property interesting so they search your website to do research. After going through your website, they want to make a booking. What a convenience! They can make direct bookings on your website thanks to your booking management system. If to say they didn't visit your website but your social media, it's no issue as you have also installed a booking engine there. They can immediately make a booking without having to call you at the late hour. When they have made a booking, the reservation goes through your property management system. Your staff are notified of a new reservation and can start assigning tasks like housekeeping. Since you use channel manager to integrate with other channels like OTA's, they will also be notified to change their listing availability.
See how everything is connected with each other and is much simple with management systems? All your information is in sync and it saves so much time while keeping a steady revenue. It also benefits guests by making their booking process easier.
How To Improve Your Glamping Business
There is more than one way to be successful when starting a camping business. Location and services are important, but a few little extras can make all the difference. Here are some things you could try:
Add Aditional Activities
People are searching for an experience when they go glamping or camping. They usually seek ones where it's done outdoors. Take this chance to include fun outdoor activities guest can enjoy with their families or one another. Some examples of activities often done at glamping sites are hiking, fishing, and stargazing.
Make It Insta Worthy
People like showing off what they do on social media. Make a spot on your property that is unique and beautiful so that people will want to take pictures there. Then, have them use the phrase #yourcompany on social media to spread the word about your business.
Ask and Answer Reviews
Ask your guests to leave feedback on any platform and do your best to answer them. It will make your guests feel special. Show you where you can improve and let possible visitors know what to expect at your glamping site.
Make A Space For Everyone
On glampsites, guests often really like having a common place where they can hang out with other guests and talk. Think of a place to look at the stars or a big fire pit, where it can encourage people to do things together. It will also help your guests make great memories, keeping them coming back and bringing in new ones.
Our Client
River & Glamp
One of our glamping clients is River & Glamp. They are a user of our Booking Engine System. With our system, they can have a direct booking engine on their page. River & Glamp enjoys an increase in revenue with direct guests instead of ones that come from OTAs. River & Glamp are able to put our booking engine on their social media which benefits them and the guests. Check out their page and find out if our service might be what you're looking for.
Conclusion
As a glamping business owner, I think it's important to evaluate the management system carefully before picking one. Then, you can make your management system one of the strongest pillars to ensure your business' success. So, it is very important to look for a management system that fits you best.
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