Children's recreation as a comparative advantage tool for camping businesses

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to present resort mini clubs as a valuable product and service that can help businesses in the outdoor sector of the hospitality industry to stand out from competitors. In this endeavor, data collection was performed from social media, camping websites and entertainment programs of 44 for-profit campsites located in the region Occitanie (Midi-Pyrénées and Languedoc-Roussillon, France). The study reveals that nature leisure tourism activities constitute a market opportunity for the camping industry. The contribution of this research is twofold: First, from a theoretical point of view, by suggesting resort mini clubs as a comparative advantage tool, this study is breaking up with the usual short term strategic approach in the industry. Beyond the topic of competitiveness in the hospitality industry, this study is also contributing to the empowerment of children, a group under-valued and under-researched in hospitality and tourism academic research. Second, from a practical point of view, the results of the study provide both a wake-up call, and a leveraging tool to practitioners who are sometimes overlooking the potential of some products and services already at their disposal. Management implications•The paper shows managers how camping businesses are structured and how they can adapt their respective strategy.Furthermore, it helps•To characterize the important differences between camping groups and chains,•To monitor the competition between different offers,•To identify new investment opportunities,•To assess children's preferences and measure their satisfaction.