I think there may be some misunderstanding as to what has driven this decision. It's not necessary me that is having the problems, it's the client base that I cater to.
It’s important to note that camping comes in many flavors. There are those who prefer no more than a tent. There are those who want more comfort, but don’t require full hookups. There are those who don’t mind spending a few dollars more to have water, power, sewer, concrete pads, etc. There are campgrounds for adults only as well as campgrounds for Class A motor homes that are 36 feet or longer.
There are campgrounds for each of these groups, and those campgrounds cater to the wants/needs of that group. I don’t think there is any campground that can cater to all of that at once, so each must pick their target market and do their best to attract that metric. And yes, in the process, they will lose the other visitors. Not because they don’t want to provide a good camping experience, but because the wants/needs of those others is not compatible with the services that campground is offering.
My target market are those people who are often (but not always) a bit more mature and want to experience the outdoors in a camping environment with comfortably unique amenities, extreme quiet, and where the other campers are like minded. This group is often a bit better off financially and bring with them a mature mentality. They’re more interested in enjoying a quiet evening watching the moon come up and the fireflies lighting up the field. When they leave, I seldom have much to do to get the site ready for the next visitor, and things like that make it possible for me to keep pricing at a minimum.
The change of policy that excludes children under twelve isn’t because we don’t like kids. I have several myself, and several grandchildren as well. Love them all. But my target market and average visitor has raised his/her children and they are now out having fun on their own terms. They like children, but they no longer want to go camping with them. They’re not bad folks, they just want a quiet and peaceful camping experience where they can mingle with other campers of similar age.
Our park is small, and we can’t provide services to all groups, so we have to chose who is the best fit. And in the process, we have to make tough decisions. This has been one of those tough decisions, but it’s necessary if we want to continue providing the services that our target market is asking for.
camperreport.com
The confirmation email said that it should ship in the next couple of weeks.
