What makes a glamping experience great?

Abstract

Purpose: The concept of camping has changed over time, with new niche markets appealing to sustainable tourists. Glamping – short for “glamorous camping” – offers a way to experience the positive aspects of camping while minimising the negatives. This paper aims to present the empirical findings of an exploratory study that examined tourists’ Web-reviews to identify the expressive dimensions that describe these travellers’ experience. Design/methodology/approach: A content analysis of Web reviews provided by tourists on glamping booking websites produced a battery of concepts used to assess glamping experiences from the guests’ perspective. Both quantitative and qualitative methods are used. Findings: The analysis identified 11 themes: experience, hotel, learn, host, camping, nature, food, ingredients, different, eco and yoga. The results reveal that, when quality of experience is evaluated through user-generated content, two attributes appear to be involved – functional elements offered by service providers and consumers’ emotional elements. Originality/value: Web-reviews clearly offer important information to managers in the glamping sector. The present study’s analysis revealed that different market segments (i.e. couples, visitors with families or friends and those travelling alone) share certain aspects of glamping experiences.