The Changing RV Industry BY DENNIS BEGIN


Harrison Hot Springs BC for my wife and me has always been one of our favourite week- end RV destinations. Located near Agassiz, it is only a 90-minute drive from South Surrey and a perfect weekend getaway. Harrison is an ideal retreat because of the lake, golf course, restaurants and relaxed atmosphere. Te area is also famous for the lure of Bigfoot/Sasquatch, although I have never seen one. Te Village of Harrison boasts of having 500 guest rooms, 200 campsites and six RV Parks. For RV’ers, however, the available overnight accommodations are continuing to decrease and that is the problem. In 2007, the British Columbia Lodging and Campgrounds Association (BCLCA) along


with the Ministry of Tourism, Sports and Arts [MTSA], formed a Joint Working Group on ‘Recreational Vehicle Development’. Te purpose was to make recommendations on how to best address the decreasing number of overnight accommodations for RV’ers. Te BCLCA produced evidence that in 2007, 74 RV Parks had closed or converted their land to other uses. Tat meant a 10% decrease in RV overnight spaces or 4,687 fewer sites. Tree areas in the province are in decline, the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island and the Okanagan. Joss Penny, Executive Director, of the BCLCA stated that, “Anywhere from 70 to 100 parks have disappeared with only a few coming online from 2007 until 2012”. Te Joint Working Group came up with 15 recommendations, many long-term, but good constructive solutions when implemented. In addition, the Camping and RV’ing British Columbia Coalition (CRVBCC) was formed with the support of Tourism BC, to capitalize on the growth of nature-based tourism. Tis Coalition consisted of 10 organizations, ranging from BC Parks, BCLCA to Parks Canada, with the objective of working together to promote camping and RV’ing in this province. See www.campingrvbc.com. Te trend of decreasing overnight RV sites has continued since 2007. RV Parks are trans-


forming themselves from overnight rental to various business models. Te new business models include: 1. Seasonal Rental 2. Annual Rental 3. Strata Ownership 4. Cooperative Ownership 5. Time Share 6. Fractional Ownership RV’ers have other options for accommodations by buying into travel companies such as


Tousands Trails and Holiday Trails RV Resorts. Tousand Trails RV Resort and Camp- grounds has 80 locations in 22 U.S. States and in BC Cultus Lake and Birch Bay near Blaine are examples. Holiday Trails RV Resort is Canada’s largest multi-park with parks at Bridal Falls and Chemainus. Both of these resorts require a membership fee and include the privilege of using all participating parks. Tere are 350 private RV Parks/Campgrounds in the province and it is within this category


where the overnight sites available are decreasing. Motorhomes and fiſth wheels with multiple slides have gotten bigger and require greater services. Faced with investing more money and modernizing, smaller park owners are electing to change their business model or sell to condo developers. Te problem is that as baby boomers age, the demand for full-service sites is only going to increase. I offer six possible solutions. (See also Joint Working Group of BCLCA and MTSA Recom- mendations. February 2008.)


1. Remove land from the Agricultural Land Reserve. Tis is done by private individuals, converting farm/orchard land into smaller RV Parks. Example, Apple Valley Orchard and RV Park in Kelowna. Tis is a difficult and lengthy process but can be done.


2. First Nations have to develop more Campgrounds and RV Parks. Present examples are: Ksan Campgrounds in Hazelton, Qualicum First Nations, NK’MIP RV Park in Osoyoos and Laichwiltach First Nations, Oceanside RV Park on Quadra Island. In the United States, RV Parks, golf courses and casinos are the current fashion among First Nations.


3. Municipalities need to get into the RV business. Some current examples are: Golden, Smithers, Mackenzie, Princeton, Grand Forks and Dawson Creek.


4. Te Province of British Columbia needs to provide greater services in its existing parks. BC’s Provincial Parks include: 340 campgrounds, 11,075 camping sites and another 1,300 recreation wilderness sites. For families who just want to tent or have a very small RV, there is no shortage of sites. Some parks even have water and electricity, such as Alice Lake and Porteau Cove. Te province, however, does not operate fully serviced parks with water, sewage, internet and cable.


5. Expansion of services in National Parks. Tere are six National Parks such as Kootenay National Park and one Park Reserve, providing campgrounds with only limited amenities. In the United States, the National Parks offer fully serviced parks as well as camping/ tenting areas.


6. More financial incentives/tax breaks should be extended to private businesses, in order to development more parks.


Super Natural BC is a prime RV desti-


nation with 14.27% of the total provincial land area reserved for parks. Tourism is a 13.8 billion dollar business in this province. In the United States, the Recreation Vehicle Industry Association (RVIA) states that one out of every 8.5 people own some type of rec- reational vehicle. In 2009, the Research and Planning Committee of Tourism BC stated that 7% of the Canadian population is RV owners.


Te RV lifestyle fits the demographic


trends of an aging population and is reflected in increase RV sales, despite the increase cost of fuel. Te only problem with this idyllic sit- uation is that you could own a RV, but it is like being all dressed up with no place to go. Te long term solutions to increasing RV


Parks has to be a concerted effort from the Provincial Government, the Recreational Vehicles Dealers Association (RVDA), the BC Lodging and Campgrounds Association (BCLCA),


Municipal Governments,


Camping and Recreational Vehicle British Columbia Coalition (CRVBCC), First Nations and private businesses. All of these groups have a vested interest in making RV’ing a viable and successful part of tourism in British Columbia. d


RVT 151• JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2013 13


Tere are 24 municipal campgrounds with 983 sites but more towns/cities are needed to get into the business.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40