下载掌阅APP，畅读海量书库
立即打开
Read the following news report about the growing trend of camping in China. Conduct a survey among your fellow students about their views and needs for weekend outings, using the research methods introduced in this chapter. Present your results to the class.
With consumption upgrades and the revival of the tourism industry in China, a new type of camping is gaining ground as a leisure business, attracting an increasing number of tourists. Different from traditional camping options, which often involve meticulous packing of tents, ropes, sleeping bags,binoculars, telescopes, foods and beverages, a new style of high-end camping provides complete facilities and offers a luggage-free experience.
“In addition to camping necessities, the camping base offers all things that you can possibly think of —earplugs, air mattresses, blankets, mosquito repellent, toiletries, meats, barbecue facilities, beer and ice buckets. It is just so convenient. I can just tell my friends: ‘Let’s go camping and head off with no preparation,’ said Beijing’s Meng Ke, who has experienced the new type of camping.”
Xiaohongshu, a lifestyle platform, said that during Dragon Boat Festival that fell between June 12 and June 14 this year, online searches for “camping” surged 400 percent year-on-year, and Beijing, Chengdu of Sichuan province, Shanghai, Chongqing and Hangzhou of Zhejiang province topped the list of camping search destinations. It is reported that camping in suburbs involves short driving times, satisfies people’s desire to be close to nature and is thus gaining in popularity. “Many camping enterprises were at full capacity during the Festival. They said that it was hard to get a tent without a reservation,” said an official from the app.
Campers enjoy themselves at Dare Glamping’s campsite in Daxing district, Beijing, in July.
Data also showed that in 2020, camping-related posts increased 271 percent year-on-year, while views of such posts surged 170 percent year-on-year. Between Jan 1 and May 31 this year, camping searches were 428 percent higher than that in the same period of last year. With the popularity of camping, “camping gear”“campsite recommendations” and “camping photos” become hot topics online.
“Glamping” is a combination of glamor and camping—essentially luxury camping. According to Qichacha, a Suzhou, Jiangsu province-based company that tracks business registrations, in 2020,camping-related enterprises soared by 8,521, or 227 percent year-on-year. This year, by June 10, there were 7,854 newly registered camping-related enterprises.
Zhu Xian, founder of new-type camping Dare Glamping shared his story of establishing the company.At the beginning of 2020, when COVID-19 broke out worldwide, Zhu, then a senior executive at an outbound travel company, suddenly had no business. “As there was no work to do, I suggested that we just take a break. During six months of rest, starting from Beijing, I took my wife and son on a road trip.We went to the Ningxia Hui autonomous region, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and the furthest place we traveled to was Hoh Xil, Qinghai province.”
“We encountered a lot of beautiful scenery, including prairies, deserts and snow-capped mountains.However, we could only appreciate the scenery from our car. When we got out of the car, the sun was too hot and we had no place to sit.” That was when Zhu began to purchase tents, folding tables and chairs, and pots for cooking. “When we bought those things, our sense of well-being increased a lot.I found that there was finally a place for us to hang out and enjoy the scenery, and my son could run a little bit and come back to the tent to fetch some food and drinks. With the happiness level increased, I bought more things, and the things I bought became more expensive,” One day, Zhu made a list of all of the camping-related things he bought. After calculations, there were over 230 items worth around 100,000 yuan ($15,460) .“One thing I noticed was how many times should we camp to make these things worth the price; and every time we camp, it takes great time and effort to haul over 230 items to sites and back. That was when I thought of starting a camping company, which offers all camping-related items and hires professionals to organize the items and offer services. Customers need to take nothing.They just need to take their families to come here,” Zhu said.
Zhu chose the first campsite for his firm in Sanya, Hainan province. They rent the land used for camping from village governments concerned. A consumer may have to fork out up to 800 yuan for the basic package per night. The cost includes all items related to camping, an afternoon tea, a barbecue dinner and a breakfast. Since Dec. 7, Dare Glamping kicked off its new-type camping services, it had been operating at full capacity. “We didn’t take one day off. The steady stream of customers forced us to run the business around the clock. They shared their experiences online on social media platforms,and word-of-mouth generated even more customers,” Zhu said. Within six months, Dare Glamping’s campsites expanded to nearly 20.
To better develop new-type camping, Chao Chenglin, a marketing expert, suggested camping enterprises should pay attention to their services based on consumer safety and comfort levels, as well as special characteristics of scenic spots. “For consumers, safety, comfort levels and user experience are the three prerequisites for travel, which raise the bar for company operations and services,” Chao added.