What hotels will never be able to copy entirely

Last week, I stayed with my family at Jardin de Privas, a five-star Sandaya campsite in the Ardèche. Not just to enjoy a holiday, but also because Sandaya had invited me to experience the campsite as a trend watcher and mystery guest, to help them develop a better approach for Dutch guests. So, what is it really like to experience a holiday like this as a guest? And where are the opportunities – and what really sets it apart – when viewed from the perspective of a Dutch family?

For this column, I’d like to add: what are the real differences between a hotel and a ‘hotel de plein air’, as the French affectionately call a campsite?

By the second evening, I already had my answer.

Just like every evening around eight o’clock, something happened that you see at campsites all over Europe. My three daughters, aged 10, 8 and 5, gradually disappeared from view. First, off to the playground. Then off to the table tennis table. Next, to the sports field. Within half an hour, they were playing with children from the Netherlands, France and Belgium as if they’d known each other for years. They played football, played “Hunting Season” and laughed endlessly.

My wife and I were left with something that has become a rarity at home: peace and quiet. A nice glass of wine, a conversation that wasn’t interrupted after three minutes, and the occasional glance up to see where the children had got to in the meantime. I realised that this is perhaps the greatest luxury of a campsite.

Not the swimming pool. Not the glamping accommodation. Not even the excellent catering or the well-maintained appearance of a five-star park.

The real luxury is that children become part of a temporary community so quickly.

In recent years, I’ve noticed camping operators moving ever closer towards the hotel sector. Players such as Sandaya, Siblu, Huttopia, Slow Village and Yelloh! Village are investing heavily in design, gastronomy, wellness, high-quality accommodation and service. And yes, as you can see, many of these groups and chains now have their roots in France and all have European ambitions (or are already putting them into practice). At many locations, the quality is now hardly inferior to that of a good resort or hotel.

A chance encounter

At the same time, I also see the reverse trend. Hotel operators are increasingly turning their attention to the leisure sector and, in particular, to the development of glamping. Not because they suddenly want to offer camping pitches, but because they recognise that people want to spend more and more time close to nature, whilst still enjoying luxury. Yet there is one thing that a hotel cannot easily replicate and which seems to arise almost naturally at campsites: spontaneous encounters.

Because let’s be honest: a luxury hotel can offer a perfect bed, have a fantastic spa and a restaurant with an excellent chef. But how often do you see twenty children from five different countries naturally finding their way to each other every evening? How often does a regular group of parents spontaneously form there, chatting for a while at the end of the day whilst the children carry on playing? That’s something that’s hard to plan.

The appeal of a campsite lies not only in its facilities, but above all in the way the site is laid out and used. People spend time outdoors. They constantly bump into one another. Children are given the freedom to roam. Encounters happen spontaneously, without anyone organising them.

Perhaps that is the most interesting lesson for the hotel industry.

We often invest in ever more attractive buildings, more luxurious rooms and smarter technology. But the next step in hospitality may not be about bricks and mortar or stars at all. Perhaps it’s about creating places where people can connect with one another.

When we drove home from Jardin de Privas after a week there, we asked the girls what they’d enjoyed most about the holiday.

None of the three mentioned the swimming pool. Or the brilliant accommodation. “Our new friends,” they said.