Demand grows for local campsites as 2024 season kicks off

As temperatures continue to warm, so does demand for camping.

The Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) and most provincial parks in southern Ontario have already opened camping sites this month. Private sites like Whistle Bare Campground in Cambridge is set to open Friday.

“A lot of campers are coming out, starting to get prepared for the season,” said Laura Bingeman with Whistle Bare Campground.

Bingeman said the site holds enough space for 82 camper vans, with spots almost fully booked heading into opening weekend.

“It’s important to start booking ahead of time for sure because in the summertime, especially those long weekends – we book up fast,” Bingeman said.

The Leveille family booked one of the 82 camping sites at Whistle Bare Campground for this weekend. Five-year-old Caylee Leveille says the best part of the great outdoor is “camping and fishing”.

Growing demand

Business is booming at Mountain Equipment Company in Kitchener.

The camping retailer sells passes to all national parks across Canada. Sales associate Charlie Denomey said everything has flown off the shelves from tents, to sleeping bags and watersport gear.

“We’re in ‘Camp Week’ right now,” Denomey said. “The season has really kicked off well. We’re busy.”

The GRCA told CTV News there were “nearly 5,300 reservations on opening day, which is a 37 per cent increase from opening day bookings in the previous year.”

Denomey believes the added demand has been a growing trend.

“There’s a lot of people that starting camping because of the pandemic,” Denomey said. “It just expanded exponentially.”

As of Thursday, some camping sites were still available to book online through the GRCA website, with swimming, hiking and other activates available.