In the past few years high end camping or “glamping” as it is more commonly known, has become increasing popular, with a number of new sites springing up in the district.

Now as families weigh up whether to risk airport and port chaos to go abroad or remain in the UK, how is this relatively new holiday industry faring?

Some providers in the Harrogate district have reported an increase in trade, others have seen a downturn.

This has been put down to an increase in the cost of living, as well as last year’s demand being “unprecedented” due covid travel restrictions.

The local glamping industry

Tom Sterne, owner of Yurtshire, between Ripon and Pateley Bridge, said advance bookings for the luxury glamping and wellness retreat have been growing by the day.

He said:

“Since the news about flight cancellations and chaotic scenes at airports hit the media, the number of enquiries we have received has increased markedly.

“When we opened last July, we benefited from the sudden switch to staycations, from people across the Harrogate district and further afield, who would normally fly off to the sun and we are witnessing a repeat this year.”

A break in Nidderdale

Lindsay and Chris Morrell, whose annual summer holidays in Tuscany have been on hold since the covid lockdowns began in March 2020, have booked Italy next year.

But the couple, who used to live in Harrogate and have since moved to Northumberland, decided to take a break in Nidderdale for their 2022 getaway.

Ms Morrell said:

“With the problems people are encountering at airports, we didn’t want to risk booking for Tuscany this year and hope that issues affecting overseas travel will be sorted out by the time we are ready to venture abroad.”

Chris and Lindsay Morrell

For friends Carroll Shaw and Annie Brown, who live in Ripon, overseas holidays are no longer on the agenda.

Ms Shaw said:

“Why would anybody who lives so close to the gorgeous Nidderdale countryside, want the hassle of flying thousands of miles to lie on a crowded beach?”

A slow start

Louise Pullan co-owns the Breaks Fold Farm camping and glamping site in the Washburn Valley, next to Thruscross Reservoir, in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

She told the Stray Ferret that the beginning of the year had been very quiet, but it had started to pick up.

Breaks Fold Farm.

Ms Pullan, who runs the site with her husband Richard, said:

“It has been a very slow start.

“We were 60 per cent down in May and June based on our 2019 bookings.

“However we have seen a rapid uptake in bookings into July and August in all our accommodation.

“People are watching their finances and holidays maybe aren’t top of their priority lists.

“We have noticed we are getting a lot of local guests from Harrogate and Skipton, so maybe the fuel prices are also having an impact on people’s choices.”

Ms Pullan said the campsite’s main customer base is short stays of two to three nights.

Read more:

• Ripon to get new luxury glamping site
• Harrogate district to go ‘staycation crazy’ from July 4

A difficult financial time

She said the price had been kept the same for the last three years, with discounts on longer stays to try and help people out during what is a difficult financial time.

She said:

“This is difficult as we as a business are now seeing increasing costs. For example our waste emptying costs have gone up 30 per cent, a bottle of gas has gone from £55 to £85 and our business insurance is double last year’s.

“We can’t afford to employ somebody this year due to soaring inflation, which is putting a huge pressure on us as a two-man band.

“Energy prices are just completely unbelievable and some of our fellow owners are up on 57p per kw, seeing their energy bills over double on previous years.

“We are only going to be able to absorb this for so long, unless hospitality businesses are offered some form of relief such as a VAT cut, like they were through 2021.

“Some sites have tried massively to capitalise on the staycation boom from 2020 and have made their prices unreachable for some.”

Cutting back

Claire Jones, owner of Strawberry Safari shepherds huts, in Wormald Green, between Harrogate and Ripon, said she had also seen a quieter year compared to last year.

Strawberry Safari.

She said:

“We believe this is due to a combination of people going abroad and also cutting back on short breaks in between their main holidays, due to cost of living increases.

“That said, last year’s demand was unprecedented and so it’s hard to compare the two.

“We have still seen some lovely guests this year, many of whom are here to enjoy the many events happening in and around Harrogate.”

McCormicks keep legal aid contract

McCormicks Solicitors of Harrogate have retained their contract with the Legal Aid Agency to provide legal services to provide duty solicitors.

Duty solicitors represent those who need a solicitor but can not afford one themselves, both in court, and when being interviewed by police.

Legal Aid Agency said clients gave “very positive” feedback on their service.

Head of McCormicks’ Crime and Fraud department Peter Minnikin.

Peter Minnikin said:

“The comments are a testimonial to the hard work and dedication of my colleagues. We think it is incredibly important to continue with this type of work that supports people at some of the most difficult times of their lives. The recent independent reports show that we continue to deal with this work to a very high standard.”

Aon sponsors Harrogate Town AFC Ladies

As part of the #HerGameToo moment, a campaign to eradicate sexism in football and promote women in sport, Aon PLC have sponsored Harrogate Town’s women’s team.

James Fell, head of Aon’s Leeds, Tingley and Harrogate offices said:

When the opportunity arose to sponsor Harrogate Town AFC Ladies team, we jumped at the chance as it is important that women’s football receives the same investment as men’s football.

Fostering an inclusive and diverse culture is part of Aon’s culture and helps drive the best outcomes for our colleagues, clients, firm and the communities in which we work. The sponsorship of Harrogate Town AFC Ladies team aligns with this commitment and we believe it will benefit both organisations as well as the local community.

Sarah Barry, CEO of Harrogate Town AFC, said:

“We are delighted with our partnership with Aon and their decision to extend their commitment to the club by becoming our Ladies Teams official sponsor. Aon’s values for inclusivity mutually align with our own and there has never been a more exciting time to be involved in women and girls’ football. It’s a privilege to be working with a forward-thinking organisation of Aon’s calibre, who epitomises the same values as ourselves, this will really help accelerate the growth in the Harrogate District and beyond”.

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Harrogate’s Glawning wins best Micro-Business in FSB Awards 

Glawning Ltd saw off the competition to take home Micro Business of the year Award in FSBs Yorkshire & The Humber business awards.

Glawning have attracted media attention for their camping awnings and accessories, and the owners have even participated in the TV show Carry on Glamping with Jonny Vegas.

They will take their victory to Glasgow in May to go up against other regional winners in an event hosted by Claire Blading and JJ Chalmers.

The 14-day quarantine rule for holidaymakers returning from Spain to the UK may spell disaster for trips abroad this summer but campsites across the district have told the Stray Ferret they are inundated with enquires.

Camping in the North Yorkshire countryside has become a popular alternative for many who can no longer go abroad, or who may be deterred by the cost of a seaside holiday cottage.

Studfold’s caravan, camping and glamping park in the Yorkshire Dales has seen enquires quadruple. Ian Walker, who owns Studfold told the Stray Ferret he has been “shocked by the surge of interest in staycations”.

‘We have had quite a few families coming that have never ever camped before, but due to the uncertainty they just didn’t feel comfortable going abroad. We have had phone calls this week from people who had holidays booked in Spain but now want to come to us instead.’

We spoke to a family at the campsite who should have been flying to Spain.

“The thought of travelling with the children and having to wear a mask etc just wasn’t really an option. As soon at the quarantine announcement came we started to look for staycations. We were lucky to manage to get a pod here for a night and we have also booked a little break at a site in the Lake District later this summer.’

Monk’s Meadow Glamping, Harrogate

Barbara Bradley, owner of Monk’s Meadow Glamping site near Pateley Bridge, said it had noticed a “significant increase” of interest.

“Our glamping pods are booked right the way through until September, which is unusual as people would normally see what the weather was doing and book a couple of weeks in advance. This year if you don’t secure a place well in advance you just wont get booked in.

“People have had to change their way of thinking as over the years they have got into the habit of going abroad, but this year this has become a lot more difficult, especially with the Spain quarantine rule. People are just too anxious. I think people are just desperate to get away and have realised that there is so much to offer on their doorstep.

“The busy long weekends are having to make up for the fact that we aren’t taking midweek bookings as we are leaving 72 hours between guests checking out and us cleaning the pods.”

The Cud Life campsite in Killinghall.

The Cud Life campsite in Killinghall is only open to motorhomes and caravans as it has not opened the toilets and showers.

Tanya Umpleby, who owns the site, told us they made the decision for safety reasons and because they do not want a surge of campers that “do not understand campsite etiquette”. She said:

“We are a quiet site and we just don’t want this sort of behaviour in our peaceful setting. We have however seen a huge increase in numbers, as soon as I put the phone down it rings again!’