Understanding the market trends can help you make decisions and find success in 2026. When you have a sense of when and how parents book, the types of activities they are most interested in, and what the competitive landscape looks like, you can determine pricing strategies, marketing tactics, and so much more.

Camp Booking and Pricing Trends for 2026

Camp prices continued to rise 

Inflation has continued to cause price increases across the board for both businesses and families. Camp is no different. In 2025, we found that camp providers increased their prices by 20% when compared to 2024. And this price increase is on top of a 23% increase in 2023! 

While it is important to do what you need to do to keep your camp up and running, remember that inflation goes both ways. Families felt the hit as prices around them increased and they needed to make decisions about what they were willing to spend their money on. In our survey of 255 parents, cost was the top factor that influences parents’ decision to sign their child up for activities or camp.

In 2026, keep in mind the past 2 years of large increases and the effect of inflation on families when you plan your pricing. As families make these tough decisions on where to spend their money, it’s up to you to show value and help increase checkout conversion with high quality images, class descriptions, instructor bios, and reviews.

Parents like to book camps in advance

Publishing your camp sessions in the winter is beneficial for everyone. In our data and when surveyed, we found that parents spend time researching camps and then make purchases at least 2-4 months before camp begins. In fact, many camps saw their full sessions booked up during the first few months of the year! 

When you post your camp listings early, families can spend 1-2 months discovering, comparing and contrasting, and deciding before making their camp purchase. Plus, early registrations allow you to better understand demand for your camp. Enabling waitlists for sold out sessions can help you capture registration intent and expand your offerings with confidence.

Mobile optimization is essential

We found that 42% of parents booked camp for their children outside of typical working hours (9am to 5pm) using online camp registration software. Moreover, 71% of parents booked camps for their children on their phone or tablet. This means that camps that rely on phone calls and emails to make bookings may miss out on this revenue. Consider using a registration software to let your customers easily book how and when they want.

Flexible payment options increase registration

When you offer flexible payment options like payment plans and buy now, pay later (BNPL), you make your camp accessible to more families. Of the 13 million bookings Sawyer processed in 2025, 17% utilized a BNPL option. Offering payment plans and options with a big ticket item like camp can increase your registration.

We also found that 20% of customers who took a camp free trial converted to a paid camp. Offering free trials is a great way to introduce your activities to a wider group of customers who might not be ready to commit. Once they see the magic, though, nurture them to encourage registration for the full camp.

Camp Search Trends

What was popular in 2025? How can that knowledge help you build your offerings for 2026? Ultimately, your program will be successful if you are appealing to your campers and their parents. Understanding the search trends can help you stay on top of what parents want their children to learn (and what children want to learn!).

Cheerleading, soccer, tennis, chess, and pottery were the top 5 most popular search terms in 2025. Parents are looking for team building activities like cheer and soccer as well as life long activities like tennis and chess to help their children become more well rounded.

Another tip is to keep an eye on pop culture and try to add a nod to what is popular in your programming. When we surveyed parents, they confirmed that they are more likely to book an activity related to a trending topic like Wicked, KPop Demon Hunters, matcha, the World Cup, technology/AI, and more.

Recommendations for Camps

Camps can increase revenue and grow in 2026 by thoughtfully considering prices, offering payment plans, publishing camp listings in the winter, and utilizing a camp registration software to take bookings 24/7. 

Further analysis of the booking trends from the past year can help camp owners make decisions, plan their timeline, and create effective marketing assets. Download the Sawyer Camp Booking Report: 2026 Trends to discover more insights to make 2026 your strongest year yet.

This article was sponsored by Sawyer. Sawyer is an all-in-one camp registration and management software that helps camp owners and children’s activity providers efficiently run their businesses so they can spend more time doing what they love. 

Lizzie is the content marketing manager for Sawyer. She helps connect camp owners and educators with the resources they need so they can spend less time on administrative tasks and more time working with children. A lifelong lover of camp as both a camper and counselor, Lizzie is thrilled that she gets to spend her days helping providers discover and use Sawyer to make camp more accessible.

Periodically, the American Camp Association (ACA) makes timely and relevant information about products and services available to its members so they can make informed decisions for their camps. However, the ACA does not endorse products, services, or companies