An analysis of 6.7 million reviews from 23,047 campsites.
In a time of economic uncertainty, Europeans are rediscovering the allure of camping, a sustainable and affordable alternative to traditional package holidays. JetCamp.com, renowned for its comprehensive research on camping destinations, has analysed 6.7 million reviews across 23,047 campsites to determine Europe's top 25 camping regions. “We see steadily rising review scores for European campsites, which are the result of hard work, improved facilities, attention to the environment, new accommodations and 100% customer service”, says Erwin Hoevenaar CEO of JetCamp.
In JetCamp.com’s 2022 research paper the best and the most popular camping destination were highlighted. For the 2023 research more than 500 regions/provinces across Europe were compared, including the 26 cantons in Switzerland, the 41 districts in Romania, the 20 regions of Italy, the kraje of the Czech Republic and the 16 federal states in Germany. A region needed to have a minimum of 25 campings to be eligible within this research. This resulted in the following Top 25:
Top of the list is Munster (Mhumhain or Cúige Mumhan), a province in the south of Ireland known for its green pastures, traditional folk sports such as hurling and Gaelic football and the bustling cities of Cork and Limerick. Top performing campsites in this province include O'connor's Riverside Camping in Doolin and the family friendly Woodlands Park in Tralee.
Second spot is for the county of Norfolk in East Anglia in England. Norfolk enchants its visitors with great beaches, heathland and forests and vibrant towns such as Norwich and Thetford. The Norfolk coast and fens (marshes) are known for their fabulous family-friendly campsites including the Hopton Holiday Village in Great Yarmouth and Kings Lynn Caravan And Camping Park in North Runcton.
Third place if for Canton of Graubünden. In Switzerland's easternmost and largest canton, you will be welcomed in no fewer than 3 official languages: German, Rhaeto-Romanic. It offers an impressive mountain scenery, superb skiing in winter, UNESCO World heritage train rides and Val Müstair, the oldest and best protected wilderness area in Alps. Camping Gravatscha in Samedan and Camping Boomerang in Poschiavo are among the top performers in this canton.
Just outside of the top 3, the Netherlands is not only a country of avid campers, many of its campsites are among the best rated in Europe. The Netherlands is the main supplier within this top 25, claiming 8 spots: Zeeland (4), Friesland (5), Groningen (9), Drenthe (15), Overijssel (16), Gelderland (18), Limburg (21) and Noord-Brabant (22). Austria is well loved for its scenic mountains and pretty market towns. Four spots are claimed by Austrian states (Bundesländer): Niederösterreich (6), Salzburgerland (8), Kärnten (11) and Steiermark (13). Although France is the number one camping destination in Europe, none of its super-regions made it to our 2023 list. Nonetheless Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes made it to spot 54 with an average of 8,26 across a vast amount of 1304 campsites.
JetCamp.com's new Dynamic Rating System (DRS) provides campers, both experienced and novice, with up-to-date rating scores of all bookable campsites. The scores are broken down by facilities, type of traveller and year, allowing customers to compare campsites on, for example, "swimming pool" or "child-friendliness" and make an informed decision.
The DRS was introduced in the first quarter of 2023 and will be rolled out to all campsites over the course of this year.