Institutional investors are increasing their involvement in the European campsite and outdoor hospitality sector, as operators pursue modernization strategies and consolidation opportunities across several markets.
Industry participants speaking during the “Capitalising on the outdoors: camping, glamping and open air hospitality” panel at IHIF EMEA 2026 in Berlin said the sector is attracting growing interest from investors seeking exposure to hospitality assets supported by strong demand for nature-based travel.
The discussion highlighted a range of developments occurring across Europe, including ownership restructurings, acquisitions, and financing activity aimed at expanding and upgrading campsite portfolios.
Luis Amézola, associate director of real estate investment and hospitality at Meridia Capital, said several Opco/Propco transactions have taken place in France, where campsite properties are separated from operating businesses, creating investment opportunities that typically generate a six percent property-company yield. Similar transactions are also emerging in other European markets.
One notable example occurred in March 2026, when Italian outdoor hospitality operator Club del Sole completed what was described as the first sale-and-operational-leaseback transaction in Italy’s open-air tourism sector. The company sold five seafront holiday villages in the Emilia-Romagna region to Swiss Life Asset Managers France and leased the properties back through 20-year fixed commercial leases. The transaction was designed to release capital for future modernization projects and business growth.
Since 2020, Spain-based investment manager Meridia Capital has pursued a consolidation strategy through its Article 8 investment fund, focusing on the acquisition and redevelopment of traditional campsites into contemporary outdoor hospitality destinations. According to Amézola, the sector remains highly fragmented and largely family-owned.
“It’s a super fragmented family-owned market, often under-invested, so there was a clear opportunity to consolidate the sector, create a portfolio and bring in a more lifestyle approach,” said Amézola.
The company’s outdoor hospitality platform, wecamp, now operates 16 locations across Spain and Portugal with more than 3,000 accommodation units. Between 2024 and 2025, the company reported annual revenue growth from €10 million to €20 million and secured €50 million in financing from Banco Santander.
Industry participants pointed to supply constraints as a factor supporting long-term investment prospects in Spain and Portugal. Planning restrictions have limited the development of new campsites in prime tourism destinations, while demand for outdoor travel continues to increase.
“In Spain you cannot create more campsites in good locations. Even in ten years, the supply will decrease. At the same time, the demand for camping is growing year-on-year, also from people who have never done it before,” Amézola explained to Hospitality Investor.
The sector’s recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic has also attracted investor attention. According to Amézola, campsites were among the first hospitality segments to recover, exceeding 2019 performance levels by 2022. Domestic travelers account for more than half of wecamp’s customer base, providing some protection from international travel disruptions and broader economic uncertainty.
Operators are also using product diversification to improve performance. Spanish regulations permit a mix of traditional camping pitches and semi-permanent accommodations such as mobile homes, which generally generate higher average daily rates. Additional lodging options, including “dry tents,” allow operators to adapt inventory according to seasonal demand.
This flexibility has enabled operators to attract a broader customer base, including families during summer months, long-stay winter visitors, and groups associated with meetings, incentives, conferences, exhibitions, sporting events, and other organized activities.
“There is a big opportunity to de-seasonalise these assets,” said Amézola. “Summer is always full, but the real alpha comes from building demand in the off-season.”
Anne-Marie Auriault, director of asset management at RoundShield, emphasized the importance of accommodation mix in determining financial performance.
“The product mix is one of the most decisive levers in outdoor hospitality as it directly shapes revenue and ancillary income, seasonality, operational complexity and, ultimately, profitability,” Auriault said.
The panel also discussed investment activity beyond traditional coastal campsites. RoundShield invested €50 million in Lodgyslife, a German and Swiss campsite platform focused on acquiring and integrating outdoor hospitality properties across southern Germany. The business was subsequently acquired by pan-European operator First Camp, allowing RoundShield to exit its investment.
According to a RoundShield press release, the transaction generated a gross internal rate of return of 32.5 percent and a gross multiple of 1.7 times invested capital.
Despite growing investor interest, speakers noted that outdoor hospitality assets present operational and infrastructure challenges. Campsites and holiday villages often require extensive utility networks, wastewater systems, and ongoing maintenance due to their size and exposure to weather conditions.
“People underestimate the complexity,” said Amézola. “If you need to build a sewage line or utilities trench for one kilometre across a 10-hectare site, that costs a lot of money.”
For outdoor hospitality business owners, the discussion highlighted a trend that could influence the competitive landscape over the next decade. As institutional capital enters the sector, operators may face increasing pressure to modernize facilities, diversify accommodation offerings, and extend demand beyond traditional peak seasons.
At the same time, the growing presence of investment funds and large operators may create opportunities for partnerships, acquisitions, refinancing, and property upgrades.
Financing remains a significant obstacle to further institutionalization. While investors such as the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) have taken positions in major outdoor hospitality businesses, traditional lenders continue to approach the sector cautiously.
“When we buy a hotel, we can leverage to 60 to 70 percent easily,” said Amézola. “Banks are more reluctant with campsites. They finance on cash-flow multiples – four to five times EBITDA – rather than LTV. For a build-up strategy, where today’s EBITDA is nothing compared to what you’re going to get in four years, that’s one of our biggest challenges.”
Auriault said the situation resembles the evolution of the hostel sector, which required years of consolidation and operational standardization before gaining broad acceptance from lenders.
“Banks will always be conservative. They need to see a consolidated industry before they underwrite it like hotels,” said Auriault.
Industry participants suggested that it may take between five and ten years before outdoor hospitality is treated by mainstream banks as a mature asset class.
“I think we’re doing the job for the next ones coming into the market because we spend so much time with the banks, educating them, getting them to understand how the business model works,” said Amézola.
Looking ahead, speakers said the sector’s combination of attractive locations, operational flexibility, and growing consumer demand continues to support investment activity across Europe.
“We can attract not only camping demand but also hotel demand for these types of assets because they are super well-located; the best beachfront locations or very close to national parks, I mean, the locations are incredible,” said Amézola.