Kendal Stacey, Account Director, Leisure & Hospitality
Holiday parks across the UK are on a constant hamster wheel of meeting guest expectations. Luckily, guest and owner demand for fast WiFi is predictable and consistently high on the list. It also has a direct impact on guest satisfaction, loyalty and competition.
With 2025 season planning underway, park operators should use this period to take a fresh look at holiday park WiFi services. Immediate improvements will deliver better guest satisfaction and business results in the 2025 season.
Here are five reasons (taking less than five minutes to read), as to why you should make these changes before next Spring:
WiFi Increases Occupancy & Loyalty
Your most-important guests prioritise connectivity as a key utility. WiFi quality is crucial for longer term residents, remote workers and loyalty members (if you have a scheme) who make decisions about repeat booking based on your service.
As rival parks invest in WiFi infrastructure, parks that offer the best service are in a stronger position to differentiate themselves from competitors, attract loyalty guests (especially those who want to stay longer) and better reviews – which in turn attract new guests.
One use case is the need to support video calls for remote workers. A 2023 survey by Wifinity found that 67% of guests need access to video streaming for work or leisure, which of course needs quality WiFi to work. With more people working remotely, there’s a growing market for “workationers” – guests who combine holidaying with work – where fast and reliable internet is necessary. Better backhaul and reliability will help attract this demographic.
Promoting high-speed, reliable WiFi as part of your park’s unique selling proposition will improve occupancy rates. A great service helps drive guest retention, with many willing to pay extra for premium services. Wifinity’s research found that 45% of guests are open to paying for higher-tier WiFi packages, which can create new revenue streams.
WiFi Directly Affects Customer Satisfaction Scores
Our research found that 54% of guests reduce their review score if holiday park WiFi is poor, and 44% will not return to parks with unreliable internet. Investing in speed, reliability and user experience can turn negative feedback into positive reviews, directly impacting future bookings.
The ability to stream, game, or work improves the guest experience, leading to a more enjoyable stay. Higher guest satisfaction also reduces the number of negative reviews related to poor WiFi.
WiFi Supports Smarter, Tailored Guest Engagement
WiFi is more than an internet access technology. It can be a powerful marketing tool. Your captive portal user experience and third-party integration with CRM and marketing systems are important for valuable guest engagement.
79% of guests said that they want special offers delivered to them during their stay, this can significantly boost non-accommodation revenue. Parks can make this happen by tailoring captive portal content to market promotions and offers directly to guests’ devices – which also increases propensity to book services like spa treatments, restaurant meals, or on-site activities online.
WiFi Reduces Operational Costs
Digital services such as online check-ins, smart home controls and automated guest communications or feedback requests can be triggered or integrated with the WiFi service. We recommend a strong connectivity infrastructure as the backbone to these next gen services.
This reduces the manual workload on staff, guest self-service, and real-time feedback and satisfaction rating, allowing for more efficient park management, particularly during high-occupancy periods.
Using the example of real-time feedback, a text or email-based survey is triggered when a guest connects to the in-van WiFi. This could be done on the first login, or after a day. By collecting feedback while the guest is on-site parks can address issues as they arise to stay ahead of problems and reduce negative exit reviews.
WiFi Infrastructure Support Future Services and Growth
With the implementation of smart infrastructure and digital tools, holiday parks can transform their future operations and guest engagement. This approach focuses on boosting efficiency, opening new revenue opportunities and improving service delivery in ways that lower long-term costs.
By taking advantage of the low season to improve holiday park WiFi infrastructure, management can take steps to digitise other areas of their operations like connectivity for domestic staff, security operations, smart deployments like stock sensors and more that will drive guest retention and revenue.
Investing in better connectivity is not just a technical upgrade – it is a strategic move that will position your park for success in 2025 and beyond.
Contact kendal.stacey@wifinity.co.uk to discuss your park connectivity.