For those working in leisure, tourism and hospitality, this represents an extraordinary opportunity and a potentially fierce competitive challenge. To win your share of the family market, you have to look beyond standard accommodations and address the core decision-maker metric: the ‘Parent’s Priority’. When families travel, parents intentionally choose destinations where their children will be safe, physically engaged and thoroughly entertained. If the kids are happily playing, the parents can actually relax.
To capture this market, hospitality operators are making improvements to the way they use their space, bringing in premium outdoor play infrastructure to transform underused areas into attractive spaces that contribute to revenue.
Changing expectations of modern families
To market effectively to families, operators must first understand the unique pain points driving modern parents. The post-digital fatigue era is fully upon us.
The inaugural Pinterest Parenting Trend Report highlights a large cultural shift towards raising ‘screen-smart kids who seek real-world adventure’. On the platform, search volume for ‘screen free activities’ has surged by 200% year-over-year, while searches for ‘outdoor learning’ have climbed by 65%.
Family travel is a collaborative decision. Market indicators reveal that modern parents are planning family trips with intention, where active, child-friendly amenities dictate the final booking choice. According to global consumer profiling data from GWI's Core Travel Insights, the desire for families to share hands-on, experiential memories outranks traditional, passive vacation sizing. This is reinforced by the Pinterest Parenting Trend Report, which shows a significant wave of parents hunting for destinations that offer real-world adventure over screen time.
Finally, the impact of ‘Review Culture’ can’t be ignored. Platforms like TripAdvisor, Google Reviews and Instagram dictate booking volumes. A dynamic, visually striking outdoor play space is an excellent visual advert for any family destination, and becomes a highly shared piece of organic social proof, validating a venue to hundreds of other prospective bookers.
Dwell time and secondary spend
From an operational standpoint, bringing a family through your gates is only the first half of the equation. Making sure customers stay and spend is where true profitability lies. This is where the commercial concepts of dwell time and secondary spend come into play.
Market reports widely echoed across UK Hospitality industry analyses demonstrate that consumers are shifting toward longer, experience-led occasions. Across the hospitality sector, average guest dwell times have seen a 16% increase, climbing to an average of 145 minutes per visit. Crucially, this pattern of extended stays architecture has supported steady growth in spend-per-head metrics, particularly across food-led, family socialising occasions.
The Commercial Equation:
Long dwell times directly correlate with increased secondary spend. An engaging, multi-age outdoor play area keeps families on your property for hours rather than minutes, directly boosting your food, beverage and retail revenue streams.
When you install high-quality commercial playground equipment, you aren't just buying wood and plastic; you’re purchasing dwell time. When parents see an attractive, safe play area, they’re comfortable sitting down at nearby outdoor tables, ordering another round of drinks, purchasing lunch, or browsing your retail options. It turns a brief pitstop into an afternoon-long destination experience.
Making the most of your outdoor space
Improving your property's family appeal before the summer rush requires a strategic, structured approach.
Step A: Audit your existing footprint
Walk your grounds through the eyes of a visiting family. Look for underused lawns, dead zones behind seating areas or outdated, single-use play structures. You don’t need a massive field to make an impact. Modern, modular public use climbing frames can be configured to fit unusual or irregular spaces, turning awkward areas into vibrant hubs of activity.
Step B: Prioritise safety & legal compliance
This is a critical legal threshold for any commercial operator. Residential play equipment is entirely unsuitable (and illegal) for public, commercial settings. To protect your business from liability and ensure your guests’ safety, all infrastructure must be strictly EN 1176 certified.
The EN 1176 standard governs commercial-grade playground equipment, ensuring it’s structurally built to withstand heavy, continuous public use, featuring specific fall zones, anti-trap dimensions and vandal-resistant fastenings.
Residential Toys
- Illegal for commercial use
- Structural failure risk
- Leaves business liable
EN 1176 Certified
- Legally required for public zones
- Engineered for high-volume wear
- Maximum liability protection
Step C: Invest in low-maintenance, high-longevity materials
Peak summer crowds will put your facilities through a relentless stress test. To avoid costly malfunctions during your busiest weeks, invest in premium, weather-resistant materials. Look for:
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Impregnated Solid Wood: Deeply treated timber that resists rot, fungal decay, and harsh weather without requiring constant resealing.
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Stainless Steel Elements: Vandal-proof components that handle thousands of hands daily without degrading.
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HDPE (High-Density Polyethylene) Panels: Durable plastics that won't crack, splinter or fade under intense summer UV rays.
Bringing play areas into your marketing strategy
Once your playground is ready for public use, use it as a primary tool for driving summer bookings.
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Update your visual assets: Move images of your outdoor play areas to the front of your website's hero slider and your online travel agency (OTA) galleries. Families scan images first; showing a premium play space instantly communicates that your venue is family-friendly.
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Promote "unplugged" campaigns: Make email and social media campaigns focused on the theme of unplugged outdoor family fun, emphasising the screen-free benefits your venue offers. Speak directly to the parents' desire for a digital detox, positioning your park or hotel as the ultimate venue for children to explore safely.
Turn space into success this summer
Attracting families this summer season doesn’t mean you have to use complex digital gimmicks or convoluted marketing schemes. It requires answering a fundamental human need: providing a safe, active and joyful outdoor environment where children can be children and parents can unwind.
Investing in high-quality playground equipment is a proven strategy to elevate your venue's status, increase customer retention and drive secondary spend across the busiest months of the year.
Partner with Wickey PRO
Ready to transform your outdoor area before the summer rush begins? Wickey PRO is the trusted partner for holiday parks, hotels and leisure organisations across Europe.
Find out about other businesses that are attracting more families with their high-quality, long-lasting play areas.
