Monetization 101

We’re going to list on a least three sites: Hipcamp, The Dyrt, and Vrbo. Hipcamp and The Dyrt are the top two websites respectively to find and book private campsites. Vrbo also has a surprisingly respectable camping section, so we’ll post there too. For now, take a moment to explore these websites, create your accounts, and get familiar.

Basic Site Preparation

In terms of site prep, physical access is going to be your first hurdle. Hopefully your Home Base is generally flat and at least partially clear. If the land is wooded over with trees, you’ll need to cut in a driveway and also clear a nice space where campers can park and turn their RVs.

If you do it right, this step should be free. Work with a timber specialist that will clear the trees and grind the stumps in exchange for the value of the timber. This is a very common arrangement. The timber contractor will clear your land, sell the highest quality timber to a local mill to pay for their work, and pulverize the lower quality wood into chips. Instruct the contractor to blow the wood chips back onto your land as landscaping material, this will control weed growth and moisture.

The famous painted oar, our creative way of letting guests know they’re in the right place.

Next we have to mark the property so guests can find it. This should be another free step. Hipcamp provides free and deeply discounted signage for hosts, or you can make your own. For example, on one of our campsites we painted a rowboat oar and nailed it to a tree. To passerbys it’s just a funky nondescript decoration, but our paying guests are told to look for the oar because it marks the entrance to the campsite.

Lastly, it’s time for finish-landscaping, meaning tasks like weed-whacking, cutting small saplings, mowing, etc. If you need tools, here are our favorites (and by the way, using the links on this page will support The Home Base Herald at no extra cost to you):

• The Best Trail Maintenance Tool

• The Best Chainsaw

• The Best String Trimmer

• The Best Heavy Duty String Trimmer

• The Best Pole Saw

• The Best Mower

• The Best Ride-On Mower

Amenities

Next we’ll get into amenities and here you have some decisions to make.

Adding amenities will make your site more appealing, drive your rental rates up, and make you more money. However, every amenity you add will invite breakdowns, issues, questions, problems, and take up more of your time. So you need to strike a balance that works for you.

Perfect example: adding a bathroom. If your Home Base does not yet have a septic system installed, you may consider adding a bathroom. The very easiest way to do this is with a Luggable Loo camping toilet, a roll of trash bags, and a privacy tent such as this one. However, we can say from experience that if you do add a loo, 90% of your problems with campers will be… to put it politely… “bathroom-related catastrophes.” Our recommendation for adding a bathroom amenity is simply not to do it. Ask campers go “number one” in the woods and “number two” off-site. Save yourself the headaches.

On the other hand, we always recommend including a rake, a shovel, a tarp, and a fire pit on your campsite. You can easily create your own fire pit with rocks, or buy a fancy smokeless one with optimal airflow. You should also add some seating, like Adirondack chairs, and a picnic table or two. If your site has a lot of moisture can also buy composite versions that will never rot.

Beyond that, the following amenities will make your site more attractive to potential guests, but they’re not required:

• Shade canopy

• Power station (if necessary)

• Outdoor cooking grate

• Gas generator

• Starlink Wi-Fi system (if electricity is available)

Time to List!

Now that your Home Base is ready for paying customers, it’s time to list on Hipcamp, The Dyrt, and Vrbo. Depending on your situation it may also be appropriate to list on Airbnb, however their camping section is geared toward “glamping” in yurts and tiny homes. If your Home Base is a glamping site then list on Airbnb as well.

The single most important piece of advice we can give you for this stage is to take great photos. Really get artistic with it. Use creative angles, climb trees or get low near the ground. If you have a camera drone (here’s our favorite one) then send it up. Boost the saturation, contrast, and sharpness just a hair. Photography is without a doubt the most important aspect of your listings.

Before listing you must also sync your calendars between all three platforms (or four, if using Airbnb). This is an easy process. Each platform will have the ability to generate a unique link called an “iCal link” for you. You must copy that link into the other platforms, and then repeat the process for all three.

For example, copy Hipcamp’s iCal link and paste it into The Dyrt and Vrbo. Then copy The Dyrt’s iCal link and paste it into Hipcamp and Vrbo. Then finally copy Vrbo’s iCal link and paste it into Hipcamp and The Dyrt. By doing this you will sync up all three calendars with one another, ensuring you don’t get double-bookings.

How to know you did the calendar sync correctly: This is a booking calendar from The Dyrt, but look at all the Hipcamp data it’s pulling in.

And that’s it! If all goes well you should earn enough rental income to pay the property taxes immediately, and in time perhaps pay off the entire purchase price as well. We hope this guide helps you. Once you’re up and running click here to let us know how it’s going!