Regular guests are people with their own accommodation. This group of visitors is not included in the CBS figures, but they are of great value to Zeeland. Regular guests are the most loyal guests of a region: they have chosen to house their holiday accommodation in that region for a longer period of time.
The location of a second home, the spot for the mobile home, the mooring for the boat or the field for a seasonal pitch: they have all been carefully selected as the place where this guest will spend much of their leisure time. By 2022, Zeeland will have over 111,000 regular guests spread across almost 47,000 accommodation units. How often do they come, what do they spend and do they plan to keep coming? Because of the size of this guest group in Zeeland, understanding behaviour and motives is relevant for both policymakers and entrepreneurs.
The research
Kenniscentrum Kusttoerisme conducted research into regular guests in Zeeland in 2022. This is a follow-up to the 2017 survey. Thanks in part to the help of 30 entrepreneurs, who brought the questionnaire to the attention of their regular guests, this research came about. Over 2,250 regular guests completed the questionnaire, which provides insight into their current and future holiday behaviour in their holiday accommodation in Zeeland. The survey specifically looked at the profile of regular guests, the use of the accommodation and future prospects, as well as the importance of sustainability. The aim is to repeat the survey every 4 four years.
Results
However, the regular guest market is changing: the target group is getting older and people seem to commit to the same place for a shorter period of time. On the supply side, the number of permanent pitches (annual pitches and seasonal pitches) is decreasing and the number of second homes is increasing. This shift leads to uncertainty among guests, who would like to keep their accommodation. In fact, regular guests are very satisfied with their stay in Zeeland and 64% of respondents would prefer to spend more time in their accommodation. More information can be found in the full report.
To conclude
The Regular Guest Survey 2022 was conducted by HZ Coastal Tourism Knowledge Centre, part of HZ University of Applied Sciences. The research is fully funded by the province within the TUA multi-year programme 2022-2024. The researchers of HZ Kenniscentrum Kusttoerisme are independent and process guest responses completely anonymously. All answers are treated confidentially in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (AVG) and are not linked to personal data. Specific results from your company are only shared with you and are not visible to other parties.
