Evening star., 1937-05-22
us. TOURIST CAMP
INDUSTRY GROWS
Survey Reveals 1t Has De-
veIoped Into 100000, 900
Business.
Sr ecial Dispatch to The Star.

Sr recial Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, May 22-Nourished by
the warm sun Of prosperity and on
coming Summer vacation months the
once-haphazard business of housing
the American tourist has developed
into a S600,O0O 900 industry, according
to an article in the May issue OF the
Architectural Forum, which calls
tourists camp profits quick profits
and the tourist camps market big and
growing bigger"
Last Winter, to the delight Of the
owners of thousands upon thousands
OF tourist camps and cabins which line
all highways from Canada to the
Gulf of Mexico, there appeared an
unprecedented number of tourists on
the American scene"
Despite the new competition of
trailers," the Forum adds, this legion
OF trippers meant, for the camp owner,
the most lucrative months in the short
years of their industry's existence"
Doubles in Four Years.
"The tourist camp industry in still
an infant. In 1922, the United States
Chamber Of Commerce officially re-
cognized only 1000 pioneers. This
number was doubled In four years,
shot up fast through the late twenteS
to answer the need created by the
thousands Of motorists obeying the
call to See America First
,, no
cents a mile will cover one passengers
Accommodations, food, gas and oil, run
ming expenses, and inCidentals. and
since it is further estimated that each
additional passenger can pay his way
with an additional cents per mile
the depression was kind to the tourist
camp industry"
A writer for a New York newspaper
placed the number of camps in 1884
at $4,000, of clients at 30.000,000, the
revenue at 00,oOO,o00 But at pres
ent, the Forum study shows there are
10000 such camps, with corresponding
increases in clientele and revenue not
radically disturbed by the fact that
there are some 100000 trailers on the
road.
Profits are Quick.
Tourist camp profits are quick
profits, and the tourist camps market
is big and growing bigger" says the
Forum, but from the appearance
this year of such model towns as
TraveltoWn Tin Roanoke, Va it is
apparent that competition is enforc-
ing a higher standard on this infant
industry. and that to the well-built
and carefully designed camp will go
the biggest slice of profit"
The main functions of the tourist
camp are to effect an instantaneous
sale and to provide a fair degree of
amenity at a minimum cost Thus
viewed as a problem in merchandising,
it stands midway between the store
front and the low-priced subdivision
home. Its problems are analogous.
First, there are number of ruling
factors which decide the site. South
ern climate is preferable, because Of
the greatest flux of tourists, and be-
cause of the low heating overhead.
The camp, if possible, should be at
the junction of two blue routes,
those recommended by travel agencies
and filling stations. 1t should be
between and Is miles from the
nearest city. 1t should be within sight
of the main highway. at about the
middle of a generous stretch of
straight, level roadway. A camp on
a curve is only visible at the curve
itself"
In the same way, Forum points out,
"a special technique of designs is
dictated by number of factors. A
one-room cabin is not good invest
ment, since, in order to obtain a
revenue commensurate with the in
vestment, the charge per night must
be $3.50 per person. The privacy
offered by tWo-room or three-room
cabin is as much as the average single
tourist will ask, particularly since the
cost of lodging is reduced to an aver
age of sl.50.
"Futher expenses of the one-room
cabin are the porch and the individual
bath room. In building a two-room
cabin, 1t is possible to center the
bath room between the two bed rooms
and make the single-size porch serve
for the double cabin, thereby reducing
the price by one-third.
Alignment Of Expenses.
THE point where expenses will be
most favorably aligned to income is
on the basis Of SO double rooms, or
accommodations for 100 persons. Prof
Its are three times as great If there
are 100 guests as if there are but so.
Although as few as 80 persons can be
handled at profit, for smaller camps
such items as payroll, advertising
and real estate taxes would run con-
siderably higher per room per year.
Computing the depreciation of the
average house at median Of 20 years.
the life of the tourist camp unit, due
to the uncertainty of highway con-
tinuation and to the treatment to
which the cabins may be subjected
must be scored at is years. Furni-
ture Is estimated to lose its useful
life in five years, which, at a tota,
value OF $50 per room, puts its