Meta description: Turn farm diversification camping into income with the temporary campsite 60 days rule, Class BC camping England, Class BA camping Wales, pitch planning, prior approval and outdoor add-ons.
Hello, farmer, pub owner, hotel operator or rural landowner.
Your unused field can create income.
Start with the rules. Then build a simple offer, price it, fill the best dates and track every camping day.
This guide shows you how to make a campsite commercial in 2026.
Planning rules can change. Check your local planning authority before you open.
Use the right 60-day route
Class BC camping England
In England, Class BC allows a temporary recreational campsite for up to 60 days in one calendar year.
It allows up to 50 pitches.
It covers tents, motorhomes and campervans. Towed caravans follow separate rules.
You must provide toilets and waste-disposal facilities. You must notify your local planning authority before the use starts each year.
Your notice must include:
- A site plan.
- Pitch locations.
- Toilet and waste facilities.
- The dates of operation.
- Any required access information.
Prior approval applies where the proposed site is in Flood Zone 2 or 3. Article 4 Directions can also restrict the right.
Read the Class BC legislation before you price your season.
Class BA camping Wales
Wales introduced a new Class BA route from 1 September 2026.
Outside national parks, national landscapes and world heritage sites, a temporary campsite can operate for up to 60 days in a calendar year.
Sites in those protected areas remain limited to 28 days.
Class BA uses a notification and prior approval process. Submit the site plan, dates, pitches, toilets, wastewater, waste arrangements and highway access.
The planning authority has 28 days to decide whether prior approval is needed. If it is needed, allow up to eight weeks for the decision.
Use the Welsh Government campsite guidance and the official prior approval form.
Do not treat planning permission and site licensing as the same thing. Check both.
Turn 60 days into a season plan
Do not open for 60 random days.
Choose dates that create demand.
Use this order:
- Mark school holidays.
- Mark bank holiday weekends.
- Add Friday and Saturday nights.
- Add local events.
- Add guided experiences.
- Leave quiet gaps for farming, maintenance and wet ground.
A farm may use Easter, May half-term, summer holidays and September weekends.
A pub may focus on Friday and Saturday nights, food packages and walking groups.
A hotel may use the field for overflow rooms during events, weddings or peak weekends.
Keep a day register.
A camping day usually means a day when the land is being used for camping. It does not only mean a night with a booking.
Count setup and operating dates carefully. Keep booking records, arrival records, closure dates and photographs of the site after removal.
Do not assume that closing midweek creates a new allowance. Count the days correctly.
Price the pitch before you buy equipment
Start with one clear pitch offer.
For example:
- Tent pitch without electric: £30 to £40 per night.
- Larger pitch: £40 to £55 per night.
- Dog-friendly pitch: add £5 to £10.
- Electric hook-up: add a separate charge where permitted and safely installed.
- Pub-and-pitch package: pitch plus breakfast or dinner.
- Guided walk: price per person.
- Farm tour: price per booking or per guest.
Set weekday and weekend prices.
Use higher prices for school holidays and bank holidays. Keep midweek prices lower if you need occupancy.
Do not offer every extra on day one.
Start with:
- Breakfast baskets.
- Firewood where allowed.
- Farm tours.
- Wildlife walks.
- Dog-friendly pitches.
- Guided hikes.
- Stargazing sessions.
Show the total price before checkout. Keep the booking process simple.
Design the site for safe turnover
Your layout affects reviews, labour and compliance.
Farm layout
Place pitches near the field boundary.
Use hedges and existing trees for screening. Keep guests away from livestock, machinery sheds, slurry areas, chemical stores and working tracks.
Create a separate guest entrance.
Add a turning area before guests reach the pitches. Make vehicles reverse as little as possible.
Use clear signs for:
- Reception.
- Toilets.
- Waste.
- Drinking water.
- Emergency access.
- Livestock areas.
- No-entry zones.
Keep a safe route for farm vehicles. Do not let bookings block gates or field access.
Pub garden layout
Keep the camping area separate from the beer garden and service yard.
Give campers a clear walking route to the toilets and restaurant.
Use a dedicated check-in point. Avoid queues on the public highway.
Sell a pub-and-pitch package. Include a set breakfast, evening meal or takeaway supper.
Set quiet hours. Keep tents away from smoking areas, delivery bays and outdoor entertainment.
Hotel field layout
Use a clear arrival loop.
Keep pitches away from guest bedrooms, weddings and event traffic.
Create a separate pedestrian route to the hotel.
Place waste and toilet facilities where staff can service them without crossing guest areas.
Allow space for emergency access and vehicle turning. Do not fill every usable metre.
A practical starting layout uses:
- Clear separation between tent edges.
- Space for each vehicle.
- A turning area.
- A visible route to facilities.
- A central handwashing point.
- One waste point that staff can reach.
- A safe pedestrian route.
Your local fire authority, site licence conditions and planning authority may require more. Treat spacing as a design starting point, not a legal guarantee.
Work around the Wales 100-metre buffer
Class BA does not allow a temporary campsite within 100 metres of a protected dwelling.
A protected dwelling is a home occupied by someone who is not the landowner or campsite operator.
Measure the buffer before you draw the pitch plan.
Mark it on an accurate site plan. Keep pitches, camping facilities and guest use outside it.
If the whole field sits inside the buffer, do not squeeze pitches into a corner.
Choose one of these options:
- Use another field.
- Move the campsite beyond the buffer.
- Apply for full planning permission.
- Stop the temporary campsite proposal for that field.
The buffer does not apply in the same way to Class BC in England. Still check local policy, Article 4 Directions, protected land and neighbour concerns.
Add revenue without adding many pitches
A pitch creates the first sale.
The experience creates the second sale.
Offer add-ons that use your land and local knowledge:
Guided hiking and camping experiences
Sell a weekend package with a pitch, guided walk and equipment list.
Use a professional guide. Set the route for the group’s ability. Check weather and access before departure.
Learn more about guided hiking tours from Open Sky Adventure.
Wildlife walks
Run short morning walks.
Use fixed start times. Keep groups small. Stay away from livestock and sensitive areas.
Stargazing
Offer a scheduled evening session.
Keep lights low. Set a clear route back to the pitches. Check weather before the event.
Outdoor skills
Sell navigation, shelter building, fire safety or basic camping sessions.
Use clear safety rules. Keep fire activities controlled and separate from tents, trees and dry vegetation.
Corporate team days
Use the field for low-impact team activities.
Add camping, food and a guided session. Keep vehicles, toilets and waste arrangements in the plan.
Pub-and-pitch packages
Let guests book the pitch with breakfast or dinner.
Offer a simple choice:
- Pitch only.
- Pitch and breakfast.
- Pitch and evening meal.
- Pitch, meal and guided walk.
Keep the menu short. Use food that the kitchen already prepares.
Worked example: 60 days of campsite income
Use this example as a planning tool.
A farm creates 12 temporary pitches.
It opens for 60 days.
Average occupancy reaches 65%.
The average pitch fee is £38 per night.
The calculation is:
- 12 pitches × 60 days = 720 available pitch-nights.
- 720 × 65% occupancy = 468 booked pitch-nights.
- 468 × £38 = £17,784 pitch income.
Add simple extras:
- 150 breakfasts at £12 = £1,800.
- Eight guided walks, eight guests per walk, £35 each = £2,240.
- Sixty dog-friendly bookings at a £7 supplement = £420.
- Ten farm tours, six guests per tour, £10 each = £600.
Estimated gross income: £22,844.
This is not profit.
Remove cleaning, staff, waste collection, insurance, payment fees, equipment, toilets, transport, marketing, repairs and tax.
Use the model for your own site. Change the pitch number, price and occupancy.
A pub may earn more from food. A hotel may earn more from packages. A farm may earn more from tours and guided activities.
Know when permitted development stops
Do not scale by adding fixed structures without checking planning permission.
Class BC and Class BA support temporary campsite use. They do not automatically permit:
- Pods.
- Lodges.
- Fixed toilet blocks.
- Permanent showers.
- New hardstanding.
- New tracks.
- New buildings.
- Permanent electrical infrastructure.
- New access works.
Moveable structures can be allowed when they are reasonably necessary for the temporary use. Remove them when the campsite is not operating.
Check whether electric hook-up equipment is temporary, safe and permitted. Use qualified contractors for electrical work.
If you want a permanent campsite, increase the operating period, exceed the English 50-pitch limit or build fixed facilities, prepare for a full planning application.
Also check whether a site licence is required. The GOV.UK camping licence guidance explains the Welsh position. Ask your local authority about the rules for your site.
Use a compliance file
Create one folder before opening.
Keep:
- Land ownership details.
- Planning notifications.
- Prior approval decisions.
- Site plans.
- Operating dates.
- Pitch numbers.
- Waste contracts.
- Toilet servicing records.
- Insurance documents.
- Risk assessments.
- Fire safety checks.
- Guest rules.
- Removal photographs.
Review the file each year.
Read the Open Sky Adventure legal guidance and our land opportunity service.
Join Open Sky Adventure
Start with your land, dates and customer offer.
Then check the planning route.
Join the Open Sky Adventure group and sign up on the Open Sky Adventure website.
We will happily help you, signup live now if you have an interest in joining our license agreement.