App takes pain out of online camping reservations. (Photo 29128631 © Anton Petukhov | Dreamstime.com)
Frustration turns into booming business
App takes the pain out of online campsite reservations
May 2, 2021 | 9:00 AM
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Four years ago, Eric Shelkie and his wife Kim bought a camper van. They were stoked to get out and camp around Vancouver. They were less excited when they tried to reserve a campsite as everything was booked, even if they drove for hours.
Kim Shelkie wasn’t willing to give up. So, she hit the refresh button on the BC Parks website repeatedly. After a while she found a new campsite opening she immediately booked it.
Camper van that inspired Campnab (photo credit: Kim Shelkie)The experience got Eric thinking, that other people must have experienced the same concern and he got to work on building an app called ‘Campnab’ to automatically check park websites for cancellations. He found that many reservations get cancelled, meaning that, in spite of demand, thousands of campsites go unused.
