You may have to pay more for summer camp this year — if you can find one at all

Following two years of summer camps dealing with issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic, they now have a completely different problem they are trying to manage.

Americans have been feeling the effects of inflation and supply chain issues throughout 2022, and organizers of summer camps are sharing the same struggles.

This means it could cost more to send your kids and teenagers to camp this summer, presenting yet another challenge as families battle increasing costs practically everywhere they look.

Here’s what to know about the rising costs at summer camp.

Why is summer camp more expensive this year?

American Camp Association said the average cost to send a child to day camp has more than doubled in 2022 to $178 per day, Yahoo reported. It’s exceedingly more to send for sleep-away camp, with prices tripling to $449 per day.

“Well, the costs of providing camp, just like everything else right now, is really going up,” ACA President and CEO Tom Rosenberg told Yahoo. “We’ve had increases in labor costs, food costs, program supply costs, COVID-related costs. Everything has gone up. So camps are trying to operate at scale this summer, which is different from the past two summers.”

Camps across the country are feeling the effects. Avid4 Adventure in Colorado increased its prices between 8% and 12% this year, which its CEO says still won’t offset some of the camp’s increased expenses, according to Axios.

Camp Good Days, which offers free camp to patients who have had cancer or sickle cell anemia, are having to increase fundraising efforts in order to operate this summer.

“We have seen an increase in everything, and that’s for transportation — obviously gas prices are up — food costs are much higher than they were last year, even ordering program materials,” Caitlyn Bailey, the organizer of the New York-based camp, told WSTM.

Some camps are paying their staff members more, which in turn leads to more expensive costs for campers.

“The main, majority of that increase is going to go to our college-age summer staff,” Andy Sonneland, the executive director for Spokane, Washington’s Camp Spalding, told KXLY. “We increased their rate of pay 25% this summer, and that’s on the heels of a 33% increase, a few years ago.”

Demand on the rise

Despite some of these rising costs, there is still a high demand for summer camps, which were tradition for many families until the pandemic.

“Demand is extremely strong for camps as parents are desperate for their kids to be out in nature with their peers and away from tech devices after two years of social distancing,” Rosenberg told CNN.

But, as Denver’s KMGH notes, many summer camps closed for good during the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that whiledemand has surged, there are even fewer options for prospective campers.

Keri Rush, the youth development director at the YMCA in Pabst Farms in Wisconsin, said there is more interest for camp activities this year than in any of her 11 years with the program, according to the Waukesha Freeman.

“Coming off the past two years of the pandemic, it helps bridge the gap between the end of the school year and the start of the next year,” Michigan parent Lauren Leeds told the Lansing State Journal. “It’s drastically important.”

How are camps and the government helping?

Many camps offer ways to cut down on the costs, while others offer free programs.

At Camp Tawonga, a Jewish summer camp outside Yosemite National Park, prices for a two-week session have jumped more than $800 since 2019, but its CEO told CNN it is trying to balance that increase with financial assistance.

“We want to ensure that people can participate in Tawonga programs regardless of their financial situation,” Jamie Simon told CNN. “To that end, we give away over $750,000 a year in financial assistance.”

The ACA’s Find a Camp listing has many options for camps at various price ranges. The site also shows how parents can apply for camp scholarships or receive assistance offered from their state or the federal government.

In New Jersey, for instance, Gov. Phil Murphy recently announced $10 million in grants available for summer youth camps.

Free camp programs are also available through YMCA, The Salvation Army and other organizations that include the Fresh Air Fund, Council for the Arts and Apple store camps, Care.com reports.

This story was originally published May 16, 2022 at 3:26 PM with the headline "You may have to pay more for summer camp this year — if you can find one at all."