As short-term rental apps become increasingly popular, one unique camping-focused app is wrangling guests to Santa Barbara County and beyond.

Hipcamp, founded in 2013, is used to find and book campsites, RV parks, cabins and treehouses, among others. The app is loosely known as the “Airbnb of camping” because it is advertised as easy for hosts and guests to quickly find and rent short-term spaces.

The platform mostly partners with private landowners. However, they also work with commercial campgrounds, RV parks, nonprofits and conservation landowners, according to Hipcamp Community Relations Manager Cassandra Prenn-Vasilakis.

There are now 30 active hosts in Santa Barbara County, ranging from smaller farms and private-land camps, “glamping” — glamorous camping sites — as well as traditional RV tent and camping spots.

One of the county’s most notable spots is the Cuyuma Badlands, which accommodates varied camping styles. It was included in Hipcamp’s “50 Favorite Camping Spots in America Right Now.” 

Hipcamp bookings generate roughly $400,000 annually, collectively, for Santa Barbara County hosts, according to Prenn-Vasilakis.

Prenn-Vasilakis said hosts set their own pricing and availability.

“Hosting a small number of campsites can be really a strategic economic tool for farmers and other types of landowners who are looking for ways to manage the ups and downs of our current climate and economy,” Prenn-Vasilakis said.

Another popular hosting spot in the county is Gaia Farms up Refugio Canyon, a farm that raises livestock and hosts community markets. It also offers hands-on learning experiences.

According to Gaia Farms’ Director of Stories & Development Nicolas Navarro, Hipcamp reached out by sending a box of cookies and requesting the farm host on the platform. 

“At that point, we had been open as a business for three or four years, (and) just had barely built the website, and we hadn’t built any camp spots yet, or put up any tents or yurts or anything,” Navarro said. “So they sent us a box of cookies … it was about a year later that we started to focus on it as a project.”

Navarro said bookings peak during the summer time or holidays. During fall, winter and spring, they’re particularly low on guests.

He estimated a quarter of all guests are from the county and half are “road trippers.” The remaining quarter are international or out-of-state guests.

Navarro also said adding the overnight accommodations blended well with their pre-existing services.

“Hipcamp gives us a little bit more space and tools of organization to book people,” Navarro said. “Being about 45 minutes outside of Santa Barbara, it’s definitely a venture to come up here for just an hour-and-a-half tour. Being able to spend the night here allows them to set up and then come over when they’re ready for a tour, a workshop… I think it integrates really well. We’re really grateful for it.”

For Megan Raff, co-owner of Dare 2 Dream Farms, integrating short-term rentals into the farm has provided a supplemental income considering the low barrier for entry. To sign up, hosts must create a free account and upload a property.

While it’s not their primary source of revenue, Raff said opening hosting land at the very least “might buy you dinner.”

Raff said they utilize Hipcamp alongside other platforms like Airbnb. However, she said she’s noticed guests from Hipcamp are typically “more self-sufficient” and are more likely to come prepared.

“They come and they use the space. They know how to start a camp stove, they know how to start a fire,” Raff said. “They probably brought all the things that they need to make themselves comfortable.”

Raff said by hosting visitors on their property, they’re able to “rebuild the connection between the local food system and its eaters.”

“For us, Hipcamp was a great way of reconnecting our eaters because in a food system everyone is part of it,” Raff said. “We’re all eaters, even if we’re not all growers.”