Camping's increased popularity will be felt at the King's Park Campground in Carman this summer.

During the first day of bookings for the 2021 season on Monday, the campground logged over 1,600 night stays, that's nearly double the opening-day reservations taken in 2020. It should be noted that some sites were closed for reservations at the start of the 2020 booking period, but quickly opened as public health guidelines became clearer.

"From the looks of it, most people are booking five to seven days, which would probably be for swimming lessons," noted Renae Wolfe, coordinator for Carman-Dufferin Recreation. While swimming lesson registrations for 2021 haven't opened yet, Wolfe hopes to get to it shortly, as soon as public health details have been ironed out.

Overall, Wolfe feels the King's Park Campground is appealing to campers because it's relatively close to home, and within walking distance to many amenities such as the pool, splash park, museum, golf course, etc.