Booking lead time

Booking lead time (also called the booking window) is how far in advance a guest books before they arrive. It is a key demand signal: a lengthening lead time suggests confident, early demand, while a shortening one points to more last-minute, price-sensitive behaviour. Understanding the distribution of lead times helps a property decide when to open rates, when to run early-bird or last-minute offers, and how aggressively to price as a date approaches. It is also a core input to dynamic pricing, which typically raises prices as availability tightens close to arrival. For campgrounds, lead times vary sharply: peak-summer and holiday stays are often booked far ahead, while shoulder-season and weather-dependent touring trips are decided at short notice. Reading these patterns per unit type and season helps an operator avoid both selling out too cheaply early and sitting empty at the last minute.