PLYMOUTH, Mass. -- Looking for less-expensive vacations, some people are choosing to pitch a tent close to home.

NewsCenter 5's Lynn Jolicoeur reported that private campgrounds in Massachusetts are seeing an increase in their reservations. Pinewood Lodge owners said that they are doing well, and the economy is changing the face of their customers.

VIDEO: Local Campgrounds Booming

"We were considering going to Hershey this time. We, last year, planned to go. But the gas prices and the cost to get in, it wasn't worth it," said Deb Trythall, of Bellingham.

They chose to go to Pinewood Lodge in Plymouth.

"We love it. It's nice. It's close to home," she said.

"People are holding their money a little tighter than they used to. It is the simplicity of it all," Pinewood Lodge owner Jim Saunders said.

This summer's reservations reflect a changing customer base.

"Long-range travelers -- there are very few of them. They are not coming up from Texas and Florida. They are coming from real local or Europe and Canada," Saunders said.

A few long-distance license plates were spotted at the campground.

"We usually go further away," said Cathy O'Hearn, of Brockton. "We go to New York to Lake George, or we'll go to Connecticut. But because of gas prices, we are staying local, and this is one of our favorite spots."

"It's a 150-gallon tank -- so at $5 a gallon -- it gets up there," said Victor Roy, of Westport.

State campgrounds have seen a 14 percent increase in reservations over last year.