Which motorway services should be avoided?
Comments
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I agree. Call me a tightwad if you want, but I will never pay the ridiculous prices charged by service areas in order to sit in some noisy, scruffy building.
We often use the caravan toilet and never leave the car/caravan unattended. We usually take a flask and something to eat with us on longer journeys.
Incidentally, the service station operators don't provide parking facilities out of the goodness of their hearts.....they are required to do so as a condition of their license to operate there. If anything, most of them are not even providing what they are
supposed to provide, in terms of caravans.In answer to the op....the above comments about not leaving the car/caravan applies to all service areas.
Ian , are you saying that you use the caravan toilet in the service area but not on a site , thats odd ,who do you get to empty it for you
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Plastic cups and paper plates! Oh dear.
I think all the comments after mine reinforce what I said.
Prey tell what does it reinforce? I can assure you that i use paper plates and plastic cups
while travelling not to save a few pounds. I am comfortably well off and while I don't mind paying well for good food and/or services/products I will not pay over inflated prices for the sub standard food that is offered
at these services. There is nothing tightwadish about it, it is just I am not going to pay for something that I believe is awful and cheaper elsewhere.A question for you, do you buy the cheapest petrol or always go to the more expensive petrol station?
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Plastic cups and paper plates! Oh dear.
I think all the comments after mine reinforce what I said.
Prey tell what does it reinforce? I can assure you that i use paper plates and plastic cups
while travelling not to save a few pounds. I am comfortably well off and while I don't mind paying well for good food and/or services/products I will not pay over inflated prices for the sub standard food that is offered
at these services. There is nothing tightwadish about it, it is just I am not going to pay for something that I believe is awful and cheaper elsewhere.A question for you, do you buy the cheapest petrol or always go to the more expensive petrol station?
+1
I've got a UK Fuels card which charges me the same rate for fuel wherever I fill up.
Next question?
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Plastic cups and paper plates! Oh dear.
I think all the comments after mine reinforce what I said.
Prey tell what does it reinforce? I can assure you that i use paper plates and plastic cups
while travelling not to save a few pounds. I am comfortably well off and while I don't mind paying well for good food and/or services/products I will not pay over inflated prices for the sub standard food that is offered
at these services. There is nothing tightwadish about it, it is just I am not going to pay for something that I believe is awful and cheaper elsewhere.A question for you, do you buy the cheapest petrol or always go to the more expensive petrol station?
+1
I've got a UK Fuels card which charges me the same rate for fuel wherever I fill up.
Next question?
you tightwad!
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Plastic cups and paper plates! Oh dear.
I think all the comments after mine reinforce what I said.
Prey tell what does it reinforce? I can assure you that i use paper plates and plastic cups
while travelling not to save a few pounds. I am comfortably well off and while I don't mind paying well for good food and/or services/products I will not pay over inflated prices for the sub standard food that is offered
at these services. There is nothing tightwadish about it, it is just I am not going to pay for something that I believe is awful and cheaper elsewhere.A question for you, do you buy the cheapest petrol or always go to the more expensive petrol station?
+1
I've got a UK Fuels card which charges me the same rate for fuel wherever I fill up.
Next question?
you tightwad!
..+1
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I think to be fair it's easier to come off a motorway and find somewhere to park with a M/H than a car and caravan, soon to find out !!!
It is indeed! Getting there, and coming back are now a day out!
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I sometimes "have" to use the services north of Cambridge on the A14 and on the A1 near Peterborough with the caravan on the back. Whoever designed the positioning of the caravan parking was/is a complete idiot who has never towed. They are amongst the cars
with very tight turns and to make it worse, they are invariably full or nearly so with cars and white van man even though marked "caravans only". I once said to a white van man parked in one of these spaces that he obviously couldn't read. He threatened to
thump me !!Perhaps the Club could take up this matter with the "authorities" - the parking not the threats of being thumped!!
But I won't hold my breath.
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I sometimes "have" to use the services north of Cambridge on the A14 and on the A1 near Peterborough with the caravan on the back. Whoever designed the positioning of the caravan parking was/is a complete idiot who has never towed. They are amongst the cars
with very tight turns and to make it worse, they are invariably full or nearly so with cars and white van man even though marked "caravans only". I once said to a white van man parked in one of these spaces that he obviously couldn't read. He threatened to
thump me !!Perhaps the Club could take up this matter with the "authorities" - the parking not the threats of being thumped!!
But I won't hold my breath.
Join a boxing club and learn to fight back
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The C&CC did publish details of where thefts took place and services hardly featured but it does occur. If leaving the caravan unattended the risk is low but would be excluded by many insurance policies so in most cases a wheel clamp is needed. Possibly
to avoid the problems of most of these a Nemisis Ultra is the answer as takes seconds to fix and release but would need a lot of effort to overcome. Thieves are simply looking for unsecured caravans as they know they may not have more time than it takes to
get to the toilet and back and most devices take longer than that to overcome and could attract attention..0 -
Must agree about Cambridge services and Peterborough services, i travel on that route on a regular basis , both with caravan and solo and on most times white van man occupies the caravan spaces. Certainly not very well planned .
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PS i have never seen it warden monitored.
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I agree. Call me a tightwad if you want, but I will never pay the ridiculous prices charged by service areas in order to sit in some noisy, scruffy building.
We often use the caravan toilet and never leave the car/caravan unattended. We usually take a flask and something to eat with us on longer journeys.
Incidentally, the service station operators don't provide parking facilities out of the goodness of their hearts.....they are required to do so as a condition of their license to operate there. If anything, most of them are not even providing what they are
supposed to provide, in terms of caravans.In answer to the op....the above comments about not leaving the car/caravan applies to all service areas.
Ian , are you saying that you use the caravan toilet in the service area but not on a site , thats odd ,who do you get to empty it for you
Well, I don't have a poo in the service area, HD (always go before you set off, as mum would have said) but I do have a wee in the caravan......on site and in the services. Ok?
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Much as we deprecate 'white van man/homme de camion blanc' parking in caravan slots, a lot of the car parking bays are tight for a car let alone some of the larger delivery vans. Perhaps delivery vans should have an area in the HGV park.
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Have a fairly what will be will be attitude to this. Always fit the hitch lock but do use service stations in the UK. Only yesterday pulled into Fleet going north on the M3. Few lorries but about 5 other caravans. Left van crossed to south side for Burger King to avoid Macdonalds, ate outside, probably gone 45 minutes, no worries! Now that's another discussion Burger King or McDonald's? In France avoid them like the plague, too many cars, lorries parked in caravan bays at busy periods, often have had to leave without being able to stop, use Aires without services only. Probably less likely to leave van but probably because of rumour rather than fact.
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Yes i agree with CY the bays are too small for whitevan man to park in and they are not allowed in lorry park areas, strange they obey that rule.
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All of them, but the worst we have come across is Chatham on the M20, we could not park in the designated area for caravans as there were lazy car drivers, so I parked in the Coach area as I was dying for a Jimmy, only for literally five minutes, I got a
rollicking from an attendant with a big calculator who threatened to report meAdmiral
Admiral
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Going by the thread title, we will in future avoid Sedgemoor services on the M5. Disgusting and very dusty area where you have to park a caravan or even a HGV and distance from the actual shop.
thank you. That's a helpful comment. I just asked the question because I wanted to know which services were the worst, not to start a war! Thank you.
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There again, we like Sedgemoor......
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We went into Pease Pottage services at the end of the M23 once......as the Admiral says - dying for a Jimmy Riddle.
The signage was useless (never did find the caravan parking) so we went in the coach parking. When I got back to the car, I got all sorts of verbage from an officious chap in some sort of uniform. Gave him about the same amount back and went on my way.
Never go to Pease Pottage services!
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Which motorway services should be avoided? - pretty much all of them unless desperate.
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