Misleading late availability
Spent the Easter weekend at Nunnykirk. Up until the Wednesday before, the late availability search was showing no pitches available, but during our stay there were at least half a dozen pitches that were in service (some pitches were too boggy to be in use ) that remained unused. My question is how is pitch availability monitored ? who updates the website & when ?
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As Moulsey suggests I have alway understood that only about 95% of available pitches are available to the online/call centre booking. The rest are kept back to allow the warden to manage the site subject to unforeseen circumstances. From the OP's post it does seem that some pitches were out of use for obvious reasons. I think wardens will let some of those pitches at short notice if they are fairly sure other problems won't arise but maybe at Easter most campers will have arranged their stays some time in advance. As often mentioned on this forum it's always a good idea to give the site a ring on the off chance those pitches are available.
David
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I wonder if there are any facts to substantiate this hypothesis? I suspect not! More to do with site management and possible pitches not in use for unforeseen circumstances site specific reasons or inclement conditions. But these too are just possible reasons! However, some do jump to their own conclusions which suit their agenda mind!
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Indeed. The club has stated that since deposits were removed the number of no shows and late cancellations actually went down. Another possible reason is perhaps people leaving early, either by choice or unplanned. Were those empty pitches actually in use? Perhaps they too had just dried out from their boggy conditions affecting the other pitches and not ready for use? We simplify do not know, speculation is easy, proving it is rather more difficult.
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I would certainly rather have the site work at 95% and hold back 5% for contingencies. Rather than have a United Airlines situation, where somebody arrives and there is no functioning pitch for them. That would certainly produce some moans on CT.😂
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We were at Chatsworth over Easter. This weekend has been "full" since booking day in December but I walked around the site each night with the dog and always empty pitches. Even Easter Sunday there were five awning pitches and at least two on Good Friday and Saturday!
All HS here but I wonder how many would have been free if deposits had been taken?
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I would think only 5 pitches empty on a site with 120 a very good outcome. Allowing 2 / 3 for contingencies such as faulty EHU, or tree problems. And that is only a 2.5% cancellation / no show rate. I would think a very probable figure wether deposits had been charged or not.
The charge for two for a 3 night Easter break is about £104 + fuel. I am not sure a £20 / £30 deposit would change things much.
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Also having paid a deposit and going to lose it there is no incentive to actually tell the site/club. At least the current method allows for the pitch to be resold. In addition three no shows or late cancellations at present result in sanctions, which are applied and some members lose booking rights.
Also you don't know how many of those (only) five 'empty' pitches were due to people paying for that night then leaving early, or were held back from the booking system as described already for emergencies.
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9 pitches were without power here this mid week when some numpty managed to knock a distribution bollard over, good job there were a "few" that the site staff had available ,to cover until sparky got here, there are a couple empty now but site "full"
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JV, I doubt that so called-'numpty' actually wanted to create the problems they did
it could've been health issues, it's too easy to attack rather than think the situation out.1 -
I think JVB's posts clearly illustrates why wardens would keep a contingency number of pitches even on all hardstanding sites. As to the use of the term numpty. When power movering the van I once almost forgot about the EHU post immediately behind. If I had hit it, I would have had no problem with being referred to as a numpty. I would certainly have felt one.😃
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Please try & come up with some thing better , than the same old , same old I know old habits die hard..........😍
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ref the above post.......
The situation at the Buxton site is as follows....due to an on going electrical supply problem from mid to late season last year & is still on going this year , the site can only supply approximately 55% of the pitches .
Therefore the site looks & will continue to be only half filled , but the availability on the website will only take account of the number of pitches that can safely be used until things return to normal .
So yes members will continue to book & assume if it shows full , then the system is at fault when on arrival it clearly isn't .
In other words things aren't what they sometimes appear to be & yes some pitches on sites will continue to be vacant ..........for a reason & not pure speculation........👍
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Not sure what the connection is between allegedly muddy pitches & late availability
But as there is not a hard standing in sight at St David's, moving a pitch peg is all that's needed to sort it ...... all pitches on a particular row can move along a bit & let the affected bit of ground go either, under the caravan or be in between pitches ...... easy.
And I ALWAYS use my ground sheet & get grass growing through it if I manage to avoid a gravel pitch.
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I doubt that so called-'numpty' actually wanted to create the problems they did it could've been health issues,
I'm pondering what health issue could contribute to someone knocking over an electrical distribution bollard. All the ones that I can come up with would rended the individual unfit to drive a motor vehicle in any case.
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As said previously, empty pitches on so-called fully booked sites are down to late cancellations and no-shows.
No one has ever produced any evidence to disprove this obvious conclusion.
Certainly, the CAMC have consistently refused to release figures for late (just before the 72 hour cut off) cancellations.
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Actually, Ian, you can't prove a negative. Thought you'd have realised that.
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You need a better imagination Nav-picture this. . . .Blackout, heart issues, fitting-to name but 3. The last one being personally witnessed by me(not the other problems)
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But the figures showing cancellations just before the 72 hour cut off could easily be published.......but they might just prove the often quoted evidence that availability suddenly appears just before weekends - too late for many people to take advantage.
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Only if the club records such data in the first place, and the club has said they do not record it as it is within the rules. Its a bit like asking the police to say how many drivers don't break the speed limit, or drive at 68 mph on a motorway. Why should the club record those that don't break the rules?
Of course the police do record those that speed (and risk lives) and get caught (don't they Ian
) just as the club records those that break the 72 hour rule3 -
The club say they don't at present collect that data so they can't publish it, can they? And anyway, cancelling between, say 96 and 72 hours in advance would mean cancelling on a Monday for the weekend, giving plenty of folk the opportunity to take up those cancelled spots.
Personally, I'd have no problem with extending the late cancellation threshold to, maybe, 5 days. But, if I was the sort to cancel just on account of the weather (which we've never done) and I'd paid a sizeable deposit, I think I'd be inclined to leave it until the last possible moment before deciding not to go.
So from that point of view the club's booking system seems to make sense.
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