Price Overkill
Comments
-
Steve, you could say that the CC in general has a disproportionate number of retired people and that CT is spot on!
1 -
along with some other 'hot potatoes', the subject of CC site pricing (levels, number of variations) is a regular on CT.
CC prices certainly polarise opinion.....
we usually get plenty of posts suggesting members go elsewhere if they cant (or choose not to) pay CC prices, with little sysmpathy for some long term members who are genuinely finding it tough...
we also get plenty of those who have realised that CC is an organisation which is happy to price its own members out of the market as there will be others (who are not yet savvy enough to believe touring exists outside of the two 'clubs') along to take their place. these customers are voting with their wheels and making use of commercials and their regular offers, where quality is certainly on a par with CC and perhaps a little less rigidity reigns...
IMHO, the club certainly doesnt help itself by varying charges by such tiny amounts, and perhaps a flatter, more straightforward structure would remove the view that these minute variations have been inserted for a purpose.
whether that purpose is 'penny pinching' or 'penny saving' only the customer can decide.
3 -
I think with the pricing structure as it is, the Club might as well go to variable pricing as the C&CC has. At least they wouldn't have to publish price rises every year and as a result there wouldn't be the usual debates over the increase.
peedee
0 -
except in real life (and that what counts) in school holidays sites have far more families staying on them and people who look under retirement age (less than 50?) than much older possibly retired couples. So perhaps CT isn't.
4 -
once again why spoil a good argument and post by an insult to those who stay on club sites? ie
who are not yet savvy enough to believe touring exists outside of the two 'clubs'
Very very insulting to those who continually use club sites, we just aren't savvy enough? (savvy meaning from dictionary : shrewdness and practical knowledge; the ability to make good judgements) and its a theme that you (based on the above) and other keep coming back to. Why can't you accept that people may actually like club sites and have made a good decision to use them?
Do the ones who like club sites post that those that don't aren't savvy enough? No we respect your views to make your own decisions. Please give us the same respect and consideration.
As you keep coming back to these sort of statements (not your first time) it appear that you can't?
4 -
Corners, what seems to be the problem....
being savvy is having experience, experience of camping and the marketplace.
when our pals bought us membership to the club, i certainly only thought that MH ing took place at the two main clubs...
over time, my experience and understanding of what else was out there helped me realise that there was more choice in this hobby...
choice to look around and make a judgement, based on my changing requirements.....ie i became more savvy.
many members do like club sites and choose to stay on them at all times, i never suggested anything to the contrary, nor that this was gerogatory in any way......i certainly did not insult anyone.
however there will be many members who really dont have much experience outside the clubs and will/may become 'more savvy' as they spend more time vanning....this may lead them into broadening their horizons into using other suppliers, perhaps going abroad, perhaps even going off grid...
to me, suggesting that some members dont yet have this experience is somehow an 'insult' then i must be using a different language to you.
you latch on to one word in my post, and then launch some tirade about me being insulting to members.....
perhaps some get the experience/savvy (like yourself, perhaps) and then make a judgement call to comtinue with club sites.....this too, is being savvy.
...but you need that expereience (savvyness) to be able to make these decisions.
3 -
Whilst we are also taking a trip to France this year, as none of us are getting any younger, this a risk. For personal reasons we could have to cancel it, which would at the very least result in the loss of the red pennant insurance cost.
So Savvy for us is the excellent cancellation policy and ability to chop and change, if problems arise, that membership of the club and use of their sites provides.
2 -
Do people really believe vanning exists only within the clubs? Surely not? We were caravanning for near on two seasons before we discovered clubs existed. We just searched out commercial sites in the way that people do.
1 -
From what I read on here, the lack of retired people on sites in the school holidays is mainly due to......
peak season prices
preferring to go when sites are less crowded
being unable to go to a popular site as it is already booked up
.......so I do not think you can draw any conclusions on the make up of the membership by looking at who is on sites at any particular time of the year.
If you were to look at those on sites in mid September or mid June, you would conclude that the Club has very few member families.
1 -
Comparing any prices anywhere is a matter of perception on the part what the person concerned is looking for,
The most posts on the subject, seem to be from what seems to be the "retired/grey vote" population who can mostly go where they want when they want (us included),after checking out the "cheapest?"accomadation,for the areas they want to go to, out of the main holiday periods when the leisure industry (all companies) make their money,
And the way the "Staycation" is increasing ,there is more than enough people,looking for places on this country,to not be a concern for anybody in the leisure industry ,about falling occupancy figures
0 -
When it comes to travel abroad, we book only the ferry, and if that cost is less than RP for the trip, which it usually is, we do not take out the RP till close to our departure date.
When it comes to Club sites, I agree that,other than the reliable standard, the big plus is indeed the ability to alter a booking, and to cancel if necessary without incurring a large penalty. Quite valuable when you are getting on a bit!
These days, we are using more CLs and no facility CC sites due to the increased prices, but do look carefully at costs first as if a CL requires a large deposit, it might on some occasions be more sensible for us to use a CC site instead. Lots of things to consider.
0 -
yes, exactly my point. If you read carefully I am not making any such conclusions at all! I did say in school holidays and there was a question mark at the end of my post.
I was just giving a counter example to a poster that said Ct is mainly made up of retired people. You could be correct, so could I. Or maybe, both are correct, which is probably the case I think. In which case Ct isn't really representative of the membership in general
But hang on, I thought you said that out of season many (your exact word) retired folk couldn't afford to come to club sites, now you you're saying they do?
1 -
No Corners, I am saying that those on sites outside of school holidays are, naturally,mainly retired people, and of course also those with pre school children, since the families with older children have to be at home then.
You cannot draw any conclusions on membership just from looking at who is on a site at any one time.
Outside of school holidays, midweek, as many others have pointed out, plenty of sites have pretty low occupancy, leading as we know to discussions of whether members are finding CC sites unacceptably more expensive than the alternatives.
Was your question mark meant to apply to your whole post then?
0 -
TW, i cant give you a definitve answer, nor can your inference be wholly true...
our introduction to vanning was the assistance of two friends in managing their John o Groats to Lands End charity cycle ride by taking their MH home for them.
they were members of the club, and as a small thankyou, bought us membership when we bought our first MH....they also told us about the other club....this was vanning as we knew it for a while.
so, totally different from you and 'the way that people do'....because these people didnt
later, we met folk who raised our awareness about other ways to do things, MCC, commercials, co timental travel. ACSI, etc, etc......we became more 'savvy'.
however, we digress...
back to the OP, why has the club got such a vast array of slightly differing prices throughout the season.....?
0 -
say what you will BB, you accused those of staying at club sites as being not savvy. You wrote that you cannot go back.
You simply cannot accept that somehow those who go to club sites do not have the experience or savvy to know better. Maybe just maybe they actually like what they see.
I have been to non club sites and have been disappointed each time, why I should I risk a gamble on a non club site? why risk my money (not yours) when I am perfectly happy with what I do now on the idea I might find something better? Yes I might but why should I try? Just so I can then make an informed decision? Seems daft to me.
Did you have this attitude when you worked for Clarks shoes ( I think that's correct?) Yes we have a quality product that people trust and want to buy, but before you do buy our product go to shoe city and buy theirs then you can make an informed decision if our product was any good. Sounds an excellent way to lose a sale.
Just get used to it BB, some like club sites
4 -
back to the OP, why has the club got such a vast array of slightly differing prices throughout the season.....?
Because they run and the club and they can. But it appears with respect that you're the only one who is really bothered by it.
Yes I agree with your OP and I can't figure it out, it seems silly but to everyone but you, its a non problem. Non one uses the price bands to work out their cost, as anyone said they do? They put in their dates on the booking window, they are told how much those dates will cost, they agree or don't.
0 -
Corners, if you insist on being the pedant, what i actually wrote was
"we also get plenty of those who have realised that CC is an organisation which is happy to price its own members out of the market as there will be others (who are not yet savvy enough to believe touring exists outside of the two 'clubs') along to take their place"
youll see that ones i refer to, that are not yet savvy, are the ones joining the club, ie new, inexperienced members...not existing members as you accused me of doing.
a new member, as i was, with only knowledge of the club(s)....so i took them at face value. of course, now i know differently.....there is a whole world out there, in which the clubs have their place...
ill happily (again) accept your apology....
2 -
yes, I was replying to Ovaltine (? sorry can't remember) who said Ct have it correct as being representative of club members. I fully agree with you that you cannot draw any conclusions from either sites or those who post on here. Only the club will know its members. It would be interesting if they gave details. I think they did once but I can't find that reference.
0 -
not this time BB ( I think its one all anyway) didn't see you after class last week, how's the subtraction idea going
0 -
Who'd have thought the club pricing matrices would be such a riveting topic of conversation?
We all make are own decisions on where to go and what we consider reasonable to pay.
I can appreciate why folk would choose not to use club sites off peak when there are often cheaper alternatives. We've just booked a club site for Easter weekend at pretty much half the price of a nearby commercial. We stay on all sorts of sites during the year; last year the most expensive ( but only by a couple of pounds a night) was a commercial site but it was the closest to where we wanted to he. The same is true of the sites we've booked so far this year. I can't remember ever paying an amount I was unhappy about for the facilities we've had.
What I don't understand though is why folk complain about club prices, but continue to use club sites regularly - where is the incentive for the club to reduce prices while that's happening?
0 -
if we must continue the analogy....
yes, we make (made) a great product.....and i (sometimes) buy them as i get a good discount...
however, put me in the position of a 'full price' customer and id be thinking far harder....Its a premium product at a premium price...
..and there are some other great products out there at competitive prices.....my last pair of boat shoes werent Clarks....and they are great.
so, as i am a savvy shoe buyer, i look around and compare price, quality, choice etc, but dont buy 'my own brand' just because i always have done....
..nor when renewing my insurance, or my utilities, or my phone/broadband contracts, etc...
i weigh up all the same things i do when i end up going to a commercial site, a THS or a CCC site or even one abroad....
im sorry you had a poor experience when you tried a commercial site or two, perhaps best to stick with CC, as you say.....
2 -
In general if I was going to check prices for a specific period, I would use the pdf I have saved to i books. It is much quicker than using the web site. However, it is not really correct to say the extensive price lists do not cause any problems. On a pad or PC they are fairly quick to navigate. If you are on a phone and want to get to the reviews, it is a different matter. I just counted 12 swipes to get through one list with separate bands for MWD. Even if they keep the expanded format for larger devices a condensed version for phones would be a good idea.
1 -
thanks for your reply. I fully agree that there may be better sites out there. I've never said that other sites are not good value, I'm sure they are but not for me.
I too compare prices for other things and I do compare prices for club sites against others in the same area. I usually find that the club (as others have stated but some just don't believe - not you btw) prices are usually withing a few pounds either way, so I'll use club sites as I'll know what I'll be getting, rather than risk a poor site. Yes websites can show all sorts of fantastic photos which may or may not be the 'real' truth., I think you will admit the consistency of clubs is good? So I'll continue to use a quality product that fits my needs exactly and offers good value (for me). I just don't like this idea that I'm using club sites without thought or choice.
Have a good day. I have to catch a plane to Heathrow for an all expenses paid working holiday somewhere south. Shame as I like the snow that's forecast up here Liz calls again!
0 -
There was no question as such. It was rhetorical. Inference? What inference?
People do search out commercial sites all the time, BB. You do it and urge others to do the same in your apparent haste to abandon CC sites.
I'm glad you eventually became savvy enough to find the way that suits you. I think you'll find we're all fine doing things the way we want.
1 -
Whatever the views on the merits/value of CC sites, we are still faced with an inordinately complex pricing structure which, if the threads on the shortcomings of the website are anything to go by, make navigation around the booking process, particularly for handheld devices, unnecessarily difficult.
3 -
Steamer Quay was mentioned on another thread as being the only CC site without EHU. The CC still however believe it is acceptable to charge between £17.20 and £19.40 per night for two people - the mind boggles!
1
