What would you charge
There has been a lot of moans both on the C&CC forum and this one about high prices of pitches , so , what would you charge if it was down to you to fix the prices ????
Comments
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Well it depends on time of year but if you had a low, mid and peak price bracket it would simplify things. Low being really out of season, Mid the shoulder periods before and after the main summer holidays and peak obviously in the main summer and other school holidays as well as bank holiday weeks.
Pricing would have to depend on the area the site is in, facilities offered and the local competition to remain competitive and not be lots cheaper or more expensive compared to the rest.
Have a charge for dogs, awnings and extra people but a pitch cost should be for 2 adults and 2 kids per night then charge for extra above that.
So for costs, for a standard site offering EHU, toiled block, kids play area, dog walk etc.
Low £16-£18
Mid £19-£22
Peak £25-£30
Awnings £2.50 a day regardless and Dogs £1, extra people £2.50 per kid, £3.50 per adult.
Sites with pools, bars, entertainments etc probably add £5 in peak and £2 in Mid but same in Low as nothing would be open.
Maybe do some cheaper options in the slack weeks to try and fill the sites so maybe £15 a night in Low season Mon-Thur.
But I bet you get lots of different answers including the don't care cos I don't use club sites ones because we all want different things and value things differently.
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Husky, that's a bit like asking your customers to name their price for something in your shop? Do you do that? Everyone would choose a silly price?
Or do you work out what it cost you , what profit you need to make to cover your expenses, what the neighbouring shops are charging and then set the price? You would soon be out of business if you let customers decide the price?
I have no idea what is reasonable other than to look at what the club is charging, ask is it good value to me, and what are other providers are charging.
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No idea about the C&CC forum; I use their sites but not their forum. As for this forum, Has there been "a lot" of moaning? Well there have certainly been moans from a number of predictable quarters, but often it then turns out that those same folk use CC sites anyway.
I've said often enough, I don't think CC prices are unreasonable compared on a like for like basis with other providers. But for me, price is not the main factor. So far this year I've got about 30 nights booked' of which just 9 are on club sites - the others are on sites for which I've paid a deposit (2 CLs and 2 private sites). (Of the club sites, I'm paying just under £100 for 5 nights at Moorhampton over Easter weekend and 4 nights at Chatsworth in May which, by using my last two site night vouches will cost me just over £50.)
I've no issues with the club's prices - if I didn't feel I was getting value for money I'd book elsewhere, but location is my overall top priority.
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Why not they are damaging the area banging pegs in, taking up more space etc. Bring the CC into line with some commercial and CL sites.
Obviously on grass the damage they do need repairing each year and reseeding so it would pay for that.
Also may help to alleviate some peoples aversion to someone heating an awning, at least they would be paying for the privilege.
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I like the single occupancy one too - and I also appreciate the circa £4 reduction of the C & CC for not using EHU as I really don't need that most of the year. Obviously I would prefer to pay less all round too but that's not going to happen!
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I don't see that those using an awning are taking up any more space than I do when I put out tables and chairs. I do not see any damage on hard standings from awning use. On grass I could be persuaded that a charge be levied and if using a ground sheet particularly so.
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I can't see why the base price shouldn't be for the pitch plus one person. Why have a pitch price then an addition for a person? Then add in additional people. I agree I can't see why there just isn't three prices being low, middle and high although area and facilities dependent. Awning s and dogs should be free. Prices are getting high however and I certainly look at non club sites which are often better, better located and cheaper!
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How reasonable the prices seem will depend upon what the touring unit is made up of....number of adults, number of children, size of outfit, awnings, dogs, cats, parrots, fish, yes or no to hook up, location chosen, time of year of stay etc...
The Club seems to be doing its best to cope with the miriad of variables, without penalising a particular group. The fact that some times are cheaper than others is just standard operating practice for all providers of holiday bookings, be they package tour, cottage, B&B or campsite. That is pure marketing tactics, helped along by the schools imposing strict controls on pupils attendance levels.
I do think that the pricing structure has become a lot more complicated with the few pence added here and there at certain times, and would benefit from a bit of tidying up.
Likewise, one other innovation that the Club does not use, is to heavily discount pitches still available on the day, and unbooked. If someone phones/ turns up after 5pm, then why not consider letting any unbooked pitches at a big discount to fill the pitches that night? There won't be that many, few folk are willing to gamble on finding a late pitch, preferring to be organised in advance, but there will be some who will benefit, and so will the Club! Any fees are better than no fees!
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If you have 6 people on a pitch they will use 6 times more water/sewerage than 1 person, some extra electric etc. So to have a basic pitch fee including a number of people then charge above that per person is fair. After all if you book a hotel you pay for a room plus people!!
Dogs also use water to drink and owners wash them down sometimes also there is a provision of dog walking areas, the poo bins to supply, maintain, empty and dispose of contents according to the law.
A lot of people on here shout about how great it is over there and this is how it works, plus most commercial sites operate this model...
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I would split the prices as the C&CC does, charging more for hardstandings and less for grass. But as for the actual price I've no idea of the overheads and profit margins needed to keep the sites going or take on future capacity with new sites. I would guess the prices are fairly reasonable at the moment, it depends how much spending power we've all got if inflation takes hold, I'd include the CC in that too.
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I can assure you that if I pay for my dogs to visit anywhere, then I expect a bit more than a bowl full of water and a rubbish bin! A lot of Club Sites make no provision of a decent dog walk within the Club Site boundaries, usually either a patch of land not fit for pitches or off the site. The only exception that comes to mind is Barnard Castle, and I am not sure if the Club actually owns the field there or leases it. If I pay for my dogs to use a cottage it is so the extra cleaning that might be required is covered, likewise in hotels, but those that are dog welcoming usually lay on something special for canine visitors as well, a good bit beyond a splash of water!
We use sites where dogs are charged, and they provide a lot more, so please don't beat dog owners with this penalty.
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Yes I realise that HD but it's a question we can't answer apart from saying what the club charges now is (for me) about right and indeed for me, I feel I'm getting a good deal. The fact that as shown on other threads sites are full at weekends would appear to indicate that many others are happy (yes I do mean happy, otherwise why pay it? - its not like you have to come to club sites) with the current prices.
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Well there have certainly been moans from a number of predictable quarters, but often it then turns out that those same folk use CC sites anyway.
This is something I simply, no matter how hard I try, cannot understand. These people moan about club prices, state how cheaper other non club sites, yet, yet, keep going back to club sites? Why? Going to a club site is not like buying petrol of food which you have to buy. You don't like the price of a club site? Fine, Don't go there. But to complain and keep going? Are they forced to go to club sites?
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I don't moan Husky, do I ?
I pay about £17 for sites with a grass pitch, good toilets, showers, hot water and electricity for caravan and two people in July/August. It seems a reasonable price to me.
Are Club sites dearer than that? I'm afraid I don't know.
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It is not what you would charge but what is needed to cover the sites costs. The club needs to at least break even to stay in business so has to work out the costs and set a figure that should cover these although a little support for the less popular ones from the others might be needed.
As for how you charge it seems to me the biggest cost is the pitch so the pitch fee should be higher and the charge for each occupant less to reflect real life. Families are also our future so I would give a family rate to help them.
If weekends are booking up then perhaps a lower rate for midweek might help although there is a discount on some sites now.
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And so am I.
Have a look at Trewithen Camping at St Merryn near Padstow, or Fursdon Farm near Liskeard. One is £17 the other £16 - peak summer prices in Cornwall. And five star reviews on line for both of them.
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We seem to be stating what we like rather than what we would change so here goes. The ability to book one or any number of nights available to us. No deposits. Choice of pitch on arrival with no pre-booking of specific pitches. (I'd continue with allocation of pitch for the disabled amongst us mind as their choice is limited to that one designated for their need, not chosen by them.) no extra charge for awnings. All price structures for above as is!
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+ 1
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Although like everyone else I like a good deal. For the Caravan Club, I think a fairer way of charging would be to have only 3 or even 2 price bands. Morvich on the west coast of Scotland only has two, with peak being the Easter period and from the 28th April to the 30th September. However, prices are set at a generally lower level than the sites that have multiple rates and extremely high blips for school holidays. I see the net result of this as everyone shouldering a bit of the burden, and those who can only holiday at certain times are not subsidising those of us able to caravan away from school holidays.
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Only the Club know what it costs to run each site and I imagine they work out our sites fees to cover those costs and include an element of profit to go back into Club funds or for contingencies like bad weather. So basically this is a discussion on how those costs are carved up to meet those running costs. They could be more modular in their approach which would mean there would be charges for hardstandings, charges for dogs, charges for awnings etc. However they would have to be careful that they didn't alienate members by that type of charging. OK its the way a lot of commercial site operate but being a Club site I imagine many members would prefer not to go down that route. As we already charge extra for service pitches I would see it as not being an issue for a modest charge for a hardstanding pitch with perhaps a corresponding small reduction for grass or non awning pitches. One problem that is always being mentioned here is the problem of booking weekends on certain sites. You could get round that by charging extra for Friday/Saturday but pass the savings onto midweek prices. You can only cut the cake so many ways!
David
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Good point AD. It's rather ironic that the Club is the sole agent for selling Camping Cheques in the U.K., but has made no move to accept them on its own sites or incorporate them into its own pricing structure.
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