Booking System
Comments
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Quite possibly PD but I was aware of that when I joined. It really depends on where we tour this coming year.
If we were to tour in the Lake District we would probably try and make use of Braithwaite Fold or maybe their site at Keswick (or is that Kendal?).
If we are near Cambridge we will no longer use CC Cherry Hinton due to poor exit coupled with my sight limitations but would opt for the nearby C&CC site.
So no idea until we sit down next month and plan routes. Needed their sites map for that.
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I don't much like their minimum booking periods but as it mostly applies to the the peak seasons during which I rarely use Club sites, it is of no great consequence to me and if they can still fill these sites, even with such terms, it makes good business sense.
peedee
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As we normally move on every 5 nights it would not trouble me. I don't like 1pm arrival times. If it was 11am they would be more likely to get my trade
For me the only reason that I am likely to use one of the C&CC sites is purely their location. This means that their sites at Great Malvern and at Leek would not be used as the CC sites are close by. The ability to book hard standing has some appeal but not that much as I cannot remember being forced to use a grass pitch due to no hardstanding left.
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Don't forget the age concession discount of 25% it's only available off peak times , but really makes a difference.
We joined C&CC last year & are certainly going to use more of their sites next year , the booking/deposits system is easy to use & availability in my experience is there weeks before you want to go even at their popular sites .
Plus pitch type is book able if you required H/S .......👍 you the member actually have a choice .😉
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each club has its plusses and minuses with regard to all aspects, and we (the members) probably like to make most use of those bits we favour...
paying a deposit makes no difference to us, we book so near the time we domt have months for things to 'come out of the woodwork'....also as stated, ACR is worth having, makes winter prices reasonable (just booking a CCC site now....)
smart operators will cherry pick the best ideas from the competition and try and incorporate those things into their own systems.
ive used both booking 'apps' this morning to find place for next week, my verdict, the CC app slightly better, the CCC in failing to display a (overall) 'map view' of all the sites retur ed by the search....
however, CCC actually got the vote for site as it was near to where we wanted to go (and we had a voucher.....).
there a lot of 'talk' about how much (deposit) someone would lose if there were problems with being able to meet commitments.....
unfortunately this is part of the risk with booking so far ahead...theres more time for 'things' to happen....and for booking ALL one's trips at the same time......i mean, who would do that?
the thing is, if one is effectively preventing other folk from booking that pitch, IMV thats a commitment on both side (supplier and customer) to honour that booking, hence i have no issues with 'sealing the deal' with a deposit.
RE: CC making any changes, the obvious 'better' elements of the CCC system are (firstly) pitch choice (hs, EHU, awning, SP, Jumbo size pitch, etc)where CC already does half of these and there is certainly customer demand for more choice, without having to book a SP when all you want is a HS
.secondly, price differential between different larger pitches or those with SP, HS, awning which are different to a basic pitch......perhaps even a more basic economy pitch level at each site....
i dont see them introducing deposits, but more choice and appropriate pricing seem simple customer focussed changes that might be on the cards.
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i dont see them introducing deposits, but more choice and appropriate pricing seem simple customer focussed changes that might be on the cards.
That does seem the more likely and sensible way to go BB. I cannot see the Club making no changes.
peedee
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I am 'odd' in as much as I prefer to sit down on a few November evenings at the dining table with OH and decide on a tour area and sites for 3 trips the next year. We are usually away for between 4.5 and 7 weeks. Often with only a three week break between our first two outings. We want specific sites at convenient spacings after an initial hop and in a specific order. We may vary time stays etc as we tour. We don't wish to be on first trip and planning the second whilst away. We used to plan second trip on return from first but found problems getting the sites that we wanted in correct sequence and timing to suit us. Less faff for us to do the year booking in one hit therefore.
As for the C&CC being 'sympathetic' to genuine reasons for cancellation. I do not want sympathy or anybody deciding whether my reason is genuine or not whilst I can avoid the necessity by booking a CC site.
For a number of reasons the C&CC is not for me other than as infill. If we do use a couple of their sites then the age discounts will go a way to covering the membership cost. If not then no matter.
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obviously its horses for course but i just couldnt imaging sitting down for a few November evenings discussing where we will be 'touring' in 5-10 months time.....life has far too big an influence on things moving forward that 'touring' fits around it, rather than the other way round.....
ok, ill book a golf holiday or other longer break to secure times and flights to fit in with others, ive even booked to go to Hyde Park in the summer......but for MH touring, not for us.....its too much of a spur of the moment thing regarding locations....(distances/weather/commitments) etc.
to that end we dont ever have the 'inconvenience/worry/pain/cost' (whatever....) of paying large deposits...we just go.
just to get back on topic, each club has its advantages in sites, locations, booking process, costs, and other things.....we're in both because we make use of both....
if someone doesnt like either (for whatever reason) then use the other.
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You seem determined to find nothing good about the C&CC.
On the Contrary WTG; what I see as good is that they have some sites that may fill a gap in CC network and a couple that will suit me better than some CC sites in a similar area due to their specific location. There may be more. On suitable sites the Age discount is welcome. As far as booking goes however, from my standpoint, I see little difference between them and most commercial sites, many of which also have a 1pm arrival that I dislike and yet I do still use them. No difference for me in that regard.
I would not use the C&CC as first choice due, in part, to a lack of their own sites compared to CC and what I perceive as a poorer booking system.
As an example of acceptance: I have just ordered a replacement for my existing caravan. There are aspects of the replacement that I do not like but not everything is a perfect match
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obviously its horses for course but i just couldnt imaging sitting down for a few November evenings discussing where we will be 'touring' in 5-10 months time.....life has far too big an influence on things moving forward that 'touring' fits around it, rather than the other way round.....
I am indeed different as we fit the rest of our life around our holidays.
to that end we dont ever have the 'inconvenience/worry/pain/cost' (whatever....) of paying large deposits...we just go.
I don't worry about the cost BB. Presumably little inconvenience.
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"I don't worry about the cost BB. Presumably little inconvenience. "
yet you regularly trot out (as above) how deposits on your vast (one booking) touring itinerary would cost you hundreds of pounds all at one and having to cancel would mean you lost it all......
so, why mention it (repeatedly)?
BTW, we manage to get in around 30 weeks touring a year plus other 'holidays', so we arent doing too badly regarding fitting touring and life around each other
.....and thats without too much planning, just think how much we'd be away if we spent November pouring over CC handbooks...
the systems are what they are, and we all make as much use of them as we need, some things are loved by others, whereas some may think that might be the worst part of that process....
i just hope that whatever changes CC come up with, it allows for more flexibility/choice to reflect the way different customers want to book and tour....
allowing for more spontenaiety would be good, perhaps a few separate proper, no booking, touring pitches (even only in use for a part of the year) would allow all members to drop in/move on without making phone calls to book....
either way, to see ANY change implemented by CC will be a Revelation, look what happened when we all though we were getting HS booking, last time
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"I don't worry about the cost BB. Presumably little inconvenience. "
yet you regularly trot out (as above) how deposits on your vast (one booking) touring itinerary would cost you hundreds of pounds all at one and having to cancel would mean you lost it all......
so, why mention it (repeatedly)?
I mention it purely because I dislike a deposit system when compared to the present system. Indeed If I had to cancel say a 5 week tour with C&CC conditions I could loose up to £200 at a guess for the first 30 days. That would not upset me but would prefer not to. When talking about booking systems however (as we were) it is not just its effect on me personally but on all members. If I had to cancel at last minute I would doubtless have better things to concern me than the lost of a little money BB
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I doubt any changes in the booking system are likely to put site income in jeopardy so I expect any possibility of holding back pitches on spec, beyond those currently controlled by the warden is unlikely to happen.However perhaps the fact that wardens do hold a few pitches back (forgotten the term used) could be publicised as available for overnight stops by direct contact to the site on the day?
David
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It's surely ingrained by necessity for those wanting particular sites at popular times, David.
Years ago it was unheard of to book a touring pitch but vanning has become a victim of its own success in the UK and we can't now turn the clock back.
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I suppose its the same here as "over there" it depends on the area and time of year, as touring without booking is still possible over here,its just we have so many fewer sites that are not that "popular" and of course we do not have the legal cheap/free places for motor caravans
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20 years ago was on a 7 week+ tour in UK during school hols. Booked the first site a August bank holiday. Also booked a couple of Saturdays on small popular sites such as Elvaston Castle. We moved every 3 (sometimes 4) days. Phoned ahead the day before. We lucked out once.
Unlikely to be quite so easy these days.
Up until,I guess) 7 years ago we would book 3 or 4 weeks ahead and were having problems getting all the sites that we wanted in May/June/July. Last year year some of the sites that we used in September where full at weekend.
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I suppose its the same here as "over there" it depends on the area and time of year, as touring without booking is still possible
The problem lies in knowing which sites are popular or even knowing if there is a local event which will draw folk to sites in an area.
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That applies any where ,but a bit forward thinking works wonders
and there is always in the UK the cc LA that should be a clue,
but agree it is more difficult these days when our children were young we always checked before heading anywhere but cannot ever remember not getting a pitch at a seaside site for them at short notice from either our base in Yorkshire or where we are now
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I can't remember a time when I have not booked a pitch in the UK. I have always rung in advance of arriving. However, I can remember a time when we haven't booked sites in Europe. I book everywhere these days though. I can remember in years gone by when we have been turned away from sites in France (popular destinations in the height of the season). I just don't want to be searching around going from site to site anymore, so I plan everything down to the last detail. I feel more content and relaxed doing it that way.
With regards to the club booking system, I suspect, especially with the advent of the new name, we may not have heard the last of being able to book hardstandings. (No inside information, by the way!)
David
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