Bistros everywhere please!
Comments
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What do people think?
Anybody who has read my posts may know that I have zero interest in having a Bistro on site, and I think I probably said as much earlier in this thread.
Presumably if a Bistro is actually on site it is leased to a provider. That may limits income to some extent at certain times of the year if not accessed by the general public. I would have thought it better for a Bistro to be off-site but adjacent with public access as far as the business running it is concerned.
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Yes, I read that Alan. It may well be an attraction for many, but I think it would have to be open to the public in order to get the variety of menu or to make it competative.
I can see some possible problems. There are some CAMC sites that are leased. It could very well be against the terms of the lease to open a restaurant. Then you've got the local authority and planning permission - possible objections by local residents or other businesses (other local restaurants/ takeaways). It could work in some places though possibly sites that are open all year around.
One non-club site that we visit has an on site pub/ restaurant, but we rarely use it as it's not dog friendly - OK in the summer when you can sit outside. From what I can remember Seacroft have a dog area, but Seacroft felt a bit like a 'clubhouse' to me. Mind you it's been a few years since we were there so it could have well changed.
David
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In the UK it is very rare that we will eat out of an evening. We might eat out whilst active in the day.
Strangely when we have spent time abroad we have usually eaten out of an evening. Even when an apartment has been attached to a hotel with restaurant we never use such a facility preferring to source somewhere with more variety and foods to our liking. For me usually fish dishes.
In the UK, for what ever reason (perhaps the weather) we are more likely to have the occasional leisurely meal at lunch when we are, of course, no where near the site.
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That is my feeling too, the Club sites with the eating places are generally rather more expensive than most of those without added facilities, so if the Bistros are the reason then I do not think that it is fair to load the site prices to cover them.
Knaresborough was never a cheap site, but now the minimum for a couple is £22.10, and that only for a very limited period, and the peak price for a couple is £33.80. All beyond what we are willing to pay these days.
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it is a fact that the club sites with Bistros on them are significantly more expensive for whatever reason.
I wouldn't choose my site on whether it had one or not, but it's location. If it had one I don't think we would be using it every night, perhaps one at most? If having a meal I'd prefer going out to a pub somewhere.
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I agree that a bistro/ restaurant should not mean a price hike. If building a restaurant means an increase in site fees, it shouldn't happen IMHO. It should be self funding (by opening it to the public) - and hopefully, the restaurant itself should make a bit of extra profit for the Club.
I'm partly with Corners. We like to go out to different places (not that we eat out that often). Unlike EasyT, we do eat out occasionally in the UK, but hardly ever in Europe (I think only once in 7 weeks last time we went across and that was at the rather nice campsite restaurant).
David
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We do stroll out for an occasional bar meal at Hillhead if we're staying there. There's nothing else within walking distance so a drink can be enjoyed by both of us. The pool is good too. The complex is in a fairly self contained area near the site entrance so if you park up a good distance from it there's no intrusion.
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We've visited the bistro bit in the three that have the facility (now Bingham Grange has that too.) We like being near some sort of eating establishment, usually a local pub. JVB we go across to Dartmouth on the foot ferry, not so keen on Kingswear. But when we're on a site like Hillhead we'll use what's on offer (not that it is always, opening times for the shop and bistro are limited according to the season.) And we're usually there during the price reductions.
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The idea of a Bistro seems to be appealing to those who eat out fairly regularly. We rarely eat out even if there are pubs quite close by, though we might occasionally call for a lunchtime drink. The idea of Bars or Bistros on club sites, especially if the popularity then results in prices increasing is not something we would welcome. So for us its no Bistros anywhere thank-you !
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Is it not fairly obvious that the more facilities a site has the more likely that it will have a higher price band? If we start with the premise that a site with no facilities will have the cheapest site fees it stands to reason a site that has a proper shop, a swimming pool and a restaurant will command a higher overall price regardless of whether people want to make use of any of those facilities or not. We all have the option of voting with our feet and not going to these sites but the unavoidable truth in that the sites mentioned seem to be very popular.
David
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A site with a swimming pool - yes. I can see no reason why a site with a shop should be dearer. If a shop is not able to sustain itself without subsidy then it is not in sufficient demand to warrant its existence. My view on cafes and bars is much the same.
I have certainly been on sites with a decent shop and freezer section etc that have had similar prices to those without because they made profit presumably
For many users of these sites I suspect that they are in demand for location and standard as part of CC network rather than for the additions and, in fact, in spite of the additions and cost outside of school holiday peak.
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So for us its no Bistros anywhere thank-you !
Us too, we would avoid them like the plague. Surely there are sufficient eating places by or close to club sites not to inflict them onto the sites themselves.
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it's likely that the increase in MH ownership will influence the desire to be able to 'eat out' close to the site....walking distance (especially in the evening, no driving) is now desirable to a large section of the membership...
even more convenient is the on site bistro/bar/restaurant...
similarly, those who holiday abroad have this option (and much more) at (very) many of the sites they visit...
it's a natural progression for these customers to begin to expect the uk sites to gradually offer similar facilities.
the club is obviously taking notice of that changing demographic and the resulting changing customer habits....
extra facilities on site provided for a changing market where customers are less inclined to drive off site seems a good fit...well done, CC
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extra facilities on site provided for a changing market where customers are less inclined to drive off site seems a good fit...well done, CC
I might not move as well as I used to BB but until I become really decrepit I doubt that I will ever consider a site, hotel, holiday complex as a venue in its own right
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I don't quite understand the logic. There are clearly sufficient number of members that are willing to use such facilities so why not have them on site? Not all of us are able to walk a couple of miles to the nearest pub or get into a car to go to a restaurant probably several miles from the site. I can't imagine that you will suddenly see a whole host of sites having a Bistro built but there could be half a dozen sites where it is feasible. I don't particularly like to sit in bars having a drink but if we are on a site for a few days its nice to use the restaurant at least once during our stay as a bit of a change.
David
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To eat out or not I suppose depends on how much you enjoy cooking and or how much you can afford to eat out. For us, we enjoy cooking, and the limited facilities whilst cooking in the van adds to the pleasure. As I said earlier we seldom eat out, either at home or when away, and on the rare occasions when we have, we have usually been disappointed, especially on getting the bill ! We just don't understand the attraction.
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The "free" facilities like the heated pool would have to incur a user fee if the overall cost of site stays was reduced on these type of sites. At present it's all in and provides a choice. I'm just as a happy on a site like Altnaharra as I am at Hillhead, the club provides a variety of sites. I presume if people wanted genuine low cost sites all the facility blocks would have to go?
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It's a site we plan to visit with our soon to be acquired MH, as it seems to have a convieniently situated bus stop. We also rarely eat out, much preferring to cook our own. Although, we would probably have given it a go. The menu looks attractive and the prices realistic. However, if the quote taken from a recent review is accurate we won't be bothering. We are certainly not anti dog but do not think general access to the restaurant is acceptable. If it's just a section fine but if the whole establishment, we will cater for ourselves.
"We did find it odd having dogs allowed in all parts of the restaurant and there was some barking when other dogs arrived and walked past with their owners. At one point it did feel, as a none dog owner, that we were the odd ones out. Not as comfortable with this idea particularly when owners arrive with more than one dog at a time. Perhaps the club are carrying out a monitoring of how this service pans out..".
I did have a look online but could not find any reference to what was allowed or not.
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