Clubsite bookings 2021
I'm not impressed by the fact that so many Clubsites are fully booked all summer, but only for weekends. This effectively precludes booking for any longer that 5 days middweek, which isn't long enough for a typical holiday. There needs to be a proportion of places on each Clubsite reserved for longer stays.
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This is a very regular topic aired on this forum. The Club aim to be fair to everyone by making the sites available at predetermined times so all members have a fair opportunity to make a booking. The problem with booking system that allows such advanced booking is that the later you book the more likely you will find sites with weekends already booked. Personally I would not want to adjudicate between those who feel a two week break is more important than a weekend booking, there will be plenty of reasons why both are important.
You do have choices. What about a different site? If you really want to be on a specific site do as I often do, book the days that are available and keep going back to the booking page to check for cancellations which invariably will occur as the date of arrival nears. I appreciate this does not give you immediate results but I have found it works for me.
David
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Personally, I don’t begrudge the working folk their weekend breaks.
To segregate pitches into long/short stay could complicate matters and potentially result in people looking elsewhere.
You say "so many club sites are fully booked.....for weekends" but can you be a bit more specific, please? Is that 5 sites, 25, 100? Is it all areas?
As ever, the answer is to book early or be flexible in your choice of sites.👍🏻
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Your OP has been discussed many times on here,with many replies including what you have suggested , all without any clear ideas to it being resolved
I will say in all the 50+years i have been a member ,i can probably count on one hand any negative response when contacting a site direct ,if a longer period is required when it shows all weekends booked
The problem has got worse and IMHO will not improve in the forceable future with the increase in "staycations" means it is more important to book as early as possible,there is not Yet any deposits required, or any cancelation fees
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We all pay the same membership fee so why should any one have a particular advantage in booking?
Also don't blame it all on the weekenders, yes they will be there, but longer stayers will, to maximise their stay, arrive on a Saturday and leave on a Sunday. I certainty did that.
Club sites are popular, that is the real problem and the only answer is to book early, after all there are no up front costs or deposits or harsh change of plan fees.
But as said other sites are available and for some some reason always have plenty of space we are often told compared to club sites.
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I must admit I have some sympathy with the OP. Some folks/families might only the one opportunity to take a two week (for instance) holiday each year, and as members of the ‘club’, reasonably expect to be able to get a pitch for the duration. That said, there’s no denying that club sites are very popular and that no matter what system is in place, it won’t suit everyone. As it is, it suits me, but then I’m retired, so I can be flexible in my choices. We visited St David’s club site back in July but could only get a pitch for 3 nights, we wanted 6. As each day passed, we kept checking for additional nights, and it worked out fine as the inevitable cancellations came in. Not something I’d consider with a family in tow though, I’d need certainty.
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I think this year is going to be a tad different to normal years, given how so many folks have realised that camping in all its varied forms has been seen as a safer alternative to other forms of holidaying. There will be a lot who usually venture overseas giving things a bit longer to settle down, there are thousands of folks who have bought vans, tents, campers, motorhomes with a view to self catering, and we know the Club saw a surge in Membership this year.
So Members who primarily use Club Sites are going to have to get very organised if they want a specific Site at a specific time of the year for a long stay. Book as early as possible, or compromise on dates and locations.
I would still book dates and try to fill them in, we have done it many times and got what we needed. But we always had a Plan B.
Good luck👍
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I've just done a quick trawl through of my usual sites, and sites I have used over the last few summers and apart from very popular places like Seacroft and York (RP) there appears to be plenty of pitches throughout the summer and for as long as you want (subject to the max).
What sites are you interested in OP?
The maths side of me wants to know what's happening here though at York with all Thursdays free? In October it's all Wednesdays! (August free pitches were more random and those free pitches are all 5 pitches or less)
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To a certain extent, I too sympathise with the OP, Freddy, but we all need to realise the ways around a situation are often in our own hands.
You worked out a solution to your issue at St David’s and it's just one example of how being proactive brings the desired result. What I find unpalatable is people not accepting it is their own circumstances or actions which create difficulties and then expecting the club to change its ways in order to accommodate their situation. I'm not saying that's necessarily the case with the OP, btw.
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The Vikings invade on Thursdays in September Corners, it gets a bit messy😉 Romans have a go in October on a Wednesday, mind they are a bit tidier.......
Seriously though, it pays to get organised. Here’s a heads up for any Rugby League fans...........
https://www.visityork.org/whats-on/rugby-league-world-cup-2021
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Back in June I booked a week on The Norfolk Broads site for twelve months hence as I thought it may fill up quickly. I needn't have bothered as, other than serviced pitches, there isn’t yet a single fully booked date all summer🤣🤣
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I booked Marazion for first week in September, back up for Tour of Britain. Did it once I knew dates. It pays to be organised over Club Sites nowadays.
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A question was asked along those lines at the AGM and answered by Nick Lomas.
Do you have much trouble booking, Mikey?
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so how much? 50% per booking? £5 per booking? £20? Got to be something that will stop your cycle? If it's too low then we're back to people not telling the club they won't show, which did happen as the number of no shows went down when the club got rid of deposits.
Too high and income will be affected with pope going elsewhere, especially after what happened this year, and loss of income?
Also non returnable? Seems bit harsh. So that would mean people buying insurance further raising the cost of a stay away?
Also is there a cycle? Any proof? And if there is as long as pitches get sold does the club care?
If the club were to go down this route you suggest no doubt there would be cries of this is a club why have non returnable deposits?
And why are you so keen on them? Have trouble getting your club sites?
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Some folk would🤣🤣🤣🤣
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With regard to deposits, why are proposals always in a "all or nothing" format. If, and I emphasise 'If", members feel that deposits might help, could not a relatively high deposit(50% for 6 days+, 100% for 5days-) be required for bookings for more than say three months in advance with it being non-refundable if less than one months notice being given. That would enable long-term planners to secure their chosen holiday whilst discouraging speculative "weekend squatters".
I will now await the howls of protest and reasons why that could not possibly work.
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I suppose it might depend how the Club view the advantages of sites being booked up a year in advance as a measure of future occupancy and whether a deposit system might put that at risk. I sometimes use C&CC sites and well as commercial sites where I do encounter deposits and sometimes full payment required in advance. My inclination in those cases would be to book as close to the actual arrival date as I could to avoid a financial loss. I think the current system works fairly well for me but then I don't book a long way in advance and am fairly flexible where I go. Whatever system is put in place should retain a degree of simplicity ie a set amount and simple rules about moving a booking or getting a refund within a certain time period.
David
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If there are more "staycations" next year it will really pay to book ahead. This year we met countless people who were normally "abroad." They were taking long touring holidays here instead. I think this could happen again in 2021 until things hopefully start to settle down.
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My suggestion to the suspected 'problem' of excess booking and cancelling would be to introduce an annual booking entitlement, similar to leave entitlement in the Forces.
Each member (or couple) would have an entitlement to book, say, 28 week-day nights and 6 weekend days per year. The period of entitlement would start from the date of joining up. Unused days could be carried over to the next membership year. The 'restriction' could only apply to bookings made more than 28 days in advance, with shorter notice bookings being unrestricted.
The whole idea is premised on there being a super-dooper computer booking system and an up to date database!
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The current booking system promotes block booking, but this subject has been done to death. It is incredible that one can book a particular seat in a theatre, but not a particular pitch on a CAMC site, nevermind be it at a weekend. As chasncath have alluded to, there maybe the need to update the Club's technology. So it's not just Santa who's "Ho ho ho ho hoing"
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Have I misunderstood here? If I want to take a long break of 2 weeks starting on a Saturday and add on two extra weekend days at the end, I will use only 10 of my weekday nights but completely use up my allocation of 6 weekend nights. That's me stuffed for any booked weekend nights throughout the year. 🤔
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Booking a theatre seat is very different to booking a club site pitch.
A theatre play lasts for a set time on a set day, so one can book the 2 pm performance and/or the 7.30pm or whatever but that seat will only be in use for those set times and those set times are the same for everyone wanting to see the play at that time. It makes booking so easy.
A club site (or any campsite) however is open '24/7' you can arrive on any day and leave when you wish. One person may want one night, another 5, so the variables in booking a particular pitch are more complicated and if you allow that some pitches may be standing empty.
Booking a particular pitch is not that common in the UK with larger chains and campsite is it?
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You could mail the suggestion to the club. That's a sure way of it never seeing the light of day again😂😂😂
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Twenty Quid is a lot for one to loose on top of whatever disaster has caused one to have to forego the booking.
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