Exploiting the members
Why is it necessary for the club sites to seek excessive profits on school holidays. My son has booked a pitch at Brecon beacon site for the Easter holidays. Cost per night for 2 adults and 1 child £37.80 per night. The following week it would have been £ 27.95. What extra costs does the running of the site between the 2 weeks. .Nothing just exploiting the members because of the school holidays. Yet another excuse to make more money from the members when we already pay a membership fee.
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I would agree that there is an excessive amount of creep when it comes to peak periods. However, for school holidays themselves, every holiday provider inflates their prices at these times. The club can fill the sites over Easter, even at the higher prices. It wouldn’t make business sense not to do it. As I say outside of the main holidays when they maintain peak prices I tend to agree, often the sites are nowhere near full, and at these times the other club has reverted to off peak prices. I know where I would go, but you have to make your own choice.
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Twas ever thus, Farmhouse, as you know from your long experience.
Meth has put it well.
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I am finding the costs of club sites are now way too high in any season to use and with the introduction of deposits will likely cancel our membership.
We are going to Cornwall in August to meet our son and grandkids for a few days on a private site they have booked, cost per night for full hardstanding pitch with EHU is £87 for 3 nights so £29 per night, expensive but it is high season in school holidays.
We are looking to go to some other sites whilst in the area and looked at Trewethett Farm and a economy non EHU pitch as we do not need hook up and these are right on the cliff, £29.20 per night!! Standard awning pitch is £35.90 per night.
These are all for 2 adults so why so high, private site has excellent facilities and in good location near cliffs also.....
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Once the CAMC introduces deposits, it will put them on more of a level playing field with other providers and cost will almost certainly be more of an issue. I am certainly prepared to pay more for the current USP. However, one has to be careful with comparisons. Whilst the deposit for a private site might be similar to the club, many require the residual several weeks before arrival. Fine if you are going for a week / two weeks but a bit of a pain if your stringing together 6 weeks worth of short stays.
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A family owned campsite near me. 30 + pitches. Flat rate all season.
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Yet another excuse to make more money from the members when we already pay a membership fee.
You're posting as if anyone has to be a member and pay the membership and/or use club sites. You're also making it sound as if the club is the only one doing this, the other club does as well in addition to most holiday companies. Also the kids for a £1 offer is aon all year at certain sites.
I would think that most club sites are not in profit every single week they are open so the extra they make in peak will compensate for that?
Club sites are what they are, either pay them or find the cheaper posters often say are out there.
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Why not name it so that others and the OP can use it?
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back in the dim and distant, many working folk took 'Easter Week' off work, I didn't know this holiday was now over a fortnight long
well it was always two weeks off for me
yes perhaps many people did take just one week off, but which week? The one before Easter or the one after after? From what I recall some took the first, some the second, so the 'holiday' isn't two week long just the time available to have a holiday.
Also many, even neighboring authorities and schools, have a different two week slot. Quite common to span over three weeks.
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Gwel an Nans, Cardinham, Cornwall.
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Thanks,bit far for the OP but useful to others not wanting to be 'exploited'.
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These can be found, but few and far between i feel, even over there most Spanish sites have high/low season, in the low season I have paid €14, 7kw of lece per day included, for vlarge pitch, pool, normally dont open until 1st May and even then a tad chilly, and on a splendid beach, high season, which is normally mid June - end of August, and 2 weeks over the Easter period, prices can double, that is why most snowbirds have long gone by this time, 90 day rule might change all this.
It used to be £1 per day to park on some seaside car parks out of season and £10 during holiday seasons, dont know if this is still the case ?
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I believe it is a very small fraction of the Club's income that is not derived from members, so who else are they to "exploit"?
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1) No one is forced to use the clubs sites and if there are site owners out there who do not charge a peak season premium, then good for them. 2) The club is run as a business (Ltd company) for a reason. if the club were run as a true members organisation I take it members would be happy to directly fund their share of losses? 3) can we assume those who moan about higher prices lead by example and sell their assets and services below the market rate?
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I think when this subject comes up, as it does from time to time, the poster does not think about the consequence if the Club followed a different path. I think Goldie's post about peak season prices being the real price of the site rather than the lower prices offered out of main season is probably spot on. The Club could even prices out across the year but I doubt that would result in peak prices coming down a lot but it would mean lower and shoulder season prices going up to compensate. I imagine every Club site has a financial plan which estimates the likely income for the year. This would be used to base staffing numbers and other costs on. In the off season there will be many sites that don't achieve the same level of occupancy as they do in the peak season. Any increase in prices in the non peak season could put some people off using the sites due to increased site costs which in turn puts more pressure on prices across the year so more than possible the actual saving in peak wouldn't be that different to what it is currently. I would be interested to learn of alternative financial plans that would work and meet the estimate set for each site?
David
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Another vote for CLs from me as well👍
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David has a point in suggesting a reduction in peak fees would lead to a rise in off peak charges. As it is, some fees are reduced mid week in off peak to entice people to use the sites at those times so an increase in off peak rates could see sites well under used at times. Underused sites could result in closures and/or further increases in rates to compensate.
Yet another case of being careful what you wish for?
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Yep site fees are a great price. But for a half term week break the ferry/ tunnel prices are a bit steep! 😁
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I am new to the club and after very many years of caravaning shocked at the member sites. I realise that they are a business and need to make a profit , and with covid they need to recoup lost earnings too. However the way the prices are structured are confusing to newbies , I have found the booking system slightly off putting and it keeps changing the location and information I've put in .
As this member has said, why so high in school.holidays, it is the only time you can legally allow children to holiday and for some people the only holiday period they can book. With a pricing structure that charges every person ,families are already charged more per pitch than a cpuple. I think it's just profiting.
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When as posted on another thread we were in the process of purchasing an old PVC at a local caravan and motorvan dealership,
I mentioned how prices seemed to have really increased recently ,and as the manager said ,market forces in this country especially lead on all fronts,
We were having a general chat and I mentioned the price of sites on the majority of organisations and he agreed that , it is a subject that is often spoken about, with customers which he said is quite amusing ,when they are ,spending tens of thousands of pounds on an LV
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The club doesn’t need to make a profit as such because there are no shareholders wanting a hefty dividend payment. The club covers costs and ploughs surplus back into the system to upgrade sites or purchase new ones.
As for the pricing structure, I think just about every commercial site carries a per capita charge above, perhaps, 2 people. When you think of it, a family of 6 will use more water and make greater use of facilities than just 2 people so additional charges aren’t unreasonable, especially when you see the reduced or free offerings for children.
I don’t know what the issue is with booking as the system usually works very simply and accurately.🤷🏻♂️
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