Exploiting the members
Comments
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I find it extraordinary that some people still view the higher prices at peak times in hotels. let cottages, camp sites and such like as "exploitation".
This is just fundamental, Janet and John level, supply and demand.
Camp sites have a fixed capacity. In the short term the entire supply of pitches over the entire country is fixed. If you cannot change supply the only thing you can change to allow supply to meet demand is the price.
In the longer run if prices rise more people are persuaded to enter the industry and then supply rises and prices may fall. But this takes a long time and, in any event, recently there have been sharp increases in demand as more families have purchased leisure vehicles. This just puts more pressure on prices.
Of course, anyone could set a fixed price all year round. Alternative plans to reach desired income are possible of course. It might even work in the sense that it covers costs and provides a profit. The price would probably need to be pitched relatively low and it would probably be a more basic site or a site that is part of a diversified business; you could do that and fill or nearly fill the site in low season, but it sure as heck means that it will be over subscribed in peak season. The owner can't react to that because he has only a set number of pitches. That would be very altruistic, but I think most people would consider him slightly mad. To increase the price in peak times is just common sense. It has nothing to do with profiteering or exploitation.
I would leave this by saying that I accept sometimes the free hand of supply and demand can lead to exploitation and then controls are needed - children sweeping chimneys, market sellers quadrupling the price of sanitisers during COVID etc. We can all think of examples, but higher prices in the school holidays on camp sites is not one of them.
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Fortunately most years the site network makes a surplus (rather than a profit) but there have been years in recent memory where the site network has made a loss. This often can't be predicted in advance. Its difficult to predict long periods of bad weather which impacts on people using sites and who could have predicted COVID? So whilst, I am sure, the Club set out to be in surplus each year there are events that can change that which no one foresaw. In the years when the network does end up in surplus it just means there are more opportunities for that surplus to be reinvested in the network, either for buying new sites or upgrading existing ones. I suppose I should point out that we are living, it seems, in inflationary times, so its likely that costs will be rising, often in excess of the inflation rate, which need to be recovered. It may sound a bit gloomy but for the Club to continue to provide us the members with the service we want it needs to be financially sound.
David
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With more & more caravan /Motorhome punters joining the membership every year, with pitch availability being snapped up at the most popular club site, the club are just following the market tread & pricing leisure time periods at premium rates.
Please tell me a hotel chain or holiday provider that doesn't take peak holiday period in their stride & adjust prices accordingly.
The market will always dictate what we all pay high or low .....simple.
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Except at the site the OP talks about children can stay for £1, every day of the season. Also children are children up to 18, while for many other sites it is 14.
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If you live in the north of England, and are also a CCC member, come to Scotland. Easter is not a peak period here.
Even if you are not a parent, or have younger or older children not at school, you can still get caught up in the peak price business.......teachers may not have children at school, but they can only take school holidays off.
Both our children are married to teachers, so as they say......"are doomed to have to pay peak period prices until we retire", not just while the children are at school.
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As you quoted me I assume your remarks are for me, for your first paragraph I do but I'm not, and don't like CCC sites anyway.
Second paragraph, get caught up? that implies a trap or net? Don't understand the reference to trap at all? The prices are clearly displayed, and yes been there too.
Third, yes did that all my working life, and didn't really begrudge those prices as the time not working (remember teachers don't get 'holidays') I considered a good recompense.
But now I can't believe how cheap club sites are in school time, actually all holidays appear cheap now.
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Why not? Cornwall is packed with campsites like that and they’re all full in summer. Nearby Cardinham Woods is extremely busy with families all year. There are plenty of independent campsites with very modest tariff variations over the course of the year, some in holiday hot spots like St Ives and the superb Hellesveor Holidays
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Or even for a couple on an afternoon out🤣🤣🤣
It's not far from the crem, mind…..😀
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The joys of Trago spring to mind……😁We like exploring on Bodmin Moor, some lovely little churches, Golitha Falls, Brown Willy etc…. But never been tempted to stay inland, much prefer to be near coast in Cornwall. Bodmin Moor was our rainy day drive if staying round Fowey.
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I think you confuse justifying with explaining.
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Well, yes, Cardinham Woods always seem very popular at all times of the year when we've been, but I suspect (none of us can say for sure actually) that's largely local families outside of holiday season and maybe day visitors in holiday season.
But my point was that Cardinham itself wouldn't be the first place in Cornwall that springs to mind for a main family holiday!
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It’s a long, long way from exploitation gladly. You are welcome to pick & mix-take the things from C&MC that suit you & ignore the things that don’t, it’s as simple as that. I was an ‘Apple head’ at one point I loved Apple products & I happily paid the high cost of devices. Then they got really greedy so I dumped em for Android👍🏻. If C&MC is(in your opinion) exploiting you then don’t let them👍🏻. It’s normal practice everywhere by every company. No one should think themselves special enough to want the rules to changing for them🤷🏻♂️
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Clubs’s pricing rationale isn’t an easy one to follow, and valid points made both in defence of higher prices and against them at school holiday times. We voted with our wheels many years ago, and don’t stay on many between April and September nowadays, mainly because of prices, but we don’t like the big Sites during school holidays either. But others do, and willing to pay whatever the Club thinks appropriate, so we are happy to leave them to it.
The one thing that can be said is that Cornwall has a vast selection of Sites, coastal, inland, basic, luxurious, adventure based, AO, child friendly, etc….. We have only used one Cornish Club Site, so not much experience personally. But if Carnon Downs is subsidising Marazion…..we won’t complain!😉0 -
I think Moulesy and I might be a lot more savvy than you think SB. I love Bodmin Moor, and yes, it has lots to offer. However, as a choice for camping location……..
It’s officially the wettest place in Cornwall. 🤷♀️ 🤣
https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/welcome-wettest-place-cornwall-thanks-3371389
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I think rain has a lot to offer.
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So do I. However, if I can exclude it from my month’s sojourn in lovely Cornwall, I much prefer it.
Once drove up the A30 from Fowey to North Petherwin, day out to Otter Sanctuary. The rain was so heavy, we had to pull over onto a refuge until it eased off, just so that we could see! This was in a Range Rover. In July.🤣 The Otters loved the mud though.
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You can not prevent companies from raising their prices as demand increases. Why would a business in high market demand and a full order book reduce its prices?
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Maybe the complexity of the CMC tariff should be replaced with a simplified version based on site micro climate, specifically rain probability? 😉
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Nah, it might make folks more informed. Huge benefits from having millions flee overseas in search of the Sun. 😁
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David’s point about the club having income and expenditure projections for each site - these estimates should be published so that members can see which sites may be “under threat”, which sites are highly profitable, etc. If favourite sites are deemed under threat supporters can make more use of them. Members could also ask whether the fees should be reduced on highly profitable sites…………but are we assuming the club powers that be are this savvy?
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No, I see the point of your posts very clearly.
Whatever I have or haven't said previously, I never use emojis aimed at putting folk down. That is unnecessary rudeness☹.
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AD, Interestingly, it’s how we spend our Summer holidays as well, although I grant you not as guaranteed. A little bit of local weather knowledge is useful. We were warned about July in Cornwall by Farmer who we used to stay with each year, hence June and September are our preferred months down there. Mind, that was back a long time ago, and weather patterns have no doubt changed a good bit.
My OH spent a fortune on a mountain holiday in Spain. Day 2, worst snow Spain had ever had, they had to come down. It was June🤣 Spent rest of holiday along coast. Ireland? He did the same, although he expected rain there. It’s green for a reason. Majorca, again up in the mountains. It rained, every day. And he wonders why I stayed at home🤣🤣
Hope things go well for overseas travellers this year though👍
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I perfectly understand your post TDA👍🏻, I’ve spent a lot of my time overseas & there is no getting away from it-the weather in the main is wonderful too, but when it goes wrong it does it massively & it takes many lives. For me it’s to visit when it suits I’m not a lover of too much sun as it cuts my outdoor activities down, I’m not a beach lover. Hiking the uplands is better in a Lakeland, Scottish or Welsh Summer than an Iberian one👍🏻
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I completely get that David…for me the escape is about temperature. There’s nothing better than sitting outside in shorts/ T shirt in the fading light without feeling the slightest bit cold around the edges. Balmy evenings like that hardly ever happen in the UK.
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Well if we concentrate on "here" rather than over "there" I don't think we're being exploited as we're talking peak season prices and there is a choice to go with these or look elsewhere. The club needs the income to sustain the system as a whole and many of us benefit from off peak prices too.
By the way we spend a lot of time outdoors whether away or not, I suppose it depends on where you live in the uk, what's around you and whether you like going out to places. I fully understand why some head for popular spots at peak times, we did the same when our family was young and our two week summer breaks were very important. We had wonderful holidays in Devon, Cornwall, Dorset and Suffolk and also in Scotland. I can only remember one rainy holiday so it can't be that bad! I can also remember unbearable heat in France and Spain, some of us like more temperate climes in July and August which are the peak times for families and school holidays. Unfortunately demand outstrips supply in some places and prices are fixed accordingly.
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