Cancellations

id say the cancellation policy was already pretty 'generous'....waiving it completely 'for winter' doesnt seem likely.....

also, if you were travelling 'tomorrow' youd have a pretty good idea what the weather would be like, certainly accurate enough to make you think....

i agree that low prices will attract in midweek, but many of those in a position to take these up will be deciding close enough to the 'date' to have weighed up the imminent weather...so are unlikely to cancel.... they just wont go/book if too dodgy...

I agree entirely with Fisherman, if the cancellation period was suspended for the winter period It would certainly encourage me to make bookings. I know the weather is never going to be good at this time of year, but having the option to cancel if it is going to be dangerous to travel would give peace of mind.

I'm not so sure BB, many have their vans in storage so there can be a fair bit of preparation involved in going away, spur of the moment is not always possible. 

No doubt a bit easier with a MH.

Even with our van being right outside the house, we would need at least 2 days to prepare for any trip at this time of year  as we do not leave anything much in the van over winter.

And with the recent rain, getting anything out to the van without stuff getting soaked would not be easy!

I do keep an eye on the forecast, and though they usually get the type of weather correct, often the timing is wrong, which of course would also influence the decision to travel, or not.

If you have booked, then deciding today not to travel tomorrow is no use when 72 hours notice is needed. only

It would depend on where you wanted to go, some sites would need to be booked, others are less busy.  For us the weekends would be the problem as we just don't do short trips/midweek, so mainly we would have a plan in mind and would book in advance.

while i agree those in MHs (especially stored at home) can react more quickly........but wouldn't a 'zero impact' cancellation policy for xx months of the year ('winter') just encourage block booking of the honeypot sites on frenzy day..?

..imho, Its bad enough already at 72 hrs...

If all the site were open all year , there would be many empty pitches due to their location, with the recent high winds no way would I want to be on an open exposed site, with the heavy rain no way would I want to be in flood area, and if we had snow I would not like to be in a remote area, and sometime the route to the site can be an issue. Who is going to absorb the extra cost of staffing and maintaining a half empty site, and the extra draw on the electricity. 

Chirk site as 73 hard standings. We were there last week and the average attendance was 8-12 units per night. At weekend Late availability shows 40/45spaces.If there was a MWD would more people use the site.Also if the cancellation period was dispensed in winter would more take the plunge. What would you do if you had booked for today with the attrocious weather. Cancel I guess but at what cost.

Doubt it: when we were at Meathop a couple of weeks ago from Mon-Fri, a site with MWD and 102 HS pitches, there were at most 20 units per night.

From these posts it appears that CC sites are too expensive to attract customers particularly through the wnter months.How can it be economical t keep say Lady Margaret-Chirk open in winter with 8-12 units per night. No doubt HO answer will be to cose it and not look at making it cheaper for members. After all a "club" ethos would be to make the winter usage more attractive.

Even with bigger discounts, would there be more takers?

As far as winter opening goes, I think it is fine to have one or two sites open in an area, especially the most popular areas where activity is not necessarily weather dependant.

I’m not persuaded that reducing the cost will increase the numbers. The only economic choice might be not to bother opening such sites if they’re not generating an overall return.

It may be winter opening on some sites is a service to members but on others any income might be just a bonus as it needs to be occupied to run the storage area. On Strathclyde Park you have over 300 caravans paying near £400 a year so any caravans on site are a bonus for the club.