10% OFF Autumn Getaways

RowenaBCAMC replied on 18/07/2024 11:10

Posted on 18/07/2024 11:10

Hi everyone,

I wanted to let you know that you can now save 10% per night at 50 Club campsites when you book a stay between 9 September and 30 November 2024 for three or four nights or more depending on where you choose. You need to book by 16 November, at least 14 days in advance of your arrival date and the discount will automatically applied and appear in your basket at checkout.

Find out more at camc.com/ukoffers

Arch replied on 19/07/2024 11:58

Posted on 19/07/2024 11:58

Can someone explain why someone with a motorhome or campervan can't stay 3 nights or more and if staying 3 nights (2 days) what do you actually see of an area.

GEandGJE replied on 19/07/2024 11:58

Posted on 19/07/2024 11:47 by Takethedogalong

Agree with WN. Why are the Club offering such discriminatory offers. Anyone who is caring for others, and might only be able to manage at most a couple of nights is totally missing out, regardless of what kind of outfit they use. Nearly all the Club’s offers are coming with a minimum night stay policy now, and frankly, it stinks😡

Its another symptom of how removed some decision makers are from the Membership they serve. I’m pleased for the folks that can benefit, but there are thousands out there, like us, like some of our friends, who cannot. Why this minimum has to be applied I don’t know, surely it’s all about filling pitches, no matter how🤷‍♀️

Posted on 19/07/2024 11:58

TDA. The club has a wide and varied membership and when discounts and offers are made these have to aimed at the majority of it's membership. What offers or discounts would you like to see that applies to the whole membership but doesn't empty the clubs bank accounts.

If the club had a Loyalty Rewards Programme what type of rewards would you like to see.

Tinwheeler replied on 19/07/2024 12:29

Posted on 19/07/2024 11:58 by Arch

Can someone explain why someone with a motorhome or campervan can't stay 3 nights or more and if staying 3 nights (2 days) what do you actually see of an area.

Posted on 19/07/2024 12:29

Of course they can stay longer if they choose but many motorhomers only stay 1-2 nights and move on because they can do their sight seeing en route to the next site. It’s all about the freedom to do things as they choose and by moving on they don’t have to back track over the same roads on each outing as tuggers do. Some MH-ers though prefer to use their vans in the same way as caravanners do. 

 As for what they actually see, that depends on what is available to see. 

Tinwheeler replied on 19/07/2024 12:33

Posted on 18/07/2024 21:39 by InaD

As with other offers, IMHO, somewhat restrictive. Minimum stay is 3 or 4 nights, depending on site. Not available on every site, only on 50.

Booking at least 14 days in advance?? What happened to spontaneity when touring? 

No doubt it will appeal to some people, but when you are not in a position to book at least 14 days in advance, for whatever reason, it's no use. Can't understand that, why not apply the discount without that condition, again IMHO that would benefit more people.

 

Posted on 19/07/2024 12:33

The club makes offers in order to fill pitches, not to give members a freebie. They make offers to all members but cannot possibly make allowances for members' personal circumstances such as limited holidays allowances, family responsibilities and so on.

Takethedogalong replied on 19/07/2024 13:05

Posted on 19/07/2024 11:58 by GEandGJE

TDA. The club has a wide and varied membership and when discounts and offers are made these have to aimed at the majority of it's membership. What offers or discounts would you like to see that applies to the whole membership but doesn't empty the clubs bank accounts.

If the club had a Loyalty Rewards Programme what type of rewards would you like to see.

Posted on 19/07/2024 13:05

Many enjoyed the mid week discounts that applied at some of the under performing Club Sites and used these extensively at a variety of Club Sites. They were easily administered, came with few terms and conditions (didn’t apply at busy school holiday periods) and kept the smaller sites, less busy sites ticking over at quiet times. The discount wasn’t huge, but it was there, with no hoops to jump through. That’s just one I can think of, at the moment. 

I suspect as I have said previously on other threads, the Club is having problems filling time sensitive pitches. It’s meddled extensively with its pricing policies, it’s imposed a lot more terms and conditions onto fee paying Members, it’s current crop of offers are much loved by those able to afford the pitch prices anyway, but if it’s this section of the Membership taking up the offers, it’s not going to increase the income, all it is doing is giving its existing customers less to pay. Therefore, to increase income, it needs to attract and keep two marketing sectors….brand new customers (hence Nick Lomas’s reference to the Club having better T&C’s than some other holiday providers), it is probably still getting a fair few new Members, but it’s also getting some stick on here, and on other social media outlets about its pricing, and other issues. The other marketing sector is those it has lost and who have now gone elsewhere, tried new products (maybe CLs, maybe the other Club, maybe something totally different). Individual members will have their own reasons for this, but I suspect that the Club Site pitch prices, the 21 day cancellation period, the initial quite large % deposit will have influenced many, hence why the deposit % has fallen, all the offers, etc…. I don’t blame the Club for rising costs, but let’s not forget, the Club ditched a lot of its Member USPs before the cost of living rose sharply. This lost core is still there, but I would suggest deeply unhappy with some of the things that have come about, and will take a lot more tempting, with less hoops to jump through, than currently on offer. If someone can explain to me why imposing a four night minimum is better than someone taking a couple of two night stays, or even four individual nights then🤷‍♀️ Offers are only attractive if they a) reach the correct target market, b) give something back to both purchaser and retailer.

The Club never has, and probably never will do a Loyalty scheme. It was a Club, where you chose to pay a fee, and for that fee, got an expected quality of provision, within the variations of sites, got access to mid range prices (higher if you weren’t a Member), access to a group of inspected but varying small private sites, and the rallying scene. Gradually, lots of other services, insurance, overseas, etc…… came on board. Outside of the rallying scene, it’s now much more of a commercial business, trying to survive in a big pond. Alienating a section of the Membership though, via discriminatory T&Cs, limiting offers only to those who can commit to longer stays, isn’t going to win back those who have found, and regularly use options that give them more of what they need. 

We have actually used more Club Sites this last six months than in the last decade ironically. But things like this are not going to make us use more, far from it. Keeping our Membership, winning back our usage of sites isn’t happening, and we know we are no longer “valued” Members. So be it. 

 

 

Hja replied on 19/07/2024 13:06

Posted on 19/07/2024 13:06

The club’s own data shows more motorhomes than caravans in membership and that motorhomers spend less time on a site, frequently moving on.

We rarely stay more than two nights anywhere, and can’t rememeber the last time we spend 4 nights anywhere. Oh, yes I can, a nice little off grid CL for £8 a night. We visit attractions on our way between sites, normally.

InaD replied on 19/07/2024 13:30

Posted on 19/07/2024 12:33 by Tinwheeler

The club makes offers in order to fill pitches, not to give members a freebie. They make offers to all members but cannot possibly make allowances for members' personal circumstances such as limited holidays allowances, family responsibilities and so on.

Posted on 19/07/2024 13:30

If the Club wants to fill pitches, why not offer the reduction regardless of the number of nights booked? Isn't it better to have 2 outfits booking 2 nights each than that pitch staying empty for 4 nights? As has been pointed out already, membership consists of many more MHers than even 10 years ago. Many of those only want to stay 2 nights, so IMHO by imposing a 4 night minimum stay on 35 out of the 50 sites, they are losing out on those members filling pitches.

Takethedogalong replied on 19/07/2024 13:57

Posted on 19/07/2024 11:58 by Arch

Can someone explain why someone with a motorhome or campervan can't stay 3 nights or more and if staying 3 nights (2 days) what do you actually see of an area.

Posted on 19/07/2024 13:57

It’s not really about the type of outfit you use Arch, it’s about how long you can commit to being away for, given a variety of circumstances. That could be health related, work related, parental requirements, caring requirements, whatever.

But, we own both a small MH, and a caravan, so ideally placed to understand the subtle differences of taking each away. With a MH/camper, you pack it, then set off. In an hour we might stop off say at an NT property, park up, have a day looking around, then carry on to a site. Ten minute set up. Up next day, ten minute pack up, off for day sight seeing, back to a site, ten minute reset up, then repeat. There’s no angst about parking up, no need to get to site and drop off caravan before doing anything. So in essence, travel days are “doing days”. Possible with a caravan, but no where near as easy. We could, in three days (2 stopover nights) visit around six different places of interest, utilising a morning and afternoon each day. If you tour in a linear manner, say linking two different sites (let’s say, Bolton Abbey and Hawes) then you plan your sight seeing around this, and your actual time on the road is minimised. We think of it as “linear” touring, ass opposed to what we call “there and back again” going out and coming back to same site. So you can see lots, and get about quite a distance, just in three days. We tried the minimal days touring with our caravan, but it just took so much longer to pack up, set up, and we had to phone places ahead to check out car parking. So we bought a MH. A small one, with the intention of touring in UK, on UK roads, utilising a variety of stopovers, going out daily with ease. 

Tinwheeler replied on 19/07/2024 14:02

Posted on 19/07/2024 13:30 by InaD

If the Club wants to fill pitches, why not offer the reduction regardless of the number of nights booked? Isn't it better to have 2 outfits booking 2 nights each than that pitch staying empty for 4 nights? As has been pointed out already, membership consists of many more MHers than even 10 years ago. Many of those only want to stay 2 nights, so IMHO by imposing a 4 night minimum stay on 35 out of the 50 sites, they are losing out on those members filling pitches.

Posted on 19/07/2024 14:02

I cannot possibly answer your questions as to why CAMC choose to make their offers in the way they do. One can only assume camc knows which sites to target and how many nights they wish to fill. It’s done for the club’s benefit, as I said, and management will have a far better grasp of the situation than you or I are ever likely to have.

I think members will either accept the offers for what they are (£3 p/n, wow🙄) or do something different.

near Malvern Hills Club Campsite Member photo by Andrew Cole

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