Clachan Trial

See

https://www.caravanclub.co.uk/club-together/discussions/sites-touring/uk-sites-touring/clachan-arrival-trial/

I know j just how you feel, but the younger generations cannot but encompass technology,which has its place in this modern world,

The big problem being it has many downsides that are in urgent. need of much tighter controls,

As was said by the PM today with the energy crisis we are in , we have ignored  the problems for far to long ,which is what we are also doing with some forms of technology 

Birdseye

Its very much a personal choice whether an individual decides to distance themselves from technology whilst they are away in their vans. However the Club can't afford to ignore technology. We have yet to see if the experiment at Clachan works out and that particular site is unusual because it is a sort of satellite site of Maragowan  just down the road. I am not sure that such technology would be suitable for all sites but there will be sites where it could add to those sites remaining in the Club network? Unfortunately "human" contact is becoming more and more expensive so technology could be the answer to be side by side to the human element?

David

+1, choice. We strive to move forward but forget the past at our peril. It can & should be both. As DK says ‘it’s personal choice’ once in you can choose peace sans tech or chose a place that is pure san tech, I do when I use forest sites, it can be done👍🏻

Tech could however mean keeping a site open, when the human element would make it unviable. Even where not the case it could speed up operations and reduce costs. Personally I would prefer to just drive up to the barrier, be admitted by what ever system is in place and sort myself out.

Once on site our choice is to use tech to the full, downloading my paper, checking opening times of places we want to visit, booking tickets, sorting out train / bus times, which with live tracking means we are not stood there waiting for something that isn’t going to come.

On site I think there is room for both of us to do our own thing. However, from the point of view of site operations I don’t think any organisation can stand still, that option leads to extinction.

Presumably the OP will be happy to find a bank with a counter cashier service, withdraw the requisite funds with a cheque and pay by cash upon arrival at the said site. He has also, no doubt, encountered the long queues whilst waiting for service from a 'real' human.

I think Birdseye is looking at this purely from his own perspective. His preference is not to use tech while away, although he obviously does at other times, but he forgets that the world still needs to turn and businesses still have to function and that includes site operators. 

He calls use of technology "unnecessary". I think it is far from that.

IF you can find a bank that actually has these days an open branch ,as with our Halifax there is very rarely.many users there let alone a queue

We tend to use our local post office which can carry out a lot of most bank facilities

SteveL wrote:

Personally I would prefer to just drive up to the barrier, be admitted by what ever system is in place and sort myself out.

I could not agree more. It would be an absolute joy to be able to drive straight onto site, find my pitch and get set up without the queue and the need to go through the booking in process.

Whilst not a great lover of smart phones, although I use them when necessary, I nonetheless make full use of digital technology whilst away. I also watch some TV - although, apart from news, mostly DVDs of my own choice. I read a lot too and walk around the area and enjoy local beauty spots and places of interest. 

You can do both quite happily. 

"I could not agree more. It would be an absolute joy to be able to drive straight onto site, find my pitch and get set up without the queue and the need to go through the booking process"

this is essentially the Camping Car Park process that has been described elsewhere.
It's also certainly possible to do something similar at UK sites...I've used at least two sites where I had paid in advance, passed through the barrier using ANPR and drove straight to my (pre selected) pitch.

this sort of system 'might' speed up queues on some uk sites but with many members hoping to maximise their time on Club sites and an earliest arrivals time holding them back from arriving 'too early' there will inevitably still be queues despite the new 'measures'.

one difference with the CCP process is that there is no earliest arrival nor late departure...you pay for what you use in 24hr or 5hr periods.

there is even a booking system to guarantee you a pitch.

It's technology that's made this human free admission process possible.