Late availability

Correct again YT as far as we are concerned.  We do not use  CAMC sites any more, have not used any in the last 2 years.

The hiked up prices are too much for us, we would rather go with more reasonable prices even if we have to pay up a bit ahead of  arrival.  Which is not always the case as it happens.

With lower prices and lower deposits there is anyway less to lose should we have to cancel, which fortunately has not been the case so far.

I cannot see that we will ever use a CAMC site again.

We may use no facilitiy sites, but I don't think we will use any others

I don't mind the the new terms, as DK points out they are better than most. Whether it is the economic situation or the result of deposits, it has resulted in greater availability which as far as I am concerned as a member of a touring organisation, it is a good thing for those who like to arrive on site at short notice. The killer for me is price. Even before the new system came into being I was questioning the value for money of sites, more so for short stays, and using less and less C&MC sites with every passing year. With the latest increase and the lack of sensible offers, it is even easier to find better value elsewhere or to decide to accept a lower grade of site rather than pay for expensive facilities I do not need.

peedee

I remember booking many a holiday with lastminute.com and others at the very 'last minute'...often a few days before take off...

I didn't know what the name of this process was but perhaps now it might be called 'dynamic pricing'...the sudden lowering of the price to sell a few seats/tickets that would not otherwise be sold.

when the DP system was introduced with the club, I (obviously naively) thought that unsold pitches 'on the day, or day before' would drop, giving those on impromptu tours (and those that just look out of the window to check weather and go) to fill the unsold empty spaces.

this hasn't happened and we get much anecdotal info here these days of sites with many spare pitches in 'peak' weeks, previously unheard of.

yes, the change to deposits and cancellation terms has achieved the aim of 'freeing up pitches' but has it gone too far?

I do plenty of 'touring' (from site to site) but having to put this all together months in advance is not for us and we are probably the total opposite of those who 'love to plan'...

our decisions are usually made on the morning of travel or the night before and we would be just the sort of customers to snap up pitches at short notice....at a decent reduction.

as this isnt happening via DP (the club uses targeted 'offer' emails instead with tight terms) we use other options....CL and THS which work better for us.

I do wonder sometimes whether the CAMC have actually come to terms with the change in membership.

Yes, they changed the name to incorporate Motorhomes but they still seem to pitch their prices and offers (no pun intended) at the caravan towing member, who doesn't usually tour on spec, well not like yourself YT. We certainly don't as I don't want to be carting around a caravan without being able to have a final destination booked.

Funnily enough we first saw the change in ownership in France a good few years ago. 20-30 years ago Municipal sites were full of Mom and Pop caravans of quite some age and then the Government started changing holiday times for schools across various departments. Suddenly younger families wondered what to do with their holidays and add in more retiring folk who didn't want a caravan and the Motorhome ownership blossomed. 

This is what has happened here, partly due to covid but also Campervanning now being cool enough for younger people to own and explore.

It seems that if the CAMC did fully embrace DP they would maybe attract more Motorhomers.

I speak as a caravan owner of 30+ years so hopefully provide an unbiased view.

WN, some good points.

We do usually have somewhere in mind to go, but don't have this sorted way before we leave for the first site. With CLs and THS being so easy to visit....there will be space at a CL or and alternative close by...this isn't always the case with a (either) club site as there are far fewer to choose from.

I won't be paying £40-£45 a night as I don't see a pitch and a shower as being enough to warrant that level of cost.

We do 'do' destination sites further afield, with indoor and outdoor pools, bars, restaurants and other 'service elements' not normally available at sites here....the icing on the cake is that we would be paying less than half of the above prices for a night at one of these sites.

Over here we can 'CL' for £20 (with electric) or 'THS' for about £12 a night without. Happy to do either as we might even be closer to where we want to be, certainly both these types of site don't need the same planning permissions as full sites and therefore often end up closer to towns or even in the case of THS sites (which use School or RFC sports grounds) actually right in the town.

I don't see the need to spend an extra £20-£33 a night for 'facilities' that we have on board..

as you say, France is MH heaven and a few weeks touring there in one might give CAMC mgt an insight into 'what it's all about'.

changing the name and adding the odd drive over waste doesn't change the attraction for us, not without a serious reduction in prices for last minute arrivals..

changing the name and adding the odd drive over waste doesn't change the attraction for us, not without a serious reduction in prices for last minute arrivals..

I would change that statement to a serious price reduction in short stays. It is positively bonkers to pay £40 -£45 for a single night stop over perhaps arriving after 4p.m. and leaving the next morning. What facilities are you going to use in that time for that kind of money! I very often don't even need water but I do prefer to dump waste, no matter how little there is, before getting on the road again. I would have to be pretty desperate to pay that kind of money even for a two night stay let alone one night only or it would have to offer something more attractive than the majority of C&MC sites.

peedee

".....or it would have to offer something more attractive than the majority of C&MC sites."

PeeDee, I think this is the point....whilst location is probably the number one reason for being on a site in a particular place, this can be achieved by staying at a CL or other stopping place for far less than the price of a club site.

I don't get the attraction (to the tune of an extra £30) of the 'facilities' on a club site. Yes, the showers are generally OK (but a long way short of some we have used) and the pitches are also OK (again, is a patch of gravel anything to get excited about?) but that's really it.

A few times a year we use a commercial site in a fairly upmarket town which is close to a Club site. The prices are similar but the commercial has nicer pitch spacing (in small, hedged areas) a pool, a bar, a restaurant, lakeside walks, a well stocked shop (groceries and camping kit), several dedicated office staff, ANPR entry, a large drive over waste and MHSP well away from other traffic, it's closer to the town....

in this case, the town/site becomes a 'destination' with things to do both on and off site.

If Club sites offered a few of these things we might be tempted to use their sites more but with such a meagre basic offering at current pricing levels this won't happen. 

whilst I respect others' use of Club sites, for us there doesn't seem to be anything to pull us away from a CL in the same location. Charging twice as much for (effectively) the same parking space and loo/shower doesn't seem like the sort of VFM we are looking for.

someone mentioned an alternative for the Broadway site, Northwick Farm. So I checked it out...nothing in it distance wise to the town, an easy walk.

checking prices requires contacting the site but they are from £25 for a van and two people. We don't do awnings, dogs or other potential extras which might skew things so it's a straight comparison...

Broadway is over £51 for a HS for two people this coming Saturday....🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️

…..but we all know what ‘from’ means in terms of site pricing.

Btw, I looked at Polmanter’s website yesterday. £61 p/n at present (can’t remember what sort of pitch that was - gold plated I imagine) and going up to £68.50 for the same period next year and their T&Cs make CAMC’s look really lenient. 

And have a look at BB's past recommended site of Concierge Camping, makes the club's prices appear very cheap indeed.