Plans for the Sandringham site

We did a south-eastern uk tour last autumn and we stopped at Sandringham, but it was (like you) 'next door'....way cheaper and a very nice relaxing site which we've used before.

It is of course only way cheaper for you and us because of our age and time of year. Younger members actually pay around £1 a night more, for a HS pitch, as of course we would if we used it at peak. Presumably we are being subsidised.

Steve, if someone wishes to cut their nose off to spite their face then that's up to them, but if two sites are adjacent and of similar 'quality' then why not go for one that substantially cheaper, therefore much better VFM?

you cant possibly believe that someone wouldn't go to the C&CC site 'because it's subsidised'?🤷🏻‍♂️

perhaps i should have gone to CAMC and paid much more as I was only getting the other site cheaper because I'm old.....👴

I don’t see that I have suggested that you don’t take advantage of the age related rate YT, as we do ourselves. However, your post just stated that the site was way cheaper with no further information. That was misleading to anyone reading it who isn’t aware of the facts. It would have been more accurate to state that was with age related discount, as otherwise there is little difference in the prices.

The trouble with the "No Facility Sites" is that many of them were uneconomic to run and some even had to rely on "volunteer" members to run them. I am not sure whether you can legally run a permanent site, for which site fees are paid, with volunteers, surely that goes against the rules of the NMW? Some minimum facility sites like Hebden Bridge can probably succeed and there are probably a few others but clearly some can't. I am pretty sure the Club has a enough background information to work out whether no facility sites are likely to work. If given the choice I imagine that if the Club purchased a new site their first choice would be to develop it with the facilities the majority of members wanted. After all there are plenty of CL's around that more than meet that niche requirement. Don't get me wrong I don't mind no facility sites and have used quite a few of them over the years but I can't see how they are commercially viable? It is perfectly clear that a refurbished Sandringham site will be popular if the likes of Morn Hill and Cayton Village are anything to go by. I think even I would bulk at the  Premium Pitch prices but clearly some are willing to pay. 

David

I liked the non-fac sites too. During peak times they were often quiet as families didn’t seem to use them much. While this made them ideal for me, I can see that quiet sites not bursting at the seams wouldn’t be ideal from CAMC's point of view. 

That’s the difference with the “Club” nowadays, it’s made an active decision (for no doubt a few reasons) to ditch the economy side of its provision, and concentrate on generating more income on its premium end provision. It’s definitely touting the CLs (some) as it’s economy arm, and there’s been a definite shift towards monitoring Member spend (as in “as much as the Membership can stand parting with”) via enlarging the Marketing Dept and a good bit of number crunching going on, which in turn is driving the special offers, ditch this, add that on, selected dates only, etc…. deals that are on offer.

The Club knows it’s market absolutely spot on. It’s ageing, wanting a lot of the effort removed from actually touring, got the most income to part with in terms of cost of living, and there’s a good core of customers, existing and newly attracted who are happy to go with a brand that gives them a known world without any surprises no matter where they roll up. In fact, it the touring equivalent of a pair of Marks and Spencer’s knickers, reliable quality, won’t let you down, and very safe! 😁

No use to moan about the change really. It’s excellent marketing, future proofing the Club and it’s sites, giving the majority of Members (those with the spending power😉) what they want, and even if you cannot tow or drive a MH, you can still enjoy Club life in a different type of accommodation! Even the likes of us would try a Glamping Pod or Safari tent at a special offer price👍

perhaps i should have gone to CAMC and paid much more as I was only getting the other site cheaper because I'm old...

Shock.... I have just compared prices for a 3 night stay at the February half term at the Sandringham sites. The C&MC is £3 cheaper even allowing for the C&CC OAP discount. Even a C&CC grass no electric pitch is more expensive without the OAP discount. That is something of a turn around!

peedee

There's a fairly long running thread on uk campsite peedee that talks about increasing prices with the other club. All those subsidies for others have to be picked up somewhere so I guess that will be the working age families.

JK

Probably a combination of the Club reducing prices for 2024 and the C&CC raising them. The latter do have some good offers later in the season.

Back to the proposed plans,

Royal sources said the King would be consulted and would have to approve any alterations on his 20,000-acre estate, which he inherited after the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022.

I would be very surprised if the estate was not consulted before the planning application was submitted to the council.

peedee

The link posted in the OP suggests HRH has given his approval.