Prices

"For the past two years we’ve had one weekend on the cheapest site ever. No white peg, no EHU, no neighbours. Just our cows."

Good job you had no neighbours,  Goldie,  they'd probably complain about the cows mooing too loudly or too early (or too late)! 

Booked stay at Tewkesbury for 5 nights after Easter price gone up by £11.

I'm still waiting to stay on a club site and find it not either completely full or very nearly so.

But it will be good to do so. Imagine, having such a wide choice of pitch....

We have just stopped on two CC sites and neither have been more than 1/3rd full. Which pleased us as we had plenty of choice of where to pitch.  Randomcamper you are either picking the wrong club sites or choosing to visit them in peak times.

Sorry, I wasn't aware there was a right or a wrong club site?  Which is which please..?

We just go to the sites that are in places we fancy staying....

Certainly don't visit at peak times, now the kids are adults with their own lives we have two golden rules, no school holidays & no bank holidays.

If your 1/3rd full sites were remotely representative, which in our experience they aren't, unless you are talking about Monday or Tuesdays, which will be the same story on any site, then the club would be quickly reducing prices.  They aren't.  I suspect that prices will have to rise a lot more yet before it influences most working members, desperate for a few weeks away each year. Club sites are still an utter bargain for anyone looking for a simple short holiday, no airport chaos and little commitment/no deposit ( I know that may change soon). Good luck to people staying elsewhere, your pitch will be quickly snapped up by someone else grateful for the chance to get away.......

My post was more to show that there are almost always alternatives to Club sites if price is a factor, as there are quite a few members for whom a site has to be a Club one.   We too always used Club sites until about 10 years back, and the ease of booking, amending and cancelling when necessary, and lack of a deposit being needed was a big plus point, but that is all changing now.

One thing that surprised us when we broadened our horizons was how many commercial sites had many or even all of their  pitches serviced, which is a big plus for families with babies and toddlers when it comes to bathing, and for we older people who are not as fit as we used to be.  

We have just come from a commercial site at St Andrews, a very popular coastal holiday destination, where our daughter had booked a 7 night stay, the last night being for us to come and take over the van.  The site was all serviced pitches, excellent play areas, small clubhouse, soft play and gym for rainy days ( £2 extra I believe ) and a heated indoor pool, no extra charge.  £30 per night.

 By comparison, the Club site in Fife, not near the coast or the main holiday destinations, is at present £29.80 per night for a standard pitch, with no extra offering for young children.

We also compared the Club's Banchory site with a commercial a few miles away, and found that their serviced pitches were slightly less expensive than the Club's standard pitches, and the  Club  site does not even have a play area for children.

When it comes to CCC sites, the age related discount is as you say, good for we older people,  but they also work out less expensive at many times as their peak periods are much shorter.  Easter is not a peak period at all on their sites in Scotland.

The price for the commercial site at Newtonmore also surprised us.  We had looked at it in the past when it was an AS, but never used it as we found it expensive, but now it is very reasonable compared to  Club sites up here.  

We have also found a commercial site near York, never a cheap area, which, in June, works out £10 per night less than Beechwood Grange, which we always used to use.

Having a head office to run obviously has a cost, but is that not covered by the annual subs? Club  Site running costs are surely similar to Commercial sites, and are there no "economies of scale" when running so many sites?

How right you are.  I watched around 10 minutes of the programme last night about the running of a large caravan site and one of the couples and their children were complaining to reception about the sheep making a noise!  It was one of those moments when you think to yourself, you couldn't make it up!  The site was definitely not the sort of site that I would  want to go to personally (everyone to their own),  but not due to the sheep.

We are on Great Yarmouth race course club site it is less than half full  and it is Easter holidays 

IMO it is now that the full effect if site prices and the add costs of other much higher costs will this year see possibly quite a few empty pitches on many club site 

IMO it is now that the full effect if site prices and the add costs of other much higher costs will this year see possibly quite a few empty pitches on many club site

I hope so JVB because that will give those that can afford to do so more freedom to tour without booking.

peedee

If the site office is open for you to book in?

But then those with any form of consideration would have contacted the site in advance anyway

The thing is K that you post these types of post, with great detail of the prices and savings against club sites and how the sites you are using are just as good if not better than club sites, full comparisons against club sites, how club sites should be cheaper...every few days, this one is the third in four days (and the second one today) in a similar vein.  Your are perfectly entitled to do so of course but what is the point of these frequent posts all saying the same thing?  

My post was more to show that there are almost always alternatives to Club sites if price is a factor, as there are quite a few members for whom a site has to be a Club one.

The way you have written is appears to say that club site users do not know there are alternatives and the parts in bold is disparaging of the fact the choice of site has to be a club one? So what if it is? Do you think that those that do use club sites need some form of education as to other sites? They can't make their own mind up without your frequent posts? Have you ever considered that perhaps those that use club sites do know there are other providers yet still make a conscious choice to use club sites? I won't speak for others but I do know there are other sites out there and I think the quality of club sites is far better, you don't and that is brilliant, you've found 'better' in your eyes but it is not better for everyone.

This appears to be some type of 'crusade' on your part to convert others to your now preferred way of touring. You are perfectly happy as said, and that is great so why not let other be perfectly happy with their choice?