Caravan Club Sites fully booked

[starlightdj]

We are brand new to the caravan club, We joined due to the benefits of their insurance service, however I thought we would take advantage of booking a few sites.

I cant beleive the third week in January and some sites are fully booked for the whole year ahead.
ie York has no weekend spaces available for the whole year.

This means I cannot book a weeks holiday there until 2012 if im lucky. This is only one of a number of sites with the same situation.

After speaking to the site direct they confirmed the situation, however stated if we wanted to go for a weekend to phone them direct a few days before we depart as some members just block book dates and never turn up just for the sake that they might want to go.

How on earth can anyone that works and whom has to book specific time off, even consider using the cc sites if this is the case.

Why do the cc club not charge deposits to stop or at least prohibit people just blanket booking sites.

I state a weeks holiday only for the simple fact my wife is a nurse caring for the elderley, due to her shifts the most notice she can get for a deffinite weekend off is 3 weeks. This means there is no chance we can ever book sites like this for a weekend, so we must go for a week option to be able to plan properly however now even that seams an impossibility.

If you have booked and plan on going - well done and please enjoy, dont get me wrong this is not a jealous rant.

To anyone whom has just block booked with the idea that you will cherry pick or decide a few days before wheather to go or not. Shame on you - you are selfish and drag down the reputation of what otherwise seams to be a good club.

I do hope the powers that be within the cc. do something to address this situation and perhaps ban or refuse to renew membership to those to blame as three of the sites i spoke to today seam to reckon this is a bigger problem than the club will ever admit too.

Sorry if this seams like a rant, but just wanted to air my veiws.

cheers
John

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

I do hope the powers that be within the cc. do something to address this situation and perhaps ban or refuse to renew membership to those to blame as three of the sites i spoke to today seam to reckon this is a bigger problem than the club will ever admit too.

People can book a lot of sites but they cannot book more than one site for a particular date.
'No shows' are monitored and people do actually get booted out of the CC. because of this. They do get a warning first though.
I don't know the reason why deposits aren't taken but most private sites we've booked, mostly CLs, they've told us that deposits are more trouble than what they're worth and just ask to be given plenty of notice if we don't intend going.
We've only failed once and that was because our Truma mover failed and they wouldn't send out the spare part because they were stock taking. That's another story though

EDIT: I've just checked and the 3 CLs we've booked didn't require deposits.

 

[NigelHutson]

John,
I couldn't agree more. We're in a similar situation to you, i.e. only a limited number of weekends off and "fluid" shifts. Therefore, very often we are unable to book months in advance (or should I say on the day that the CC open the following year's bookings in December?).
They do not care a jot about members (a bit like the National Trust - like your money, but don't want you visiting). My personal thought is that they should limit the number of bookings per member, say half a dozen or so, and when one booking has been used, they can book another. That way, everyone would get a chance. No shows should be given one chance, then stopped from pre-booking for six months. Any other bookings that they have should be either paid for in advance (in full) or cancelled.
Everyone has an emergency which might mean a last minute cancellation, and I accept that, but not simply because the caravan might get dirty whilst being towed because it's raining!
We were fortunate enough to be on the York site (Rowntree Park) on the day that 2011 bookings were opened. Therefore (again being fortunate) we did book for December this year. However, when I checked the day afterwards online, the only Saturday night that was available for the whole year was 24th December!

 

[DavidKlyne]

Its all very well being down on the Caravan Club and say they should do this or do that but when they recently had a survey on the subject, open to all members, only 1200 people responded. They could be forgiven for coming the the conclusion that its not really a major problem for the majority of members! However they have responded to some of the suggestions and they will in future be monitoring late cancellations with a new obligation for members to cancell at least 72 hours in advance of booked arrival. (New computer software allows them to monitor this problem more closely than they could before) What ever restrictions you were to put into place like deposits or only being able to make so many bookings would not prevent the likes of York and Chatsworth being fully booked all year, these sites are just too popular.

David

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hi Starlight,
I am too aware of the problem, and it has been previously discussed on the forum, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be discusses again. I do hope you realise that this forum is does not belong to the CC and they may not take notice of posting on here, so I suggest you write to the CC directly.

 

[raccoon]

Hi Starlight and welcome to the forum. I am a member of the caravan club and have been for only two years. We have found that the popular sites do get booked up very very quick after the new season opens. As you have found, the weekends do get full at any time. Dont forget though that there are a lot of private caravan sites out there and some are just as good as the CC. Around York the main CC site is Rountree park. There is Beechwood just outside which is a very nice site which is only a few minutes drive to the park and ride into York itself. We have just booked up for four days down at the Knarebourgh CC site for the middle of March, this one was fully booked (by the web site) for the weekends. You did the right thing by phoning the site because a lot of the members dont cancel the dates they cannot go.
I know you will not be wanting to go to York all the time so why dont you try www.ukcampsite.co.uk and you will find plenty of user write ups about the sites all around the country. If you fancy a NO frills weekend then there are quite a few CL's around and are pretty cheap, this is where members save money. Only trouble is with some of them they are very basic and usually have only one toilet and sometimes no showers.
I agree with all your comments though but do know that the CC are changing some of the rules and putting a couple extra ones in. Hope you enjoy yourself when you do get away.

Stewart

 

[Philspadders]

The main issue with the CC is that they open the bookings at 8.0am on a working day. Come on CC , we are not all pensioners / permanent sick / carers sat around at home waiting to book the whole year ahead.
Bookings should open on a weekend when we all have a chance.

Some of the more popular sites are fully booked for weekends , bank holidays and from spring onwards almost by the end of the day.
When i brought this up a in december one happy camper suggested i go in February and March as there were available pitches in those months.... they are available because its cold and wet.
We do tend to use CL's now and we tend to find a more relaxed attitude on CLS, as well the other campers seem a lot more friendly, until they see my kids (10 and 4) and then they go all grumpy.

 

[Parksy]

I know you will not be wanting to go to York all the time so why dont you try ukcampsite and you will find plenty of user write ups about the sites all around the country.

Crikey!! Are UKCS paying everybody and their dog to advertise on this forum?!?!?

There's been a link to that website nearly evey day on here! I don't see any links to our forum from there

Why don't you try Caravan Sitefinder instead? Sitefinder has plenty of write ups about sites all around the country.
There's a link to Caravan Sitefinder at the foot of this forum page and Sitefinder pay £50 for reviews if they are chosen to appear in Practical Caravan magazine

 

[JonnyG]

The main issue with the CC is that they open the bookings at 8.0am on a working day. Come on CC , we are not all pensioners / permanent sick / carers sat around at home waiting to book the whole year ahead.
Bookings should open on a weekend when we all have a chance.

Some of the more popular sites are fully booked for weekends , bank holidays and from spring onwards almost by the end of the day.
When i brought this up a in december one happy camper suggested i go in February and March as there were available pitches in those months.... they are available because its cold and wet.
We do tend to use CL's now and we tend to find a more relaxed attitude on CLS, as well the other campers seem a lot more friendly, until they see my kids (10 and 4) and then they go all grumpy.

I agree. I sent in a strong worded complaint to the CC last year, and actually got a pleasant response where they said they knew of the issues and although they knew of new shows the numbers involved were low.What i did remark on was that like others are saying we work and the favourable sites are snapped up immediately for almost all weekends.
I did also say that one day those that struggle to find appropriate sites because of the booking system, might well gang up one year and take time off and do exactly what it seems a few CC members do regular and book every weekend up at the better sites
Might seem a little childish and selfish, but that's exactly how the system seems to work at the moment.

In this the computer age, it seems quite unreal that the CC cannot come up with a fairer system than the mad rush system that favours a few and disadvantages the majority.

 

[Surfer]

I know you will not be wanting to go to York all the time so why dont you try ukcampsite and you will find plenty of user write ups about the sites all around the country.

Crikey!! Are UKCS paying everybody and their dog to advertise on this forum?!?!?

There's been a link to that website nearly evey day on here! I don't see any links to our forum from there

Why don't you try Caravan Sitefinder instead? Sitefinder has plenty of write ups about sites all around the country.
There's a link to Caravan Sitefinder at the foot of this forum page and Sitefinder pay £50 for reviews if they are chosen to appear in Practical Caravan magazine

Probably because ukcampsite offer better reviews than any other site including this site. Also it is easy to use their search engine when looking for a site in a specific area. To the best of my knowledge it is the only website with that facility. In addition, there are forums for any one to arrange a rally in any area and these happen on a regular basis. Also the website owner does attend some rallies as I have met him on one occasion.

 

[Parksy]

I know you will not be wanting to go to York all the time so why dont you try ukcampsite and you will find plenty of user write ups about the sites all around the country.

Crikey!! Are UKCS paying everybody and their dog to advertise on this forum?!?!?

There's been a link to that website nearly evey day on here! I don't see any links to our forum from there

Why don't you try Caravan Sitefinder instead? Sitefinder has plenty of write ups about sites all around the country.
There's a link to Caravan Sitefinder at the foot of this forum page and Sitefinder pay £50 for reviews if they are chosen to appear in Practical Caravan magazine

Probably because ukcampsite offer better reviews than any other site including this site. Also it is easy to use their search engine when looking for a site in a specific area. To the best of my knowledge it is the only website with that facility. In addition, there are forums for any one to arrange a rally in any area and these happen on a regular basis. Also the website owner does attend some rallies as I have met him on one occasion.

The reviews are sent in by people who have stayed on the sites, admittedly UKCS have been accepting reviews for longer than Caravan Sitefinder but having read both UKCS's reviews are certainly not 'better' than anyone else's.
From your comments about the ease of use of the respective search engines I can tell that you have obviously never used Caravan Sitefinder bcecause sites in specific areas are easy to access just by clicking on the map.
It's true that Caravan Sitefinder doesn't stage rallies but that is still not a good reason for links to that particular website to continually appear on this one.
Links submitted within posts on this forum should be of the self returning type.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

Crikey!! Are UKCS paying everybody and their dog to advertise on this forum?!?!?

There's been a link to that website nearly evey day on here! I don't see any links to our forum from there

Probably because the owner of that website wouldn't tolerate anyone posting a link to this website

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

I would have thought it was pretty obvious to every man and his dog that the more 'popular' sites were going to be booked up first hence the reason they are more popular. The only answer is for the CC to buy up surrounding land around sites like Rowntree, Clumber, Hillhead and double the amount of pitches.
What isn't going to happen at these sites, like some would like to see happen, is for the club to keep some pitches vacant just in case Joe Bloggs and his entourage decide they might like a last minute decision weekend at one of them.

 

[Dustydog]

Personally I'm not bothered about the likes of Rowntree Park. Do you really want to be on a site that's so full where the facilities are in constant use? The toilet seats never get cold.

Try the CLs nearby or some of the private sites. All just as good imo.
I flatly refuse to get involved in the annual bun fight to book the likes of Rowntree Park etc. On the whole I've never had a problem getting on most CC sites throughout the year.
Have you thought of being a bit naughty and turn up late and use the late arrivals area.

 

[Lord Braykewynde]

On the whole I've never had a problem getting on most CC sites throughout the year.

Like you DD I've never had any problems although it's probably because I don't want to go to the 'popular' sites. I did go to Chatsworth and although it's a nice site I can't understand why people rave about it. I've been once and have no intention of returning. I'll leave Chatsworth for those who can't get on it something to moan about

Popular sites usually mean large sites and to see the usual parade of people heading to the showers past our caravan, towel over shoulder, toilet bag in hand, crocs of all shades and in all forms of dress (or undress) is enough to make me choke on my porridge

 

[Surfer]

I know you will not be wanting to go to York all the time so why dont you try ukcampsite and you will find plenty of user write ups about the sites all around the country.

Crikey!! Are UKCS paying everybody and their dog to advertise on this forum?!?!?

There's been a link to that website nearly evey day on here! I don't see any links to our forum from there

Why don't you try Caravan Sitefinder instead? Sitefinder has plenty of write ups about sites all around the country.
There's a link to Caravan Sitefinder at the foot of this forum page and Sitefinder pay £50 for reviews if they are chosen to appear in Practical Caravan magazine

Probably because ukcampsite offer better reviews than any other site including this site. Also it is easy to use their search engine when looking for a site in a specific area. To the best of my knowledge it is the only website with that facility. In addition, there are forums for any one to arrange a rally in any area and these happen on a regular basis. Also the website owner does attend some rallies as I have met him on one occasion.

The reviews are sent in by people who have stayed on the sites, admittedly UKCS have been accepting reviews for longer than Caravan Sitefinder but having read both UKCS's reviews are certainly not 'better' than anyone else's.
From your comments about the ease of use of the respective search engines I can tell that you have obviously never used Caravan Sitefinder bcecause sites in specific areas are easy to access just by clicking on the map.
It's true that Caravan Sitefinder doesn't stage rallies but that is still not a good reason for links to that particular website to continually appear on this one.
Links submitted within posts on this forum should be of the self returning type.

I have used caravan site finder and very few reviews. When we look for a site we go onto the ukcampsite, click on the map where we live and then set the radius and this then encompasses at least 4 counties around us. With the caravan site finder it only does it by county and you still have no idea how far away the site is which is why ukcampsite is the preferred method of site finding! Simples.

 

[Parksy]

I have used caravan site finder and very few reviews. When we look for a site we go onto the ukcampsite, click on the map where we live and then set the radius and this then encompasses at least 4 counties around us. With the caravan site finder it only does it by county and you still have no idea how far away the site is which is why ukcampsite is the preferred method of site finding! Simples.

We're off topic here but I'll explain the situation.
Whatever site review and information website you want to use is up to you. The more users Caravan Sitefinder gets the more reviews will be added and as far as this website is concerned Caravan Sitefinder will always be the one recommended.
The point is that this website is owned and run by Haymarket Media who also pay for it. Haymarket also own and run Caravan Sitefinder so a direct competitor to their own website is hardly going to get preferential treatment on here.

If some other website is 'the preferred method' that's fine but this doesn't mean that Haymarket have to allow it to be constantly promoted over their own Caravan Sitefinder on this Haymarket owned forum. It certainly wouldn't be allowed the other way round.
Nobody minds the odd helpful link Surfer but Jeez, there was a post on here the other day with four links to that particular webite in it which is extracting the you know what as far as this forum is concerned. Once in a while, no problem, but there are limits. Links to other forums or websites should be 'self returning' anyway because we're not here to encourage our own users to navigate away from this website.