Using a C & CC site

[Surfer]

Arrived yesterday to book in. Warden friendly enough then told they want a £10 deposit if I want to use disabled facilities. Told them I had a radar key and then told that radar key does not work on their disabled toilets!
Next we are guided to our pitch having to use a road / track full of pot holes. Not impressed. Went to reverse the caravan, but then told I was not following 6 metre rule. None of the grass pitches are marked out. On CC sites they have pegs and your caravan sits to the middle of the peg.
Anyway moved the caravan over a foot or so over, yes a foot, as I did not want to park under an overhanging tree. Warden not overjoyed, but found it acceptable. We later measured the distance with a tape measure from our caravan windbreak to the next caravan and it was over 6 metres???
Another caravan arrived and the the warden paced out the 6 metres by taking huge strides. The wife and myself nearly cracked up with laughter watching this comical show as the warden was quite short and had to do a sort of skip and jump to do it ! LOL!
In general the warden was okay and not too officious and trhe site is pleasant enough, but after using CC sites it is like moving from a developed to a third rate country. Facilities look to be nice and clean though and no barriers on the gates.

 

[waffler]

Glad to hear the holiday site manager was insisting on the 6 metre rule. If you have seen a caravan fire you would not have questioned the distance but made sure you complied. Equally by stepping it out he was trying to minimise wasted space and so maximise the number who could enjoy the site. Roads can be variable and usually there is a barrier that is locked overnight.

 

[JohnGriffiths]

What a good idea to have disabled facilities available for a simple £10 deposit. I'm sure there are lots of temporarily disabled folk, e.g. hip/knee replacements, road accidents who don't have radar keys so I'm all in favour.
I wish that warden had been on duty when we used a private site last weekend. We were trapped in by tents either side. The one lot started a football match but the others simply pitched so close I was stepping over their guy ropes to get to my water and waste. I wouldn't have laughed at a warden stepping out the gap, I would have cheered. So as well as safety aspect there is also a privacy element which I'm happy to say is always enforced at the C&CC.
Like the previous poster, I don't think I've been to a C&CC site without overnight barriers, most have them shut in the day as well but where there is an active on site warden/manned reception it makes sense to leave them open IMHO.

 

[Surfer]

Surely it would be easier to have each pitch marked with a peg so that you know where to park the caravan instead of doing a silly little war dance. I am not objecting to the 6 metre rule at all, but lets do it by the book.
Only other issue was we went to town and when we came back at 12:30pm there was a queue of caravans waiting to be booked in and we had to wait behind them until we wee able to access the site. Surely a lane for thsoe alreayd booked in woudl help. No doubt c & CC is the CC's poor relation.
Otherwise lovely site but unable to use disabled facilities as too far to walk and don't want to use the truck. Never had to pay a deposit for access to disabled facilities on any other site we have visited including commercial sites.
Yes, it si the first C & CC site we have been on for several years and despite the few issues, I would not even class them as a hassle, we would come back to this site

 

[emmerson]

We had to pay a deposit at C&C's Rowntree Park. This is becoming the norm at lots of sites now, and is a very sensible way of making sure the key is returned .As for the six metre rule, its simply common sense, however its enforced. Potholed roads? Drive in Anytown, Anywhere, they're all the same.
Now, Surfer, next complaint?

 

[JohnGriffiths]

I recently watched how C&CC allocate grass pitches at their Hereford site. Rather than peg out so that pitches exactly co-incide every time they tend to rotate areas, placing newcomers slightly offset to the predecessors so the ground doesn't end up like a patchwork quilt. Anyway Surfer, glad you enjoyed roughing it with us third worlders, we hope to see you again soon

.

 

[Parksy]

I enjoyed reading about the hop skip and a jump method of ensuring that there is a safe distance between pitches, as a short-house myself I'll have to remember that one the next time that we steward a C&CC rally
At least it might provide some amusement for the edification and enjoyment of the rally goers when they pitch up.

Site wardens on both the C&CC and the CC often come in for criticism and no matter what they do someone will complain or find fault but I hope that the potholed roads, the £10 deposit and Skippy the site warden didn't spoil your stay amongst the poor relations, Surfer.
I'm quite pleased with the C&CC at the moment as it happens, we came back from a week away and there was a parcel waiting for me to open.
I hadn't a clue what it was but it turned out that I've 'won' a Vango sleeping bag because I managed to have some of my utterances about solar power published in the 'Your Letters / Forum' section of the September C&CC magazine (page10 - 'Try This, sunshine')
It was an unexpected surprise which I'm very pleased to receive so Thank You C&CC

 

[Surfer]

Been waiting for you to reply. I don't mind mixing with the poorer relations from time to time especially as it is a nice site. LOL! We will be off to Conkers in October so not sure if Skippy will be there as only pitches are available are hard standing!

 

[Parksy]

I'm sure that you will enjoy your stay at Conkers Surfer and mid to low season is a great time for the poorest of the poor relations like myself because the C&CC age concessionary prices apply then.
We slipped up a couple of years back when we visited the Peak District because we stayed on a certified site which was fine.
We didn't think to check the prices for a pitch on the Bakewell C&CC site and as it turned out the club site would have been less expensive with the age concessions so we wish that we'd checked first.

 

[Surfer]

I'm sure that you will enjoy your stay at Conkers Surfer and mid to low season is a great time for the poorest of the poor relations like myself because the C&CC age concessionary prices apply then.
We slipped up a couple of years back when we visited the Peak District because we stayed on a certified site which was fine.
We didn't think to check the prices for a pitch on the Bakewell C&CC site and as it turned out the club site would have been less expensive with the age concessions so we wish that we'd checked first.

We are there for Halloween so probably pay peak prices.

 

[Parksy]

No, the C&CC is much friendlier than that Surfer

As you will see Here the Halloween weekend falls in mid season which meant that the age concession applies, on the dates following Halloween the concessionary rate is for Low season which means more money saved.
Don't forget that Conkers is listed in the Four nights for the price of three offer during Mid and Low season, I think that you have to contact the site beforehand to take advantage of this offer.
Us poor relations have to be careful wth the pennies you know

 

[Parksy]

I've just been looking on th C&CC site seeker website to decide on some places where we hope to visit at some stage and I've noticed that sites, including certified sites, now have facilities for adding reviews.
Having read some reviews on various sites around the Cotswolds we have decided to give at least one site amiss on the basis of what was written by previous visitors.

 

[Surfer]

I've just been looking on th C&CC site seeker website to decide on some places where we hope to visit at some stage and I've noticed that sites, including certified sites, now have facilities for adding reviews.
Having read some reviews on various sites around the Cotswolds we have decided to give at least one site amiss on the basis of what was written by previous visitors.

I tend to read those reviews plus those others on the uk website we cannot mention and then make up my mind. There is one near Chipping Norton that we will never visit again and a CS by Westbury.

 

[Robtel]

I tend to read those reviews plus those others on the uk website we cannot mention and then make up my mind. T

I didn't know we couldn't mention other websites! If you mean the u.k. one I think you do then I've got to admit that I do pop in there for a look see regularly and find their site search and reveiws very helpful. I would be happy to recommend that particular aspect of that forum to anyone. Can a Mod clarify this please.
Robert

 

[Parksy]

Hi Robert
A while back several links to UK Campsite were placed on this forum over a short period of time.
Under normal circumstances there is no problem with placing links to other websites or even caravan forums because Practical Caravan and other caravan related forums / websites are trying to achieve the same thing which is to facillitate the exchange of knowledge about our mutual hobby. Although the Practical Caravan forum greatly values contributions made by it's members we realise that caravanners are often members of and contributors to several caravan forums and have no problem whatsoever with that.
When a high number of links are placed over a relatively short time-frame by the same people time after time a halt needed to be called, especially in view of the fact that no reciprocal links or recommendations for users to look at this forum are allowed on these other forums which were starting to be mentioned or linked to rather too often shortly after the relaunch of this new Practical Caravan forum.
The owners and administrators of Practical Caravan forum have their own Caravan Sitefinder website which has site reviews, a UK and European site finder and a direct booking service which is another reason why links to a website which never provide links to Haymarket Consumer Media websites don't feature on this forum.
If members of this forum wish to use other forums and websites that is not a problem, but moderators of this forum were not about to watch idly and passively when it began to look as though efforts were being made in some quarters to sabotage the relaunch of this forum by continually adding links to another website which covers similar ground to those owned and run by Haymarket.
A very similar thing happened with the now defunct carry on camping forum, moderators here on PCv tried hard to be accomodating, allowing continual links and mentions of the carry on forum on here only to be rewarded by those associated with that forum using it as a base to denigrate and insult this forum and those of us on here who had gone out of our way to help them get started and to keep going. Never Again!!!

 

[Robtel]

Hi Parksy,
Thanks for that very detailed explanation. At no time would I post a link in an effort to try and sabotage this (or any other forum) or to entice members away but I do fully understand what you are saying. I well remember certain people on the carry on forum being very derogatory not just about this forum in general but about certain individuals in particular. In fairness there were also a lot of members of that forum (myself included) who continued to post on both forums and did not become involved in that nonsense. Please be assured I understand and support your stance on this.
Robert

 

[Parksy]

Thanks Robert