Campsite Fees Killing caravans?
We explore a nother big issue for caravans and that is the price of pitch fees. Unlike motorhomes they can’t be just parked anywhere so need campsites. The issue is those pitch fees are a lot higher than they used to be a few years ago.
Merchandise
Our Store – https://my-store-bc38a2.creator-spring.com
Watch Next
Solo Dad caravanning – https://youtu.be/ABDFSABHUbc
Whitby North Yorkshire and Dalby Forest Caravan Holiday – https://youtu.be/G6B-0g8fADg
Water falls and Injuries – https://youtu.be/n8yViqeXfWw
_________________________________________________________________
Music site used – https://epidemicsound.com/referral/en6183/
Equipment Used
Equipment used for video
Canon M50 – https://amzn.to/2GufIkG
Iphone 7Plus 32GB – https://amzn.to/2PVaGSH
Amazon Basics Tripod stand – https://amzn.to/2B8YdCL
Rode Microphone – https://amzn.to/2BFkXZQ
Rode SC7 Iphone adapter cable – https://amzn.to/2PXNpvl
Iphone Firewire Dongle cable – https://amzn.to/2GCUulv
Iphone holder for tripod – https://amzn.to/2QGp9id
Manfotto Pixl Mini Tripod Evo – https://amzn.to/2GBWVEg
_________________________________________________________________
Twitter – https://twitter.com/WithRobsons
Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/rollingwith…
Caravan time is family time and caravan time is freedom.
#caravanning #caravanningwithkids #familytravelvlog
22 Comments
Every business or activity has its bursting point this now happening it is part of the great reset
Greed greed and more greed until the bubble bursts
Some people pay silly prices on some sites nowadays. £60 a night is expensive, over £100 a night, you can get bed and breakfast for that.
I once got a special deal on a Haven site, 4 nights midweek, £48, £12 a night. When I asked about staying for the weekend, it was £52 a night, on the same pitch I had just paid £12 a night for, so I declined.
Being retired, we usually dont go away at school holiday times, we get special deal times like all September at £12 a night for 30 nights, £360 for a month. Because we are past our best by date, we usually go on Super Pitches with our own water tap and drain for that sort of money. Some all year round sites are charging their top price + extra for Christmas? Weve been away at New Year for a reasonable price to a place where the Vikings come and the town is an interesting place for the evening, but the price has recently doubled for New Year, so we dont go anymore.
In August we sometimes have a few nights in a hotel, b&b, its usually cheaper than taking the caravan.
We have just spent two months in France with our campervan . Pitch fees varied between £14 and £23 per night including electricity with ACSI. camping card. Need I say more ?
I’ve gone back to basics and a tent after all you only sleep in it. Lots of camping for £10 a night
A lot of CL’s & CS’s, especially the newer ones seem to be charging far too much for a basic pitch these days. Many are charging extra for metered electricity whereas it used to be included in their price. One particular example is a non-facility CL in Shropshire just a couple of seasons ago had been £18 per night including ehu. They increased the fee to £20 inclusive but then started charging for electricity on top at a metered rate but only reduced their standard rate by £1. Making it £19 for an off-grid pitch which I think is expensive. We stopped going, their loss. As you say, electricity and petrol prices for their mowers (often blamed for increased pitch fees) have fallen but are not reflected in lower pitch fees. We caravan most weekends plus longer holidays throughout the year but sites that we have used regularly in the past that have increased pitch fees by 25 & 33% are just that, a thing of the past – we don’t go to them any more!
On various forums, you get people saying “ohh, what’s a fiver?” Well it adds up when you’re on a restricted income. We’ve been caravanning over 40 years and have seen fees go up and up and up. We only want a patch of grass with ehu. We don’t need fully serviced pitches, I can walk to a tap and a drain and we use our own on board toilet and shower.
I think a lot of the new, post-Covid campers who are/were used to going abroad and paying several hundreds of pounds for a weeks break found there new hobby cheap in comparison at £35 – £50 per night. They don’t realise how much pitch fees have increased for that same patch of grass. And, the newer 5 van campsites seem to be run as a business for profit rather than a farmer letting a patch of land for a beer money. encouraged by the Clubs to start their fees at from £25 plus extra for awnings, dogs, showers, Wi-Fi, etc.
They would get more visitors if they were fairer priced.
Luckily there are still many reasonably priced, well established sites out there.
We regularly stay on different sites in Spain at a price of 300Euros per month some of which have pools, bar, restaurant and one site we use has a fully stocked supermarket and all of the above. No trainer because the weather is great 👍.
We've been caravaning for almost 40 years so have seen the rise in in pitch prices and caravan prices which rose rapidly with the onset of covid. Many people took to caravaning at thus time as they couldn't go abroad and saw it as a cheaper option. Well in my opinion to many felt it neccersary to buy a brand new all singing all dancing van that needed mains hook up to sustain them over the weekend) holiday use. Enter GREED as caravan dealers and and site owners eyes lit up with delight. Now Covid is not as evident as it was, many oeople are going abroad again so there vans are left unused on drives and in storage across the country. New van sales are greatly diminished, even Broadlane Caravans in the Midllands have called in administrators. There will now be a huge amount of barely used second hand vans on the markek at knockdown prices partly also due to people not wanting to pay inflated site fees (who could blame them), this was always going to happen) we had a couple of new vans (not top of the range) in 2000, had one stolen and wouldn't bother again, our current van is 20 years old and does everything we need and hardly ever bother with hook up. Don't pay those inflated pitch fees, they'll have to bring them down or shut up shop, there are loads of sites to choose from, happy caravanning😢
We sold our caravan a few months ago because the cost of everything was/is becoming outrageous. It was already a second hand caravan but it caused unwanted interest sitting on our drive, so we moved it to a secure site at £750. A requirement of secure storage was insurance at £220. Obviously this excludes a yearly service; any repairs; site fees etc. I tried to find a replacement bathroom window and it went into the hundreds. It’s become a rich man’s game. Nonetheless, we’ve just come back from a holiday cabin in the south west for a fraction of the cost and without the hassle.
when i went camping it was a fiver a night. that was 25 years ago. Then I made better money and stayed in hotels at 70 quid a nigh. or b and b was thirty a night now its stupid money
Quite agree, you can get a room at a Premier Inn for much the same as a campsite and you get your own bath and flushing loo. The Caravan club’s site fees are an absolute rip off and judging from the sales they have been having it’s in trouble.
I was in the process of booking the C&CC site at Dunstan Hill in Northumberland for a week in August, when they quoted me £485 for two of us and our two berth tourer (both of us members). Needless to say, I went elsewhere and booked an independent with better access to local amenities and a 10 min walk from a top beach for the same week for £35 a night! I wrote and complained to the C&CC about the cost and they replied telling me how their prices were as cheap as possible 😲 Seriously thinking about not renewing my membership next season.
It used to camp in West Wales New Quay, at £19 per night with electric hook up.
But no more it has gone up to £54per night and priced me out..
If now go to Somerset which is by far much cheaper..
If think a lot of campsites will price themselves out of business, just like pubs. 🤔
I stay in pub stops, because they are so greedy
If you want to know why everything costs so much, dig into the corrupt banking system. Always follow the money.
You simply havnt worked it out yet have you.. agenda 2030.. you will own nothing go nowhere be no one.. and be happy… yeah right.
its all down to GREEEEED.
Club sites have always been overpriced but the CL site prices have gotten rediculas. Some are charging £25 – £35 per night. If they fitted card meters this would solve the problem.
We found since covid these campsites got greedier,& kkept putting prices,up also charging extra for porch awning . ENough was ENOUGH. PACKED IN CARRAVANING AND GOT CAMPERVAN
CAMPSITES GOT GREEDY, SO WE MOVED ON
We was in camping & caravan club. CLs got greedy prices was £15 per night didnt mind that. The month after £20. We paid. The month after omg…. £25- £30 a night. Then charging £4 extra for porch,awning . Drawn the line & sold caravan.
Camped this year in Cornwall and Devon. Tent, 2 adults £20pn, £280 the fortnight. No depreciation, no storage, no insurance and no unit to maintain. The savings then pay for weekends away in B&B or Premierr Inn. Oh, and you can do 70 on the motorway. Fancied an Eriba for a long time, but the fees and being in a field with gin palace leisure vehicles/mobile hotels? Nah. Hard to get snobbish about ya tent and that suits me just fine! 😂😂
Caravan storage Berkshire is about £125 a month some around that for every 4 weeks , there are some cheaper . The better ones have good cctv and controlled access level
Storage and reasonable space between bays some have wash bay with mobile ladder for roof cleaning access. Seems quite expensive but most are full .
Doubles the cost if you want a seasonal Pitch for more exploring and less towing . The way we look at it is quite a lot of hotels it’s now £150/200 per person per night with breakfast and perhaps a £25/30 contribution to dinner so a pitch fee of prob £25/30 a night with good CC facilities on a neat easy access site is a very good alternative in our own space with our dogs which hotels charge more for like £25 each a night.
We gave up hotels with dog friendly rooms as they were often not that friendly/ clean …one hotel tried to charge us £100 a few years back for a special clean of a paid for dog friendly room and our dogs has made no mess …..many caravaners have dogs with them and I guess find CC sites still good value as there are often seniors or late booking discounts or deals to be had less than standard tarrif , a bit of shopping around still find good deals . The CL you mention we also use and cheaper with some more basic more “rustic” feel which is fine if you don’t like the manicured CC type or private commercial sites …
It’s all relative I guess , a bit more expensive than it used to be but what isn’t ?