Steamer Quay Upgrade

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With a few notable exceptions, for us it is the location of a site rather than the facilities it offers which determines where we stay.  Having spent many 10s of thousands of pounds on our chosen hobby, site fees of £40-50+ are not outside our means, but value for money is our principal yardstick.

Being completely self-contained (we carry a spare loo cassette for extended touring), we do not need full facility sites and it is a disappointment to see so many non-facs sites being closed or "upgraded" like the plans for Steamer Quay. 

It is such a shame that the club cannot embrace the model adopted by Camping Car-Parks which includes sites designated Camping de Mon-Village, where caravans and tents are also permitted during the summer.  The majority of these locations cost less than £15 per night, including electric and are invariably located within walking distance of a local town or attraction.

Last year we toured for 141 nights but only spent 20 nights in the UK,14 of which were on a C&CC THS and none were on Club sites.  I do not consider £30+ a night just to park my MH value for money, so I will continue to use my Tesco vouchers and nip across/under Le Manche where a much warmer welcome awaits.

It is such a shame that the club cannot embrace the model adopted by Camping Car-Parks which includes sites designated Camping de Mon-Village, where caravans and tents are also permitted during the summer. The majority of these locations cost less than £15 per night, including electric and are invariably located within walking distance of a local town or attraction.

They are very good and we have used  them on numerous occasions along with the their MH only ones. However, the Mon village are generally ex municipals and there still seems to be some tie in with the local community, as in  grass cutting, facilities cleaning etc. I suspect in comparison, that at SQ, the local council will be screwing as much as possible out of the CAMC for continuing the lease.

Great post JimE, 36,332 members of CAMpRA would most likely agree with you.

peedee

Despite the criticism I have no doubt the Club  knows its customer base vey well    - for the most part elderly, risk averse, security conscious, wanting coded  barriers and a warden on site 24 hours a day, well off, wanting home comforts and easy living , a dog walk close by, neatness and tidiness,  willing to do as they are told and accept the order and  rules and regulations the Club imposes .

The new site is not catering for young folk with surf boards on a VW, nor those who drive overnight to Devon and would like to come on site at 8 am., nor for families with children - there will be absolutely no provision for them. But for typical Club members Steamer Quay will suit them perfectly. 

We have used a significant number of the CCP mon-village site both in high and low seasons. 

It is true that they are generally ex-municipals and partly maintained by the local authority.

That is understandable as they continue to be owned by the authority with CCP acting as the sales/management/booking organisation paying the authority a share of the proceeds and for their maintenance work. 

I think the big difference between how CCP and the French local authorities’ relationship is that it is collaborative for the financial benefit of the area, whereas in the UK it is less so and perhaps even adversarial, usually to the detriment of both parties, the users and the local economy.    

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I sort of echo ET’s thoughts. I expect to see more fully loaded pitches, less choice on pitch type and essentially more expensive average nightly fees this year. We have stayed on a few of the Club’s newer site offerings lately, where refurbs have definitely gone down the route of less grass, less greenery overall, less having to do some of the traditional “camping” type chores, such as emptying a wastemaster or filling a water carrier, and the new facility blocks (such as at Clumber) are very nice, but it all comes at a cost to users. You either roll with it, or you don’t.

When the Club is charging pitch users more than it charges glamping pod users (albeit at quiet times), it has it’s captive market absolutely spot on, and knows that provide a few specifics and you can literally charge whatever you like. And extract a Membership fee on top of it!

I’d add that our Club Site usage has been for either a specific event, or to stay alongside friends, and Club Sites are no longer our first choice outside of these parameters. 

I’d add another worrying trend as well. Yes the Club is offering discounts, but they are tending to have minimum night clauses attached to them, such as the 10% recently promoted. Book four nights, or you don’t get it. 

David I echo Jim's sentiments...

i know many MHers, some who have spent very large sums on their vans, these days £250k is the going rate for a top line Carthago or N+B.

however, having bought a top class product which they see as value for money, does not mean they're happy to pay inflated prices for a parking space.

most of these vans are completely autonomous, huge reserves of water, waste and 12v/230v power via solar, lithium and inverters...they are apartments on wheels and just need somewhere to park as part of their journey...

many use CL and THS sites close to towns when in the UK, use a mix of Aires, Camping Car Parks (as mentioned several times), top class multi facilitied sites and casual parking spots when touring overseas and see CAMC sites at £50 a night as the anathema to the inexpensive freedom they've so heavily invested in.

the club may well think that pushing their sites ever further forward in price is the way to go...perhaps it is for some members (see ET post) but I can't help but feel that this polarising course of action may well push sites beyond many members' reach.

folk will either think it's wonderful or not...

Moving to a network of SP sites which pushes prices towards £700 for a summer fortnight on a CAMC site doesn't bear thinking about...our winter trip on a five star site is around £250 a fortnight...

makes you wonder why those folk in their very expensive German vans head across the channel rather than spend (another) small fortune on club site fees.