Oh please! Don't judge a person by the quality of their tent. You don't have to know anything about camping, or be committed to it as a lifestyle, or have superior kit, to have good manners and know how to behave in a public place.
If there is more thoughtlessness and bad behaviour on campsites these days, I'd say it only reflects the rest of society and has nothing to do with the availability of budget equipment. After all, for those who want to test the water before committing, there's always been second-hand.
Hi James , you have got the wrong end of the stick here. I don't judge by what people have either but it's a fact that these days you can almost tell what sort of camping experience you will have by looking at those around you.
I will give an example of what has happened to me a couple of times recently. Family or large group turn up with no name supermarket special,no idea how to erect the tent , stand around drinking cans of lager and swearing loudly while trying to pitch. You can pretty much guarantee that the camping experience you will have near to this group will be quite a lot different than it would be if you were near a family or group who are experienced campers with decent kit and good camping ettiquette. Thats just a fact i'm afraid.
Not everyone with a Tesco or Halford tent will be undesireable and not everyone with expensive kit will be a joy to camp with . I'm just giving broad examples here.
I don't seem to get these problems camping in Europe , probably because it costs a lot more to get there etc but it's very cheap and easy to pick up a cheap package,head off to a local site and 'give it a go' with little or no respect for those around them.
Please don't turn this into some sort of class or cheap kit vs expensive kit war,i'm just telling you what i have seen recently.
The cheap starter packs may get some people into camping and they will then buy better kit but all to often thats not the case. The people in offices who market these cheap deals probably don't then have to spend time camping next to anti social drunks !
Its not about the quality of your camping equipment,its to do with good manners and camping etiquette.
A lot of people who haven't camped before now see these cheap tent packages as a way of having a cheap holiday..nothing wrong with that,
but as they have never camped before the have no or very little knowledge of the do's and don't when you arrive at a campsite.
We have been members of the C&C Club for 16 years and have never witnessed any anti social behaviour,drunkenness,or people arriving in the early hours.
I know a lot of people don't like the C&C Club,but we find it suits our needs.We like the security aspect and the fact that unruly behaviour will not be tolerated.
------------- Sue & Phil
--------------------- I Love My AeroBed
I think you should have had a word with the site steward and complained, whats the worst that could have happened lets face it your hardly lightly to return to the place after that.
Its always a good idea to read the site reviews on here before picking your campsite so reveiws give you an idea of what you are gonna be up against on arrival.
Inconsideracy is a sign of the times some people blame your halfords and b&q cheapy set ups for allowing people with no knowledge of camping etiquette to be set free in a field with humans, all we know is its best to choose carefully
I personally could recount some horror stories...and no...not recent ones...which makes me think the problem is not a new one!! All I can say(as I have before) is that the good times far far outweigh the bad in my camping experiance...The way I see it in camping you pay your money...and you take your chances...
Yep your entitled to peace and quiet and a bit of respect Day and Night after a certain hour...Yes we all deserve that dream holiday or w/end away that we have been looking forward to(maybe for months) Unfortuneatly we have no control over the type or character of the persons who decide to pitch on our chosen site at the same time as us...Though I do beleive that our chances of getting that dream w/end or holiday can be enhanced or improved by being a bit more selective in our choice of site etc and avoid those one who are getting a bit of a name for rowdyness etc...
And no...I dont mean that in any snobbish or supeirior way...I like to socialize...Have a good time etc...But there are 2-3 sites from past trips who's doors I will never darken again...No second chances for them...from me....No thank you...No Way!!! purely and simply from the unpoliced constant(morning till night) rowdyness of the place..and the people inhabiting those sites...One of the reasons I go camping is to get away from the large estate i live in...and all the madness associated with that...I dont want to get off..and find it all waiting for me when I arrive!! So careful selection in where I go from the campsite search facility on here(and other places) aleveiates the problem(for me) to a certain degree...Though as I say I'm still taking chances when I book up..As I have no control over who else is booking that w/end....
Jelboy.
------------- Campers of the storm,Into this world are born
Sorry, I'm a bit behind on this forum, been away and getting back into the swing of work has taken it out of me.
Like the OP, I booked a 10 night stay at a campsite in Derbyshire thinking it would be nice to go a bit further out to try a different site. Good reviews and plenty for the kids to do, and a fishing lake.
Got there on a Tuesday just after lunch. Lovely and quiet, but come Friday (and no offence is meant here but it is what happened) most of Manchester decended on the site. Other tents pitched centimetres from our families other tent, music on until stupid oclock in the morning, impromptu karaoke sessions until I had to go out and tell them enough is enough. Packing as many tents as you can in, kids shouting and the parents scaring them with loud noises after midgnight, heated arguments between families staying together because they had been on the alcohol since breakfast.
Why are more and more people ignoring site rules, and where are the bloody wardens to do their job. They where in the bar as well!!
Then Monday and everyone clears off leaving the site fairly peaceful again.
We always end up going to the same few sites that we know will never let us down and we will have peace and quiet. We are not very adventurous Im afraid and dont travel very far from home. However we do live in North Wales so we are spoiled!! This bank holiday week we are going somewhere new. An adults only site with only 13 pitches and a quiet after 11pm policy and after reading the reviews am really looking forward to it. When you are working full time, holidays are precious so you dont want to waste them.
we had a similar experience a couple of weeks ago
noise after midnight cars starting and being driven around to fast partying and to much drink
we are new to camping as a family but me and Debs have done it before as teenagers and when we first married we had a caravan
we have have what some class as a budget tent i dont think so but thats my opinion i like to drink have a laugh etc etc
but i was brought up with manners and respect for other people so i know when to call it a day and climb into my pod
our first trip this year we had some music on and were having a quiet beer when at 9.45 someone "knocked" on the tent to ask us to turn the music down as their kids would be up at 5 in the morning and she wanted them to get some sleep!!
the music wasn't even loud
and promptly at 5am the next morning said lady was screaming at her kids to behave while she made breakfast kicked them out the tent to play football and swingball
Sorry to hear about your bad experience at Birchwood Farm, we stayed there last year and found it very peaceful. We did go for a weekend in April. We found the staff very reasonable and approachble.The children my husband and I really enjoyed it there.
Just a few remarks on this subject we do notice the Friday / Saturday night invasion and gone Sunday a few years ago never used to see weekenders turn up with a boot full of drink and BBQ they look at the weekend not has a camping trip but a time to party
We had similar experiences earlier in the year and was about to give up camping, instead on the good advice from this forum we tried a camping and caravan club site and oh my word, what a different experience it was, fabulous people, excellent run site, no noise after 11pm (enforced) a much more all together pleasant experience.
I think you know what your in for when the music is blaring from the car as they drive to a pitch. No wonder they cant put the tent up properly as they are drinking as soon as they get out the car, they have to shout at each other to hear themselves over the music. Every thing is a good laugh isnt it? well for them maybe yes.
Its nothing to do with what kit they have, or whether they are experienced to know the do's and don't s of camping, it the type of people they are, dont give a hoot, basically just bloody rude.
I avoid any site with a bar to start with. I certainly would not try out a site on bank holidays. Fortunately my daughter is an adult now and we can holiday off season when its less busy. Reviews tend to not be too negative or they dont get published.
We went to Shell Island last year in high season July and thought we were just unlucky, so gave it a try in June outside the school holidays, no we were not unlucky it is noisy, very noisy at weekends. In their literature and website it says no noise after 11pm and this will be enforced, yeah right. Yes I have ear plugs, but dont intend to use them if I can avoid the site. Never again.
In Tenby a couple weeks ago, stayed there over a weekend and the site was full. Yet it was still peaceful because their noise rules are enforced
------------- July 1-9 Nantcol Waterfalls meet Sept naturist week Sept SVR w/e Oct Secret meet Nov hopleys meet
I think you know what your in for when the music is blaring from the car as they drive to a pitch. No wonder they cant put the tent up properly as they are drinking as soon as they get out the car, they have to shout at each other to hear themselves over the music. Every thing is a good laugh isnt it? well for them maybe yes.
Its nothing to do with what kit they have, or whether they are experienced to know the do's and don't s of camping, it the type of people they are, dont give a hoot, basically just bloody rude.
I avoid any site with a bar to start with. I certainly would not try out a site on bank holidays. Fortunately my daughter is an adult now and we can holiday off season when its less busy. Reviews tend to not be too negative or they dont get published.
We went to Shell Island last year in high season July and thought we were just unlucky, so gave it a try in June outside the school holidays, no we were not unlucky it is noisy, very noisy at weekends. In their literature and website it says no noise after 11pm and this will be enforced, yeah right. Yes I have ear plugs, but dont intend to use them if I can avoid the site. Never again.
In Tenby a couple weeks ago, stayed there over a weekend and the site was full. Yet it was still peaceful because their noise rules are enforced
i agree the rules need to be enforced by the site (especially if curfew advertised), and you need to let them now there's a problem so they can help.
------------- TTFN
Vonnie
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Topic: have i been unlucky
