It seems that an easy way for sites to make up some of their losses, is to up the charge for dogs. Our last trip was to Derbyshire, obviously walking country. One site wanted £2 per dog, so I found a site that didn't charge, and told him on booking that was reason I chose them. On looking on the more upmarket sites it seems that £2 is the minimum, and if you have 2 dogs on a site that starting price is £30pn it all adds up (will not pay £30pn anyway). What do you get for this charge? one site had a 'dog walk' 3ft wide along a beck that was no more than 500yd! others sites that charge then say you must walk your dog off site, so what do they provide? usually a council bin down the road.
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This is a frequent topic. I’ve paid £1 pn on a site that had no dedicated on site dog walk & no poo bins (noted it in my review, won’t go back). Other sites charge nothing & even supply free poo bags. There’s no rhyme nor reason to it.
Along with rip-off EHU prices and charges for more than two people, charges for dogs are just another way of making extra money for doing very little. Sadly we no longer have our dog, so that's one less thing we have to pay for, but even when we had him we just went by the total price charged. Anything over £25 a night was definitely OUT! We usually aim for under £20.
------------- Best Regards,
Colin
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We regularly pay £1 if it means staying on a site we particularly want. For us in grand scheme of things a few nights costs less than a coffee.
Our experience has been that sites that charge usually have dog poo bins. We generally find the larger sites that charge have a fairly decent dog walk and more and more have dog washes - not always but more often than not.
I guess people who don't have dogs don't want to pay for something they don't use so the fairest way is to charge those with dogs
Quote: Originally posted by Dot P on 22/4/2022
I guess people who don't have dogs don't want to pay for something they don't use so the fairest way is to charge those with dogs
That's certainly one way of looking at it of course, and a perfectly valid one. However, if sites had charging policies like they have today we would never have bought a caravan back in the 1970s when there were 5 of us and two dogs. The main reason we did so was because back then most sites simply charged for a pitch. What you put on it, how many of you there were, and whether or not you had a dog (or two), was irrelevant. The only rule was that you must not exceed the number of persons your unit was designed for.
Neither Club charge for dogs, yet! Having dogs on site is not entirely a no cost option for the site if they provide an exercise space or perhaps provide doggie bag bins. One could argue that £2 a dog is a bit excessive. My own view is that the higher the charge for dogs the less the campsite want dogs on site?
David
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It is an unfair charge for dog owners but it's a pity they didn't charge £5 per night extra for each child on site as well. After all, kids use the on site amenities whereas dogs don't!
Although I disagree in principle with charges for dogs, more than two people, awnings, and ridiculously excessive charges for EHU (more than £1 a night is extortion in my opinion), it is the total overall price that determines whether or not I book. Therefore the more "additional charges" a site imposes, the less likely I am to book with them. However, it is their site and they are entitled to charge what they like.
Quote: Originally posted by Dot P on 22/4/2022
I guess people who don't have dogs don't want to pay for something they don't use so the fairest way is to charge those with dogs
That's certainly one way of looking at it of course, and a perfectly valid one. However, if sites had charging policies like they have today we would never have bought a caravan back in the 1970s when there were 5 of us and two dogs. The main reason we did so was because back then most sites simply charged for a pitch. What you put on it, how many of you there were, and whether or not you had a dog (or two), was irrelevant. The only rule was that you must not exceed the number of persons your unit was designed for.
I remember those halcyon days, Colin.
Campsites in France lagged behind the UK in making additional charges for extra this and that, but they too have now cottoned-on to the fact it generates more income. It's the way of the world, now.
It does seem to be a bit of a 'rip off' charge on many sites, as they provide absolutely nothing in return for that fee, the dog(s) after all are not using any of the site facilities in the way that humans do, and create minimal waste, so have virtually no cost to them. Do they charge for babies and small children, who undoubtedly do add to their costs with waste, like nappies and food containers etc., and other uses of facilities like showers, no, of course they don't, but they exploit our love of dogs as part of the family! If they provide a secure dog exercise area, then maybe a small charge is more justified.
In general I tend to avoid sites with 'accumulative' charging structures, as what starts as an appealing/competitive pitch rate usually soon reaches 'expensive' when you've totalled the charges. I've seen sites that want £5/night for a dog, which is just outrageous! I've looked at sites which effectively double the base pitch rate when the 'extras' (but essential and unavoidable charges) are totalled up!
Both the clubs can accommodate dogs at no additional cost, and certainly the CAMC is adding multiple dog wash stations to some of the sites I've visited. I tend to find the club sites are more dog friendly and cost effective than many of the private sites that I've looked into.
Now, as Tango55 suggested, charging for every child is far more justified!
When I see these 'additional' charges, it always reminds me of Peter Butterworth's site owner character Josh Fiddler in the Carry on Camping film, where everything was an extra £1 (at 1969 values!), and he was a blatant rip off merchant!
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Quote: Originally posted by Monty15 on 24/4/2022
It does seem to be a bit of a 'rip off' charge on many sites, as they provide absolutely nothing in return for that fee, the dog(s) after all are not using any of the site facilities in the way that humans do, and create minimal waste, so have virtually no cost to them. Do they charge for babies and small children, who undoubtedly do add to their costs with waste, like nappies and food containers etc., and other uses of facilities like showers, no, of course they don't, but they exploit our love of dogs as part of the family! If they provide a secure dog exercise area, then maybe a small charge is more justified.
In general I tend to avoid sites with 'accumulative' charging structures, as what starts as an appealing/competitive pitch rate usually soon reaches 'expensive' when you've totalled the charges. I've seen sites that want £5/night for a dog, which is just outrageous! I've looked at sites which effectively double the base pitch rate when the 'extras' (but essential and unavoidable charges) are totalled up!
Both the clubs can accommodate dogs at no additional cost, and certainly the CAMC is adding multiple dog wash stations to some of the sites I've visited. I tend to find the club sites are more dog friendly and cost effective than many of the private sites that I've looked into.
Now, as Tango55 suggested, charging for every child is far more justified!
When I see these 'additional' charges, it always reminds me of Peter Butterworth's site owner character Josh Fiddler in the Carry on Camping film, where everything was an extra £1 (at 1969 values!), and he was a blatant rip off merchant!
Although we have dogs I think the CAMC should be prioritising more fully serviced pitches with water and waste water hookups. One of the main reasons why we hardly ever use a CAMC site.
We have only ever used a fully serviced pitch once, and that was only because virtually all the pitches on that site were, and it wasn't yet another extra charge. That sites charges overall were very reasonable, and they had metered electricity too which was a real bonus. Our electricity cost us just 20p a night!
I don't specifically avoid sites that have extra charges, I just go by the overall cost. However, if a site does have lots of "extras" that may well mean that it puts the overall cost above what we are prepared to pay.
Quote: Originally posted by Monty15 on 24/4/2022
It does seem to be a bit of a 'rip off' charge on many sites, as they provide absolutely nothing in return for that fee, the dog(s) after all are not using any of the site facilities in the way that humans do, and create minimal waste, so have virtually no cost to them. Do they charge for babies and small children, who undoubtedly do add to their costs with waste, like nappies and food containers etc., and other uses of facilities like showers, no, of course they don't, but they exploit our love of dogs as part of the family! If they provide a secure dog exercise area, then maybe a small charge is more justified.
In general I tend to avoid sites with 'accumulative' charging structures, as what starts as an appealing/competitive pitch rate usually soon reaches 'expensive' when you've totalled the charges. I've seen sites that want £5/night for a dog, which is just outrageous! I've looked at sites which effectively double the base pitch rate when the 'extras' (but essential and unavoidable charges) are totalled up!
Both the clubs can accommodate dogs at no additional cost, and certainly the CAMC is adding multiple dog wash stations to some of the sites I've visited. I tend to find the club sites are more dog friendly and cost effective than many of the private sites that I've looked into.
Now, as Tango55 suggested, charging for every child is far more justified!
When I see these 'additional' charges, it always reminds me of Peter Butterworth's site owner character Josh Fiddler in the Carry on Camping film, where everything was an extra £1 (at 1969 values!), and he was a blatant rip off merchant!
I quite agree Monty15, and I certainly remember that film. Hilarious! It was on again fairly recently and we watched it again for the umpteenth time. Carry-on films were always a good laugh!
Quote: Originally posted by Netherton on 24/4/2022
Might it be that some campsites want to reduce the number of dogs and make a charge for that reason?
I doubt it, I think they just see it as a way to make a bit of extra money. I think most sites either accept dogs or they don't, I don't think they would necessarily want to reduce their numbers by charging.
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Topic: charges for dogs
via mobile 22/4/2022 at 1:32pm
