I've recently joined the CAMC, mostly for the CL sites.
So far I've stayed on two Cls but proof of membership has not been requested despite emailing both sites in advance to confirm that they are member-only sites.
One of the sites had 15 pitches, yet I thought there was a limit of 5 pitches?
Should I have not bothered joining and just winged it?
What is the point of joining if the Cls are available to all?
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
They are all different. We use them all the time; I always give them my CAMC no when booking. I have only been to 1 site where they asked to see my card. Never been to a site with 15 pitches, are you going to let us know which one? We always keep our membership going.
Think CAMC are generally fairly strict with their 5 pitch and caravan/MH restrictions (no tents!), got to be said some CL's are not too pedantic about your membership credentials though!
What you sometimes find is a CL attached to a larger site (usually independent, NOT club!), but there should be some definitive divide! … that has been known to be pretty marginal, maybe a flowerbed or bit of hedge!
I've used a fair number of CL's and they've all met the 5 pitch limit, and really are my favourite kind of site.
Whether the CL sites let on non-members is a oft debated topic, think the answer is probably yes, but they do so at risk of being stripped of CL status if caught out.
Is belonging to the club worthwhile to gain access to CL sites, almost certainly yes. You can recoup membership fee in one short stay. That said, there is some discontent with members that CL's are hiking prices to main club site levels, and even suggestions that the club is encouraging that practice! With selective choice of sites, yes it's still worth belonging to the club to get access to CL's, but no longer safe to assume ALL CL's are cheap OR quite as exclusive as only 5 pitches.
I contacted the site I stayed at last week in advance and they said it was a members only site. It's listed on the CAMC as a CL yet it has 15 pitches. After visiting, I googled their website which states:
'N***, A**** and the team at **************** look forward to welcoming you to their newly refurbished Certified Location and Orchard Caravan and camping park. Twin shower toilet pod facilities
Our site has 12 fully serviced hard standing’s with your own dedicated water point(so mains pressure water is available direct into your Caravan/Motor home), drains beside the pitches for sink and shower water,16amp electric hook ups and lighting on all the pitches, all included in the price £25 per night.
Camping pitches £16 per night including use of the toilet shower pod facilities.'
So is it half CAMC and half independent? Why did they say it was members only when I enquired? It also had a tent area?
I know some sites have a separate area for the CL bit but when I enquired I was told that it was members only.
It's not a deal breaker, I'm just guessing that sites would rather not turn people away and have a full site, but if you pay a membership fee you expect benefits...
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
Main benefit is that CLs (in my limited experience) are sited in rural areas where there aren’t any independent sites & certainly no big Club sites, they just wouldn’t be viable with their teams of paid Managers. CLs are often on farms, on marginal land or an odd corner, an additional & much needed extra income stream, which the owners manage rather than having paid staff.
Some CLs that I’ve been on have been the half way house to timber lodges or statics: put in generous hard stands with water, EHU and drainage, and have a CL for a few years while organising the income for the next stage.
Quote: Originally posted by idetika on 15/6/2024
I contacted the site I stayed at last week in advance and they said it was a members only site. It's listed on the CAMC as a CL yet it has 15 pitches. After visiting, I googled their website which states:
'N***, A**** and the team at **************** look forward to welcoming you to their newly refurbished Certified Location and Orchard Caravan and camping park. Twin shower toilet pod facilities
.... anything you quote on t'internet can be Googled !
Looked at it, it's certainly not your usual CL, with all the additional pitches and tents. That said, we have stayed at far more basic sites for £25 per night and will probably use it sometime.
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
Quote: Originally posted by Mrs. Bonce on 16/6/2024
Looked at it, it's certainly not your usual CL, with all the additional pitches and tents. That said, we have stayed at far more basic sites for £25 per night and will probably use it sometime.
It was fine for one night, a bit of motorway noise but a lovely walk into town. There was a mix up over the pitches so we didn't have the best pitch even though we had booked (view of the loos/bins) and next to a working boatyard that someone was angle grinding on from 8am on a Sunday...
Good phone signal and a great value breakfast at the rugby club next door
Quote: Originally posted by arthurdent on 16/6/2024
Quote: Originally posted by idetika on 15/6/2024
I contacted the site I stayed at last week in advance and they said it was a members only site. It's listed on the CAMC as a CL yet it has 15 pitches. After visiting, I googled their website which states:
'N***, A**** and the team at **************** look forward to welcoming you to their newly refurbished Certified Location and Orchard Caravan and camping park. Twin shower toilet pod facilities
Droitwich Spa Marina .... anything you quote on t'internet can be Googled !
Like Mrs Bonce, I took a 'internet' look, certainly a long way removed from a typical CL IMO!
Think a read of the reviews and a look at Google Earth would have set a few alarm bells ringing, in fact they would have put me off, and I’d have been looking for somewhere else if a true CL is what I sought.
If you read back through the reviews, it appears it once was a 5 pitch CL in the more traditional sense (even then, not great it seems!), but it expanded it’s pitch numbers a few years back. Not really sure it now fulfils the normal requirements to be classed as a CL! Maybe has not been inspected by CAMC in past few years!
CL’s as an addition to a larger site is not unknown, but always seen a more defined separation on the ones I’ve looked at!
Looks far more like a CCC CS, which are far more lax/flexible on the ‘nominal’ 5 pitch limit!
As much as I like boats and water, it’s not a site that looks very appealing to me! Don’t let it taint your view of CL’s totally, many are little havens of peace and beauty, where you certainly will not find more than 5 pitches, and STRICTLY for Caravans/MHs/Campervans only!
It always pays to read the user reviews, they often fill in the ‘gaps’ the owner’s description conveniently leave out! … and a peek at Google Earth/Street View can often enlighten too!
Quote: Originally posted by Monty15 on 16/6/2024
Like Mrs Bonce, I took a 'internet' look, certainly a long way removed from a typical CL IMO!
Think a read of the reviews and a look at Google Earth would have set a few alarm bells ringing, in fact they would have put me off, and I’d have been looking for somewhere else if a true CL is what I sought.
If you read back through the reviews, it appears it once was a 5 pitch CL in the more traditional sense (even then, not great it seems!), but it expanded it’s pitch numbers a few years back. Not really sure it now fulfils the normal requirements to be classed as a CL! Maybe has not been inspected by CAMC in past few years!
CL’s as an addition to a larger site is not unknown, but always seen a more defined separation on the ones I’ve looked at!
Looks far more like a CCC CS, which are far more lax/flexible on the ‘nominal’ 5 pitch limit!
As much as I like boats and water, it’s not a site that looks very appealing to me! Don’t let it taint your view of CL’s totally, many are little havens of peace and beauty, where you certainly will not find more than 5 pitches, and STRICTLY for Caravans/MHs/Campervans only!
It always pays to read the user reviews, they often fill in the ‘gaps’ the owner’s description conveniently leave out! … and a peek at Google Earth/Street View can often enlighten too!
It was nice enough but not what I expected.
I've used many C&CC sites and CSs having been a member for several years but I'm new to the CAMC so didn't know what to expect.
All the C&CC/CS sites I've stayed at this year have asked to see a membership card, they seem to be checking thoroughly this year, more than in past seasons.
I think we stayed on the CL bit as you drove through 5 pitches (where we stayed) to another area although there were no clear boundaries, and everyone shared the facilities.
It was still a nice little stop for the night though, perfect if you're using the M5 and need somewhere convenient
Don't forget to leave a review of the campsites you have visited this year or last!
We have stayed on a few sites which have more pitches but 5 of them, usually in an area separated by a hedge, are classed as a CL. We are going to a site in a few weeks where there are over 100 pitches but the site has a completely separate field at the front of the site with 5 pitches for CAMC members only classed as a CL. You need to do your homework before you book if you want a very quiet 5 van site. Usually a look at the satellite view of the site on Google maps will show you if there are more than 5 pitches.
It looked nice with good facilities and from the photos that I could see, it appeared to bigger than 5 pitches for caravans and MHs, plus pitches for tents. They also offer glamping and have 3 cottages for hire.
It is not remote and it looks nice with good reviews.
However, I decided against it as it would cost 34+ GBP during the early May BH weekend next year, plus 1 GBP per day for the dog (30+ GBP on either side of the BH weekend), and I was able to find cheaper independent sites in the area (North Wales).
DK
------------- Apple The Campervan - A Van For Work, Rest & Play!
- 2027: ? NL+DE+FR
- 2026: FR+DE
- 2025: 17/77
'24: 10/49; '23: 9/47;'22: 8/46; '21: 9/34
* Ex-tenter
* Treat life events like a dog: if you can't eat it, play with it or hump it, p1$$ on it and walk away!
I'm rather partial to the peaceful atmosphere and the generous pitch space that true 5 pitch CLs that I've used have offered. If I wanted a more densely populated site, I'd be looking at full sites!
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: CL sites
via mobile 15/6/2024 at 7:31pm
