We are members of both clubs and have been for many years .
I have been reading about the prices . We recently stay in a CMC site and yes so over prices £41 a night in March . Not only that we arrived 30 mins early and were told to turn around and go to a car park for lorries and coaches down the road . We were lucky to just get in the car park as it was almost full I had asked if I could just use the toilet quick and was told no the car park had a toilet . I found this quite stressful .
I did book a c&cc site this week . Again even with age concessions it’s still very expensive but not much as cmc .
I did need to amend my booking but why do we have to do everything through head office or on line ( both sites need to improve their web sites to make booking easier ) I used to like contacting sites direct . The head office assistant I spoke today was so unfriendly. The personal touch seems to have disappeared x
I think it’s time to look at private sites .
I have been a member of C&CC since 2007, joined on the spur of the moment as the site where I stayed was a C&CC club site, and the helpful warden suggested for me to join there and then as the nightly non-member surcharge for the duration of the trip was more than enough for a year's membership fee.
I am still a member as I regularly stay at one of their club sites, namely Salisbury which is close to home, and love it for the big field next to it for the dog(s).
I joined CAMC when I switched unit from a tent to a PVC with her own onboard facilities in 2021, to see if they are worth it. So far so good, and they have sites that I liked.
C&CC's website is to be desired, and I too wish they had not removed the ability for one to make amendments to their existing bookings online without the need to ring a centralised booking centre.
I stay at a mixture of club sites and independent sites, and like to have the flexibility to choose.
Whether I would stay with CAMC remains to be seen.
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$$ on it and walk away!
We have been members of C&CC since we started camping some 30 years ago. Like any organisation, it has changed and has its bad points. However as veteran members, our annual subscription is quite low and we remain members as we like access to the certificated sites.
We are making our first trip of the season this weekend, for 10 nights, to the club site at Walton on Thames. This is less than 90 minute drive and we find it ideal for cycling and visiting London. We can use our bus passes and get to the museums for free in 2 hours by bus.
It is also very reasonably priced by current standards at approx £20 per night for us both on a hard standing with EHU.
If we use a CAMC site once a year that is once to often as sites are too expensive. We remain members for Mayday and the CL network as even the Caravan Cover is more expensive than a proper insurance company that offers the same benefits.
We do however book a lot of commercial sites which are on par if not better than CAMC sites and the cost per night is lower. Also easier to book a fully serviced pitch with water and waste water hookup for less than what the CAMC charge for a normal pitch.
What I like about the clubs is their pricing structure, being pitch + per person.
A lot of independent sites based their pricing at pitch + 2 people, and most of them do not offer a single person discount when I asked about it.
I would only pay full price as in pitch + 2 people for adult-only sites during August school holidays. Otherwise, I stay away from them.
DK
------------- Apple The Campervan - A Van For Work, Rest & Play!
- 2027: ? NL+DE+FR
- 2026: FR+DE
- 2025: 17/77
'24: 10/49; '23: 9/47;'22: 8/46; '21: 9/34
* Ex-tenter
* Treat life events like a dog: if you can't eat it, play with it or hump it, p1$$ on it and walk away!
Quote: Originally posted by billy on 14/4/2023
Never seen the need to join. Plenty of non club sites available.
Some people don't see the need to join but we sometimes use a certificated site near to the main route we are on so the book and map you receive as a member is very useful for locating campsites along a specific route. Of course you have to be a member of the C&CC to use these certificated sites so we find it beneficial to be members of the club. We also get a discount price at their club sites for being over 55 and I can tell you that they are quite often cheaper in comparison to non club sites pitch fees. No extra charge for a dog or awning either which many non club sites have hidden charges bumping the nightly fee up.
We are members of the C&CC and one of the main reasons we remain so is because of our local DA. We have become good friends with the people in it and would miss them if we left. Another reason is the CSs. The only club site we use regularly is Sandringham, when we go back to visit old friends from when we used to live in that area.
We probably use more commercial sites than club ones as club sites aren't always the cheapest even with our oldies discount. About the only advantage with club sites is that they are generally of a guaranteed quality whereas other sites can vary. However having said that we haven't come across a really bad one yet, and one of the best ones we have stayed on was a commercial site which was far cheaper than the nearest club site. We wanted to go to the club site but it was full. We were really glad it was as we might never have found the site we did stay on, which was actually half-empty.
I am inclined to think though that the clubs are becoming more businesses first and clubs second. It a definite impression I get.
After over 30 years it was time to call it a day the last site we used had seven big notices saying not to come before one PM The was half full in August and forty a night
The we go to is under £ 30 a night
I can fully understand any site setting an earliest arrival time, particularly if the entrance is in any way restricted. It makes perfect sense to me that there is at least a 1 hour gap between last departure and first arrival. Apart from avoiding clashes between arrivals and departures it gives the site staff a chance to examine the vacated pitches before they have to deal with people arriving.
We have been CAMC members for 4 years, to begin with it was ok the sites were reasonably priced and facilities not to bad, one campsite we used regularly was Carnon Downs as an associated site. then the Club bought it outright , the pitch prices increased and the club rules have ruined a fantastic site, we found two other private sites within 2 miles of Carnon Downs which are on par with their facilities and a lot cheaper, looking back at our adventures other CAMC sites were not brilliant either (and I hate the drive around to find a peg and the pitch grabbing 'for friends') ever since we have used private sites and not used any club campsites at all. Our email of membership cancellation went in today and the DD stopped. We do go to Salisbury now and then so may join the CCC later
------------- Regards
Johno
VP and Librarian of the Renault Trafic MK1 Owners group
I got the impression that the 1:00pm opening time was to allow staff to have lunch. Certainly causes queues at the entrance at both club’s sites: it may be a “welfare at work” requirement.
Our favourite small independent site at Kirkcudbright (still £25pn) says leave by 11, arrive after 12. It’s all automated - you get the code for the barrier & toilets when you book, you’ve chosen your pitch at booking from the site map, they send a reminder for your phone calendar which confirms the dates & pitch number. Staff walk around the site & check all the pitches when they come to clean the facilities late morning. All that’s missing that we might expect at a club site is a dog wash… (we have a dog, have never used a site dog wash). Pitches aren’t fully serviced - that doesn’t bother us, but you’d expect to pay more for a pitch with its own water, drain & TV point.
I think most of the C&CC sites are leave by 12 arrive after 1. I have known sites have to take pitches out of use after someone has moved off because it was either waterlogged or too scorched and they wanted the grass to recover. I don't know what would have happened to anyone who had pre-booked them. I would imagine that pre-booking a particular pitch could cause huge problems for a site, particularly if it was a very busy one.
We tend to arrive on a Monday if we are staying for a week or more as the weekenders have gone home by then and sites that were fully booked over the weekend are half empty. If someone had pre-booked the pitch we wanted to go on for the following weekend, we would have to go on another pitch and the site would have to leave that pitch empty for the rest of the week unless someone else only wanted it for a couple of days. I don't think the C&CC allow pre-booking of a specific pitch for those reasons. Only time we have ever used a fully serviced pitch was once when we weren't charged any extra for it as most were fully serviced and prices very reasonable anyway. Under £20 all in with metered electricity which cost us £2.80 for two whole weeks.
I tried to ask for a specific pitch at C&CC Salisbury club site once, and was informed the request could not be guaranteed.
With the trip over Easter, as I arrived shortly after 13:00, I was asked where I would like to pitch and was given a few pitches to choose from.
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!
Like a lot of things in life, you can't just take things for granted, or assume uniformity, even though the clubs do even the playing field quite a lot.
My favourite CAMC site in the Lake District is arrive after 10am, depart before 1pm (later by arrangement), but what works best for me (being a bit of a tightwad!) is that it's pitch fees are about HALF those of nearest private sites! The reception is open all day as they have sufficient wardens to stagger lunch breaks, if you are very late (after 8pm) arriving they have late arrival bays where you can pitch up without booking in until next morning, and I've always found the site wardens very pleasant and helpful, which you can't take for granted, the CAMC site I store my van on has had some very indifferent almost hostile wardens!
Pretty unlikely I'd arrive at a site too early unless access time was very late in the afternoon, but have inquired on the odd occasion and been told it's OK to park up until pitches free. I dislike being off pitch by 11am (or even 10.30am!) deadlines, as a lone caravaner it takes me time to pack up and hitch up correctly with all the 'check list stuff' of locks off, van lights checked, windows/vents checked etc., and with a dog that needs 'exercise' before a car journey, whilst I'm usually ready to go by those times it feels like a lot of pressure that is probably not good for due diligence and setting off in a relaxed manner!
I've never had any problems with making and amending bookings with CAMC, but got to say the current online booking system is pretty horrible and definitely a retrograde step over previous web site! CL's can be a bit hit and miss dealing direct, as it's usually a secondary business on something like a farm, but a little patience has usually got things sorted.
Arrival/departure times are often staggered to benefit USERS, when the access roads can't cope with big outfits in both directions at the same time, and obviously it's the only time the site has to do maintenance work on the pitch.
There's no doubt at all some of the CAMC sites ARE too expensive, being a paid up member, you do expect some benefits, and pricing that is not substantially more than nearby rival sites is a very reasonably expectation. I have taken the club to task on that issue, funnily enough shortly after my complaint, the 'Midweek Half Price' deals that were dropped end of last season reappeared, albeit for a limited time, but it saved me quite a few pounds on a two week booking I made.
Can't say I see the clubs going in a good direction, far too much pushing of 'peripheral' business ventures like glamping and foreign travel/tours etc. for my liking (clearly more profitable - and the bean counters run the show these days, the bottom line rules!), my interest is in good quality reasonably priced UK camp sites, happily consider fully serviced pitches, but DON'T want all the bells and whistles, like bars and food etc. that many private sites offer. I've got a dog, but a 'dog wash' is surplus to my requirements, a bucket of water out the back of the van is just as effective if really needed, and I don't need to pay for any infrastructure for that!
I do suspect we are the grumbling masses who want just the basics from the clubs, but no one is listening to us, the bean counters and marketeers are driving hard to 'improve' the clubs! - and that seems to be done at our expense!
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Club sites
via mobile 13/4/2023 at 6:03pm
