We are done with the Caravan Club

[Langtoftlad]

Caravan and camping club allow service drop offs which we use regularly (although currently paused for pandemic and it has never been a problem in terms of too many vehicles etc

Only in some*, not all of their sites AFAIK

*[53 of 100+ according to their website]

 

[ceejayt]

Only in some*, not all of their sites AFAIK

*[53 of 100+ according to their website

Correct. I maintain a map and you can see it At this LINK

 

[phase3begins]

They re not really the CMC, they do nothing for motorhoming in the UK.

Interesting view. There are almost 200 sites and 2200 CLs that accept motorhomes.

 

[jongood]

I was on Rowntree Park CAMC York last weekend… 98 pitches total, 50-60 occupied by motorhomes, how is that doing nothing for motorhoming in the UK?

Exactly that. They want everyone to treat them exactly like caravans so you lose the benefit of having a motorhome.

 

[AndyPK]

Exactly that. They want everyone to treat them exactly like caravans so you lose the benefit of having a motorhome.

Not sure I understand what you’re getting at….?

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[jongood]

Well it’s hardly the C&MC fault that there sites are in such high demand partly because of the pandemic.
We are a small island with a huge population and caravan and Motorhomes are popular
It’s a case of first come first served , everybody has the same chances and many Caravan / Motorhome owners are still working so they book months ahead for long weekends and annual leave .

It is because they put obstacles in the way of creating aires. Their NZ counterpart by comparison is superb with hundreds of freedom camping spots and public dump stations

 

[jongood]

Not sure I understand what you’re getting at….?

To be clear - I have no objection to paying but dont want to be miles away from my chosen destination behind hedges with the peg nazi's annoying me. Rowntree park is one of the few well-located ones but you have to book months in advance to get on or pester for a cancellation. The equivalent of York in france Italy, Germany, Spain etc will almost certainly have aires

 

[phase3begins]

Jongood ‘…..It is because they put obstacles in the way of creating aires.’

well they have kept that well hidden ‘cos I can’t find the supporting information. Neither can I find any information on the CCC view on aires.

 

[pandas]

It is because they put obstacles in the way of creating aires. Their NZ counterpart by comparison is superb with hundreds of freedom camping spots and public dump stations

That’s quite a big statement that possibly might need to be substantiated.
cannot see why some feel the right to knock any of the camping organizations - your call if you use them or not, not for everybody and I agree some could be better but so could everything in the hospitality sector. Again your choice.

 

[bobnick]

When and if we run out of "other" sites to visit i may consider joining one of the "C" site club things.

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[M-J]

To be clear - I have no objection to paying but dont want to be miles away from my chosen destination behind hedges with the peg nazi's annoying me. Rowntree park is one of the few well-located ones but you have to book months in advance to get on or pester for a cancellation. The equivalent of York in france Italy, Germany, Spain etc will almost certainly have aires

Cant remember the last CAMC pitch I was on that had hedges around it.

‘Peg Nazi’ what a ridiculous term… never seen the issue with parking lined up to a peg and personally i think if people find it that that hard should they be driving a motorhome at all?

 

[Googlebot]

To be clear - I have no objection to paying but dont want to be miles away from my chosen destination behind hedges with the peg nazi's annoying me. Rowntree park is one of the few well-located ones but you have to book months in advance to get on or pester for a cancellation. The equivalent of York in france Italy, Germany, Spain etc will almost certainly have aires

I managed to find a free night at York a few weeks back and went to book it.

Me and wife plus 2 kids.

£48, for one night……..

Safe to say, we went elsewhere.

 

[Arthur01]

We have been in both clubs on & off for the last 40 years. Originally caravan & now American RV. On balance we have found the C&CC club better in terms of helpfulness.
But I think it all comes down to personality, in that some people are nice & others not quite so. - and that is on both sides
Some Staff take a dislike to our present vehicle & even though we or some friends have been to a site before the current Warden does not allow that type of vehicle.
With the current bus we always phone/email & if we can’t be accommodated we can go elsewhere to spend some money. The front line staff do their best but as I said personalities can make things a bit difficult.
Regards

Arthur

 

[LiquidLunch]

Here’s another way of looking at it .
If the C&MC allowed members Motorhomes to turn up as when they wanted to take on water and empty their crap .
You would end up with potential a bottleneck of caravans waiting to book in and Motorhomes trying to manoeuvre at service points creating chaos .
There are many C&MC sites with narrow approach roads and limited width within the site can you imagine the congestion with large Motorhomes trying to leave after midday and meeting caravans arriving

That is complete and utter nonsense, the C&CC allow Motorhomers to turn up for a "Service Stop" and top up/empty as required for a small fee without any problems. Seems like the C&MC don't like being too helpful. Too full of their own importance.

 

[M-J]

Deleted. Wrong thread.

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[Larrynwin]

The Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act dates back to 1960 and hasn't been reviewed since. Most site staff & wardens don't have a clue what's in it and simply repeat parrot fashion what they're told by officious suits reminiscent of a 1970's local councillor.

The 6 metre rule was brought in for caravans made of a plywood skin.

If you have a wind out awning you only need to be 5 metres apart & at corners only 3.5m apart.

If you have a full awning the space between units can be as little as 3 metres and towing vehicles must also be 3 metres apart.

Aluminium clad caravans need only a 5 metre separation.

Hard standing is only applicable if or where units remain in place over winter.

These where the days of highly flammable insulation, highly flammable upholstery and particularly toxic plastics.

The world & technology has moved on, sadly the C&MC hasn't.

You can pitch up as close as you like but 6m imo is a sensible minimum distance to maintain and hard standings are preferable to many throughout the year with our very changeable weather.
Having pitched on aires with vans just a few feet away I am reminded of why I prefer the CMC and the consistent quality offered.
I don’t live on someone else’s doorstep so certainly like space when away in the van.

 

[Puddleduck]

I belong to both clubs and have done for over 30 years as they can both provide solutions for my needs. However I hate the CAMC policy of not taking deposits with a passion as it leads to any good club site being fully booked at weekends denying those that want to book a week or 2 as a block for a holiday but I live with it.

Any other holiday you have to put down a deposit and pay in advance. I'd be more than happy to pay a deposit and welcome the opportunity to pay in advance for a site I had booked.

If I was to just turn up and there was no space that is my loss - what I really hate is people who book and then don't show up and there appears to be no penalty. Deposits / payment in advance (or even a minimum of a week before arrival) could be the answer .... no money = booking cancelled.

Their NZ counterpart by comparison is superb with hundreds of freedom camping spots and public dump stations

NZ has a much smaller population per square mile than the UK though. A quick search (not sure how up to date) gives NZ as 15 people per sqauer mile, France 100 and the UK 650. More people = less space per person.

 

[Ivory55]

If these clubs are so bad why do people belong to them if it’s not something they want, don’t understand.

 

[jongood]

Jongood ‘…..It is because they put obstacles in the way of creating aires.’

well they have kept that well hidden ‘cos I can’t find the supporting information. Neither can I find any information on the CCC view on aires.

If you're a member you could ask them for their views, I did when I was a long time ago and they weren't hesitant about telling me. I had an email but sadly on an old account. It might be worth asking them again though?

 

[jongood]

Cant remember the last CAMC pitch I was on that had hedges around it.

‘Peg Nazi’ what a ridiculous term… never seen the issue with parking lined up to a peg and personally i think if people find it that that hard should they be driving a motorhome at all?

When I'm paying to rent the space, I don't think its unreasonable to be able to choose which way to face.

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[jongood]

Any other holiday you have to put down a deposit and pay in advance. I'd be more than happy to pay a deposit and welcome the opportunity to pay in advance for a site I had booked.

If I was to just turn up and there was no space that is my loss - what I really hate is people who book and then don't show up and there appears to be no penalty. Deposits / payment in advance (or even a minimum of a week before arrival) could be the answer .... no money = booking cancelled.



NZ has a much smaller population per square mile than the UK though. A quick search (not sure how up to date) gives NZ as 15 people per sqauer mile, France 100 and the UK 650. More people = less space per person.

Many towns have some car parking that could be used for motorhome stopovers Thankfully it is starting to happen in places like Devon, Canterbury, Ayr etc.

 

[M-J]

When I'm paying to rent the space, I don't think its unreasonable to be able to choose which way to face.

You can, maybe the odd site they would prefer you not to but I have always asked when checking in and never had anybody say I couldn’t.

We often park front end in (depending on the view) when going with friends in their caravan so we are hab door to hab door.

 

[Gellyneck]

When I'm paying to rent the space, I don't think its unreasonable to be able to choose which way to face.

You can, maybe the odd site they would prefer you not to but I have always asked when checking in and never had anybody say I couldn’t.

We often park front end in (depending on the view) when going with friends in their caravan so we are hab door to hab door.

I've never witnessed at any C&MC managed site, and we've been on a good few, where we've been restricted as to nose in \ tail in. I've even seen a warden suggesting to a member that they would be better pitching nose in as the sun would be on their hab door \ awning side for all of the day.
Does anyone know of any specific sites where this is the case?

 

[David and Sally]

I think I have seen it written somewhere that there really is no such 'corner on the peg' rule at CMC sites. Just the way the local wardens like to run it.

So far as you are the required distance away for fire safety surely the way you pitch is up to you.?

Can someone enlighten me please? We have a continental van and often tour with friens in UK vans. We like to hab door to hab door pitch. Some sites are OK, others won't let us.

 

[Googlebot]

I think I have seen it written somewhere that there really is no such 'corner on the peg' rule at CMC sites. Just the way the local wardens like to run it.

So far as you are the required distance away for fire safety surely the way you pitch is up to you.?

Can someone enlighten me please? We have a continental van and often tour with friens in UK vans. We like to hab door to hab door pitch. Some sites are OK, others won't let us.

In my experience they don’t care front or rear first on pitch, as long as the corner is near the peg.

Of course, I have been known to move the peg…….

Love to stay in Shrewsbury however insist on continental models going in forward so the hab doors all face the same way.

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[Folkranger]

You don’t like the way the club is run that’s your prerogative

Just aspects of the way it's run.

 

[Gellyneck]

I think I have seen it written somewhere that there really is no such 'corner on the peg' rule at CMC sites. Just the way the local wardens like to run it.

So far as you are the required distance away for fire safety surely the way you pitch is up to you.?

Can someone enlighten me please? We have a continental van and often tour with friens in UK vans. We like to hab door to hab door pitch. Some sites are OK, others won't let us.

Never seen anybody on a C&MC managed site being refused to pitch hab door to hab door. There were folk doing it on a couple of the sites we were on a few weeks back.

 

[David and Sally]

Never seen anybody on a C&MC managed site being refused to pitch hab door to hab door. There were folk doing it on a couple of the sites we were on a few weeks back.

We were. Can't remember the site but they insisted we nose in to peg.

But is there a rule to insist on it? From their pitching rules........

b. On most pitches, outfits may be pitched nose or tail in. The Site Staff will advise you where your outfit should go in relation to the marker. If you wish to pitch in any other way please ask the Site Staff.

c. To avoid the spread of fire, there must be at least 6 metres spacing between facing walls of adjacent caravans, motorhomes or trailer tents and a minimum clear space of 3 metres between adjoining cars/awnings/tents in any direction.

 

[jongood]

I've never witnessed at any C&MC managed site, and we've been on a good few, where we've been restricted as to nose in \ tail in. I've even seen a warden suggesting to a member that they would be better pitching nose in as the sun would be on their hab door \ awning side for all of the day.
Does anyone know of any specific sites where this is the case?

We were at the acsi at ringwood, and they tried to charge our relatives (mature couple) who came to visit us.

 

[tonyidle]

When I'm paying to rent the space, I don't think its unreasonable to be able to choose which way to face.

One can normally choose. It's never an issue.

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