|
Post by Firefox on Jan 19, 2013 14:59:57 GMT
www.applecross.uk.com/campsite/tariffs.htmlWhat do you think? £2.50 per dog per night for dogs in camping huts, £2.00 if in your campervan. Stay a week with two dogs and it would be £35 extra. And only two dogs per unit allowed... what if you have three?
|
|
|
Post by Etienne Le Croq on Jan 19, 2013 15:41:53 GMT
All site fees seem to be going up! My brother has been staying on a site in his caravan ,Setthorns in the New Forest,they have put EHU up by £5 per night! Now he's got the van he's wilding.
|
|
|
Post by kangooroo on Jan 19, 2013 16:38:00 GMT
Another argument in favour of wilding - which is so easy throughout Scotland anyway!
|
|
|
Post by Firefox on Jan 19, 2013 17:11:36 GMT
A lot of people have been abusing hook ups. For example 2kW heaters in awnings because they have "paid" for the juice. With rising costs per unit of elec, campsite owners have been forced to put up charges.
It penalises people like me who only use low current devices. Now with solar panels, a propex heater, and really cheap gas refills at £8 for 6kg, I will probably reject a hook up pitch/charge if I ever used a site.
|
|
|
Post by kimbowbill on Jan 20, 2013 12:05:49 GMT
I can't remember the figures exactly but when lived on my boat (6yrs ago), the electric i used was commercial supply and a way load cheaper than domestic, even at £2.50 they are making on it, unless things have changed over the years, we had to buy coins to feed the meter, £3 used to last me all week, oh happy days
|
|
|
Post by Pollik on Feb 13, 2013 22:29:41 GMT
Ultimately, site owners will make their own decisions and it is really only by people deciding to avoid site that "overcharge" that the message will get across. For me, bottom line, is I want somewhere to park on good ground (I have a 28ft monster), where I can put seats out, somewhere to empty the loo, somewhere to fill up with water. So far, not really bothered about EHU, but then I haven't done a winter in the UK in the van yet. For that, I might be willing to pay £5 to £7, about what I would pay at an expensive aire in France (I don't usually pay anything in France). Sticking with the aire comparison, a typical aire would probably charge €1 for an hour's hookup, to charge the batteries. At the moment, nothing would induce me to pay £5 a night for hookup.
When I do a winter (probably 2013/14), I might change my mind, but £5.00 will take me 20 miles and charge my batteries, so I am more like to move and wild camp...and then they miss out on the overnight fee, too.
I have about 220W of solar panels which works well in the summer in France...never need a charge even if I am on the laptop all day. Otherwise, I just move on a bit and charge the batteries that way.
How do other cope for electricity when wilding?
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 13, 2013 23:08:46 GMT
I would never ever consider a site which has a charge for dogs unless it provides specific amenities for dogs eg an area where dogs can have off lead exercise, a place to wash down dirty dogs, a dog toilet area or specific dog waste bins etc. Otherwise they are just profiting from dog owners. It's probably a way of discouraging dog owners from staying there. Perhaps they should consider an extra charge for children who often are more noisy, badly behaved, and equally disrespectful of the environment although many people turn a blind eye to kids dropping litter or sticking chewing gum where they shouldn't, and I've seen many more dog owners cleaning up after their dogs than I've seen parents picking up their kids sweetie papers.
I suspect any site that truly welcomes dogs would not charge an additional fee and would indeed provide appropriate facilities.
I believe it is illegal to "sell" electricity unless a genuine electricity supplier which is why sites can only charge a fee for having access to elec and can't charge for actual consumption. Sadly these fees are per unit rather than per person and so singletons are once again penalised and end up subsiding the cost of units which may have 5 or 6 people in them and therefore use considerably more electricity, perhaps more than the fee would cover.
So again I vote with my feet, or should I say, with my wheels, and go elsewhere.
I've only ever stayed on a site and used hook up as a private arrangement as part of a dog club competition, out of season when the site is closed. Usually there's about half a dozen of us who stay for 3 -4 nights, we get water and hookup but nothing else and we all pay a tenner for the entire stay so the owner gets his elec costs well covered plus enough cash for a bottle or two and everyone is happy as it's a lovely secluded woodland site and although there's probably more dogs than people using the site, there's never any noise, fighting or mess.
|
|
|
Post by WindDancer on Feb 16, 2013 11:55:10 GMT
For me I think it would be needs must. Some establishments charge a lot extra for a dog, but at least they are willing to take them, albeit discourage some people from bringing them. When charges are per dog, it often out prices me. I kind of stopped getting grumpy at the charges when I wanted to take the sleeper train up to Scotland. They charge £90 excess to cover the cost of cleaning after a dog has been in the compartment! The size of the floorspace is 6'4" x 2'3". You could completely replace the carpet and bedding, or clean a 3 bedroomed house for less than that! .... Hopefully I will continue to not need campsites. I've only been once on a campsite and that was a mini meet ;D
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2013 12:19:55 GMT
For me I think it would be needs must. Some establishments charge a lot extra for a dog, but at least they are willing to take them, albeit discourage some people from bringing them. When charges are per dog, it often out prices me. I kind of stopped getting grumpy at the charges when I wanted to take the sleeper train up to Scotland. They charge £90 excess to cover the cost of cleaning after a dog has been in the compartment!The size of the floorspace is 6'4" x 2'3". You could completely replace the carpet and bedding, or clean a 3 bedroomed house for less than that! .... Hopefully I will continue to not need campsites. I've only been once on a campsite and that was a mini meet ;D This doesn't happen very often but I'm absolutely totally dumbstruck That is just.... well... just.... unbelievable! I'm stunned. I took Rigg on the Settle-Carlisle train to Leeds, free of charge, and he had an absolutely wonderful time and everyone sitting around us seemed to enjoy having him around. At one of the stops, a group of singing walkers (!?!) got on and sang a folk song about the navvies who had built the line. At the end of the song, everyone clapped and Rigg joined in with a few barks of appreciation too, which made everyone laugh and it was a lovely jolly friendly atmosphere. Completely different story on the train from Leeds to Doncaster where as I was walking along the aisle looking for a spare seat, spotted one, Rigg went forward to lie under the seat as he knows he has to and the guy in the seat next to the spare smacked him on the nose with his newspaper! Of course I was enraged and told the whole compartment very loudly that I don't hit my dog and will not tolerate anyone else doing especially for no reason, and that the man was very lucky that Rigg being the dog he is, didn't respond in any way except to back off and hide behind me. We left him to enjoy his spare seat and sat in the baggage rack, luckily only a short journey. But £90 for cleaning a train carriage!!!! What about all the walkers with muddy boots, and kids (and some adults!) being sick, and spilling sticky pop drinks all over the place etc?!!! Just gobsmacking. Well, Rigg and I won't ever be getting the sleeper in that case! I wonder if disability dogs are exempt. Or perhaps they are just cleaner dogs?
|
|
|
Post by WindDancer on Feb 16, 2013 12:46:22 GMT
Assistance dogs are exempt. The charge is not for cleaning the carriage, just the tiny wee compartment!! As for the rude man - I would have snatched his newspaper and smacked His nose with it! Grrr
|
|
|
Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2013 15:14:28 GMT
Having re-read your post, you say it was an excess, so did you mean that you had to pay an extra £90 which in the event of the dog making a mess, would be used for cleaning, but if there was no mess, it would be refunded, or was it just an extra £90 on top of the ticket price regardless of whether the dog made a mess or not, and was non refundable?
|
|
|
Post by TammiJ on Feb 16, 2013 22:40:00 GMT
I read it as £90 extra for taking the dog along in the compartment whether it made a mess or not.
|
|
|
Post by WindDancer on Feb 18, 2013 1:31:16 GMT
Correct TammiJ, that is the charge to travel with a dog in the sleeper. Also in order to do so you have to go 1st class, making the cost a minimum of £250 each way.
It was cheaper for me to hire a large car and drive up.
|
|
|
Post by Firefox on Feb 18, 2013 1:34:10 GMT
£500 return It would be cheaper to fly, I'm sure. Do they allow dogs on planes?
|
|