Hi all. I am a groundsman in a van park have worked in quite a few over the years, up and down the east coast and in WA.
Our biggest frustration and that if the girls in the office is this:
guests arrive , set up camp, park their vehicle on the nearest vacant site, (so that they have a better view or more space or whatever), then go for a walk.
Next guest arrives, allocated a site , then comes back to office (sometimes after driving all day) and says "there is a vehicle parked on my site".
All I am asking is for the people that do this to show a little consideration for others.
99% of people are fantastic, but the offenders are just unthinking, unfair, whatever.
Happy travelling all , Allan
jimbo said
06:35 PM Oct 22, 2011
No worries ..Thanks for the tip
Beth54 said
07:11 PM Oct 22, 2011
Good point woody. I personally don't know anyone who'd do this...I wait to be told where to park...but I'll be certain to 'put it out there'.
pauline said
07:15 PM Oct 22, 2011
Understand the problem, but have never done this ourselves as it just would not be right, do wonder where all the common sense has gone nowadays...
Cheers
Gerty Dancer said
07:30 PM Oct 22, 2011
We have had the experience of having to wait until some-one moved their car, frustrating for all involved
jimbo said
07:46 PM Oct 22, 2011
Well! There you go Woody...Instant response too your problem......Peopel that do that are Not Grey Nomads from this site
justcruisin01 said
08:16 PM Oct 22, 2011
Have seen this problem many many times at xmass, they will park on another site because its shady then go to the beach.
Happywanderer said
08:24 PM Oct 22, 2011
Great advice, hope all take note. I just thought you parked where you were told. Not helped yourself.
goinsoon said
04:07 PM Oct 23, 2011
Had a friend of mine a few years ago who managed a park, he would find another good site for the new arrivals and then make fhe first ones pack everything up and move to another site. If they objected he just said ok thats fine pack up and leave.
woody said
08:02 AM Oct 24, 2011
One of the main probs is the camper trailers that open up to the size of a house (almost), and take up the whole site and sometimes a couple of feet of the next site, then , of course there is nowhere to park cars etc.
Sites haven't got bigger but the average size of vans and fifth wheelers have. Many of the fifth wheelers actually need two sites.
oh and Well done to all you Kiwis out there
AmandaJayne said
07:01 PM Oct 25, 2011
I always wait till they tell me where we can park
Beth54 said
07:53 PM Oct 25, 2011
woody wrote:
One of the main probs is the camper trailers that open up to the size of a house (almost), and take up the whole site and sometimes a couple of feet of the next site, then , of course there is nowhere to park cars etc.
Sites haven't got bigger but the average size of vans and fifth wheelers have. Many of the fifth wheelers actually need two sites.
oh and Well done to all you Kiwis out there
I was next to one of those in Winton...my wee little camper was well and truly overshadowed! There was just enough room for others to squeeze past the pop out wall.
RnD Drifters05 said
04:54 PM Oct 26, 2011
As retired Caravan Park Managers we have beenfrustrated by people parking where they should not and lots more you would be surprised at what people do
Cruising Granny said
10:02 PM Oct 26, 2011
Nothing people do surprises me anymore. The site squatting is a very common problem in parks which are seasonal, as in the north of this country. The sites are quiet for 8 months of the year, almost empty, so the long-termers park in the shade next door. Then the park gets busy on the 1st June and all hell breaks loose. The wind-outs and annexes certainly take up more room then the conventional, standard caravan. Camper trailers should be sent out to grassed or gravelled sites away from the slabs, if there are slabs. The park I'm in now doesn't have slabs, but they don't allocate much room per site. There's just enough space for a standard van and annexe, maybe 1 metre to the next van. The car is parked in front of the site. The park in Broome had double slabs, plus enough room to park the car between my site and next door, about 2.5-3 metres. The modern trend is squeeze them in.
ChiChi1 said
11:24 PM Oct 26, 2011
I have never been given a choice. Just allocated a site. Even when the park was relatively empty. All around me were much more suitable sites that were vacant. Perhaps that is why this happens.
jimricho said
08:07 AM Oct 27, 2011
ChiChi1 wrote:
I have never been given a choice. Just allocated a site. Even when the park was relatively empty. All around me were much more suitable sites that were vacant. Perhaps that is why this happens.
It's worth asking if you want a different site to the one allocated. I've done this when the park hasn't been particularly busy (and sometimes when it has been too) and found it's usually not a problem if the site hasn't been already allocated and one checks with reception before setting up.
Other times reception has marked the vacant sites on park layout "mud map" and just require that one advises them of the site selected so they can update their records.
03_troopy said
01:45 PM Oct 27, 2011
ChiChi1 wrote:
I have never been given a choice. Just allocated a site. Even when the park was relatively empty. All around me were much more suitable sites that were vacant. Perhaps that is why this happens.
A bit different to the Stuart Range Caravan & Tourist Park in Coober Pedy. We tried to get a spot for the camper trailer for one night there and after finally getting the young receptionist to stop flirting with the dining room guests and come and serve us, we were given a map and told all the unpowered sites were on the outside, go and find one. After driving around the park twice and not finding any free sites I went back to reception, had to walk into the dining room to get her attention only to be told "there are plenty of sites there just go and look." I suppressed my next few words and then told her if she was so disintersted in her customers I wanted a refund. She looked a bit stunned and asked if i was serious.. I just smiled and she took the hint and gave the fee back.
-- Edited by 03_troopy on Thursday 27th of October 2011 01:46:20 PM
Hi all. I am a groundsman in a van park have worked in quite a few over the years, up and down the east coast and in WA.
Our biggest frustration and that if the girls in the office is this:
guests arrive , set up camp, park their vehicle on the nearest vacant site, (so that they have a better view or more space or whatever), then go for a walk.
Next guest arrives, allocated a site , then comes back to office (sometimes after driving all day) and says "there is a vehicle parked on my site".
All I am asking is for the people that do this to show a little consideration for others.
99% of people are fantastic, but the offenders are just unthinking, unfair, whatever.
Happy travelling all , Allan
No worries ..Thanks for the tip
Good point woody. I personally don't know anyone who'd do this...I wait to be told where to park...but I'll be certain to 'put it out there'.
Cheers
Have seen this problem many many times at xmass, they will park on another site because its shady then go to the beach.
I just thought you parked where you were told. Not helped yourself.
Had a friend of mine a few years ago who managed a park, he would find another good site for the new arrivals and then make fhe first ones pack everything up and move to another site. If they objected he just said ok thats fine pack up and leave.
One of the main probs is the camper trailers that open up to the size of a house (almost), and take up the whole site and sometimes a couple of feet of the next site, then , of course there is nowhere to park cars etc.
Sites haven't got bigger but the average size of vans and fifth wheelers have. Many of the fifth wheelers actually need two sites.
oh and Well done to all you Kiwis out there
I always wait till they tell me where we can park
I was next to one of those in Winton...my wee little camper was well and truly overshadowed! There was just enough room for others to squeeze past the pop out wall.
The site squatting is a very common problem in parks which are seasonal, as in the north of this country.
The sites are quiet for 8 months of the year, almost empty, so the long-termers park in the shade next door.
Then the park gets busy on the 1st June and all hell breaks loose.
The wind-outs and annexes certainly take up more room then the conventional, standard caravan. Camper trailers should be sent out to grassed or gravelled sites away from the slabs, if there are slabs.
The park I'm in now doesn't have slabs, but they don't allocate much room per site. There's just enough space for a standard van and annexe, maybe 1 metre to the next van. The car is parked in front of the site. The park in Broome had double slabs, plus enough room to park the car between my site and next door, about 2.5-3 metres.
The modern trend is squeeze them in.
It's worth asking if you want a different site to the one allocated. I've done this when the park hasn't been particularly busy (and sometimes when it has been too) and found it's usually not a problem if the site hasn't been already allocated and one checks with reception before setting up.
Other times reception has marked the vacant sites on park layout "mud map" and just require that one advises them of the site selected so they can update their records.
A bit different to the Stuart Range Caravan & Tourist Park in Coober Pedy. We tried to get a spot for the camper trailer for one night there and after finally getting the young receptionist to stop flirting with the dining room guests and come and serve us, we were given a map and told all the unpowered sites were on the outside, go and find one. After driving around the park twice and not finding any free sites I went back to reception, had to walk into the dining room to get her attention only to be told "there are plenty of sites there just go and look." I suppressed my next few words and then told her if she was so disintersted in her customers I wanted a refund. She looked a bit stunned and asked if i was serious.. I just smiled and she took the hint and gave the fee back.
-- Edited by 03_troopy on Thursday 27th of October 2011 01:46:20 PM