Caravan Park Operators take notice.

Paul and Pam on Tour · Veteran Member

Caravan Park Operators take notice.

kandagal · Guru

I knew there was a good reason I haven't been to a caravan park for over 2 years.

beiffe · Guru

I have not been in a caravan jail for over two years and that was for an organised gathering and was looking to leave the second day of a week stay.

I was put away from the group I was booked with because I was a MH and it was a caravan gathering and found the facilities bad and got sick of walking in doggy poo even though they were suppose to be kept on a lead. There was only one camp fire allowed so you could not get close enough to get warm and it was just one bad experience. Didn't go the next year and wont go again. I prefer to camp on my own in a bush setting as I am a avid photographer and I enjoy my twice daily walk in the bush.

When I first started I did the caravan jail bit as it wa the accepted thing but soon found that the independant / bush camping was my thing and have not looked back.

There is a need for caravan parks for those that need them but just not for me.

Regards
Brian

Rip and Rosie · Guru

The other issue about cabins which deter me, are the alchohol fuelled weekend occupants. The make the nights noisy, and sometimes scary, and the subsequent hangover mornings when their children run free another unpleasant exeprience.

Rosie

Yuglamron · Guru

Totally agree,Maybe the cabin route is fine for the mining areas where there is a great demand for somewhere to sleep and not much else. ie.12Hrs on 12 off. Then FIFO.

The old cliche give them what they want and they will come seems to have gone out the window. There must be hundreds of millions spent on new caravans ,motorhomes etc with self contained facilities.Kept in very clean and hygenic conditions because that's home.

Don't need some run down never cleaned ablutions block or at best watered every other day.

Yes there are great caravan/holiday parks and some are very well maintained but as intimated the standards seem to be declining.

Seems to be a thats what we are supplying you better take it atitude.

The good parks are normally well attended and the others just decline.

Yes there is a capital outlay and expenses for CP owners, but don't expect gold returns on your investment without supplying what people want or need.

So many GN's and others just want an inexpensive drive through site with or without power for a night or two.If we wanted the other facilities we would go to the places that supply what we want.

Old addage "The customer is always right" give people what they want and they will use it.

Roving-Dutchy · Guru

I think it all complaints will fall on deaf ears as I am sure the return on capital is much greater on cabins than sites, our local park would probably recover the cost of a cabin in one summer as the cost of a cabin is $3000 a week so it doesn't take long to recover capital costs at those rates.
Cheers
David

ozjohn · Guru

Quote:
"Caravan Park Cabins typically cost $35'000 to $40'000+ each"

Boy! You're living in the past. Cabins haven't been at that cheap for more than 15 years.
OJ

Delta18 · Guru

beiffe wrote:

I was put away from the group I was booked with because I was a MH and it was a caravan gathering and found the facilities bad and got sick of walking in doggy poo even though they were suppose to be kept on a lead.

Regards
Brian

I wonder if you have ever tried keeping a "doggy poo" on a lead, it's not easy. biggrin biggrin biggrin biggrin

brickies · Guru

Caravan parks / Tourist Parks are a business , And when running a Business you must make hard choices , Young people want Tourist Parks and are prepared to pay top Dollar ,Grey Nomads want Caravan Parks and more Free camps at low or no Dollar , What would you do if you were a Park Owner and wanted to survive in Business

Gerty Dancer · Guru

I was a bit confused last week when I tried to book a cabin for one night at a coastal town south of Sydney. They would only take the booking if we booked for 2 nights, so we went to a motel which was cheaper, warmer, had a microwave and all the comforts. I checked on the caravan park as we walked past, those units were all empty. ??

We use caravan parks about two thirds of the time when we are travelling with the caravan, and they vary such a lot its very hard to make any kind of general comment on this topic.

Pete in Gisborne · Veteran Member

It is interesting to see the trend towards restricting free campers in some places due to the complaints from CP owners/operators. We hardly hear about the Caravan Park cabins that have affected the local motel owners.
Sure these businesses need to make a profit to survive, and the capital outlay for all tourist facilities is pretty high, but the average grey nomad or caravaner has also outlaid a considerable amount as well. If the trend continues towards cabins the travellers will have no choice but to free camp as there will be nowhere else to stay. I have also noticed the high number of empty cabins at some parks in popular areas.

It might be soon a case of the hand that feeds being bitten very hard.

jimbo · Guru

As long as they have a member on a council who has their finger in the Pie..They will do this I an surprised the Queensland Government hasn't banned me from entering their State for the amount of times I am Emailing those overpriced people..... I have asked this questions once before.."Do es anybody think that C/p owners and councils read our stuff and Know how we feel..

Paul and Pam on Tour · Veteran Member

'Roving Dutchy...you may have missed my point, certainly a cabin will give good returns on investment, providing they 'have bodies on beds'...my experience, and it appears others who have responded to my posting, have noted that many cabins sit sadly vacant.
Oz-John, the four new cabins at the Goulburn park cost $38'000 each and will let at $100 per night.

kiwijims · Guru

Howdy Paul & Pam,

talking of sub-standard ablutions in some caravan Parks,

I struck a real ripper on our recent trip while returning from the Eastern States.

With-out naming the particular Park I will say it was situated in the Goldfields of W.A.

This particular Park had a shower block which was a left-over from some mining camp,

it consisted of 3 shower cubicles for Gents and was nothing more than a skid mounted Fibro shed,

As I placed my foot outside the cubical ready to climb in I sank through the floor to a depth of 150mm,

I had placed my weight on a piece of thin tin covering a large hole.

Now at $25.00 p/n one would expect something safe at least !!!

By the way, there was hot water.....until a second person turned on their shower.

We did wonder why we were the only visitors in the Park. the rest were Mine workers.

kiwijims

ROWDYRABBIT1 · Senior Member

Reading this page has made me sit back and realize why i put a shower etc in my van, also it makes me realize why i carry 1000ltrs of water and can disapear into the real back blocks.it makes me realize why i dont like living in caravan parks,besides a better class of person on the road .SORRY IF I UPSET YOU ROD

Paul and Pam on Tour · Veteran Member

As owner of this topic I am pleased to see that my comments are not in isolation. KiwiJim, we too have been subject to unsafe condidtions, such as I mentioned with an amenities block not being cleaned in 48hrs as we experienced recently. Or a totally neglected childrens playground just waiting for an accident to happen.....how many people visually inspect a caravan park playground before allow kids to play?

I encourage all to make their experiences known, we utilise Badgers website, Australian Caravan Park Reports is...... http://home.vicnet.net.au/~badger04/

One other Spin Off on this issue, and one perhaps not yet fully understood by many; the travelling caravaners spend money in towns, we know that many rural towns have seen the light here, evidenced by the number of communities that have embraced the 'RV Friendly Town' scheme.....agreed that cabin and motel people also spend money but what about the times when the kids are in school and the highways again become grey? and do the FIFO Miners really spend much in the rural towns that they take over?. ie Roma in Queensland to mention just one.

sandsmere · Guru

Yes , it's a damn good reason to stay out of CPs .

Look for that little bit of dirt on side roads , along creeks / rivers or just in the bush .

whiteman · Senior Member

Me thinks we are preaching to the converted and using a lot of hot air..........the chances of CP owners reading this forum is pretty remote. Must say the older I get the more we also look for that small piece of dirt with water views with zero cost !!

-- Edited by whiteman on Friday 10th of August 2012 08:17:03 PM

Paul and Pam on Tour · Veteran Member

Free Camping is something we may be forced into and provided you are set up for it and perhaps not alone it will suit some.....unfortuantly the Caravan Park Industry is very much against this idea for obvious reasons.....one popular TV caravan show recently ran a segment pointing out how free camping should not be contemplated as it threatens the caravan park industry and just messes up the countryside, the show has a major caravan park chain as a sponser and the hosts actually own a caravan park themselves.....their website was absolutely trashed with irate free campers following that incident.

Whiteman, you might be surprised at just how many CP owners do read forums like this, every oppurtunity we get, usually as we check in, we inform them of websites such as Badgers as I mentioned earlier and I urge others to do the same.

Happywanderer · The Master

Paul and Pam, why do you say you may be FORCED into free camping. I have never been into a caravan park, only ever free camp, love it and would hate to be FORCED into using caravan parks.
I find it strange that free camping would be judged as no other choice in the end. To me its first choice.
How the heck does free camping mess up the countryside? The majority don't leave anything behind.
I bet some caravan parks have to clean up after the clients have left, if not with rubbish at least with muddy sites left from the waste which has been drained in the same spot over and over again.

BohemianGypsy · Guru

Happywanderer wrote:
Paul and Pam, why do you say you may be FORCED into free camping. I have never been into a caravan park, only ever free camp, love it and would hate to be FORCED into using caravan parks.
I find it strange that free camping would be judged as no other choice in the end. To me its first choice.
How the heck does free camping mess up the countryside? The majority don't leave anything behind.
I bet some caravan parks have to clean up after the clients have left, if not with rubbish at least with muddy sites left from the waste which has been drained in the same spot over and over again.

I totally agree with you HW. When we go around Australia in March next year (start date) we will only be free camping which is why we are setting up our van for just that purpose. Even when we picnic which is a lot, we take all rubbish with us and leave nothing behind. The same rule is going to apply when we free camp. I never throw rubbish from my car window which I have seen many people do, not even fruit remains.

I think free camping is the only way to travel but that is my opinion only and obviously yours HW biggrin biggrin biggrin biggrin

Michelle

Paul and Pam on Tour · Veteran Member

Ok..re being forced into free camping, let me quailfy this............it may come as a surprise but there are many people such as us who for whatever reason perfer, or need, to utilise caravan parks......as the name suggests that is why they are there, to park caravans.

Now, our reasons; due to the world financial situation we have watched our super dwindle away, our beloved caravan is 15 years old, it has no shower or toilet, it has no auxillary power system, two years ago we splurged and got ourselves a portable freezer.....in other words, at this point in time we need the services that a caravan park will offer and we would perfer it to stay that way...I do see that in the not too distance future we willl probably be confronted with one or both issues, ie. caravan parks will become too expensive or they will become less and less available...then we will be forced into free camping.

Oh, regarding the 'mess' I mentioned about at the free rest areas, no way did I mean it was free campers, quite the opposite, on the rare occasions that we have free camped we have usually left the site cleaner than before we arrived.

Caravan park operators realize that free camping is a threat, an example:, friends of ours were free camping at a road side rest area about 4 km outside a Queensland town, they were all set up and enjoying a happy hour...a utility drove slowly by, on the door the logo of the towns caravan pk....15 minutes later a police car pulled up and told them to pack up, despite there being no 'No Camping' signs.....they did move on but certainly not to the towns caravan park. I beleive we can expect this situation to increase with the parks people lobbying Main Roads Depts and Shire Councils to erect these 'No Camping' signs in places we would not expect them.

Paul and Pam on Tour · Veteran Member

An interesting update to this topic.....I had a discussion yesterday with a caravan park owner, as it was a private discussion I wont name the park suffice to say it is located in a major NSW rural town on a main inland highway.
The owner told me that he 'makes no money' from the caravaners and would like to replace the 'van sites with more cabins....currently this park has around 10 cabins and around 30 powered sites and a few unpowered sites. Questioned further the owner told me that his occupany rate is around 76% for the whole park, he didnt, or wouldnt, say what the cabin only occupancy rate was.
As highlighted in comments in this topic his comments are pretty much typical of caravan park management today.

His final comment was one that left me a little puzzled; during our stay, ('off peak' period as they call it) we had noted that each day many caravans would come in, stop one or maybe two nights, a couple of the cabins were used, the remainder, empty, a common occurence in many caravan parks in our country, I suggested to the man that many grey nomads used his park, he responded by stating "95% of my cliental are 'Grey Nomads'. ....this left me shaking my head and wondering (to myself) just how many of these grey nomads would want to stay in cabins!!

On the subject of free camping, this park owner was, understandably, against such a despicable practice....he stated "......free campers just take business away from me and spend no money in town.......", again I wondered to myself if free campers are special people who need no fuel or groceries.... :)

-- Edited by Paul and Pam on Tour on Saturday 25th of August 2012 07:16:19 AM