I am sick and tired of Caravan Parks trying to rip us off. I went to book online into the Clare Caravan Park (Discovery Holiday Parks) for a trip on the way to Yorke Peninsula. I could not believe the price hike so I rang the caravan park and was told it was correct as they were going into their peak season.
I found it offensive that they raised their powered site prices from $35 per night to a huge $48 per night. That's a massive 37% increase overnight. We have decided that we will never stay there, even during off season @ $35 per night on principle. There is no need to be greedy to that extent!!! If the park was something special, maybe I could accept it, but to have that tariff on a 3 star caravan park is ridiculous.
Who else out there is sick and tired of these greedy caravan parks ripping us off? Is there a list somewhere of places/parks we can avoid. Plenty of other places to stay nearby. No wonder free camping is going crazy.
Paul & Pam
Technomad said
05:25 PM Jun 26, 2014
Have a look at my post. Also as an example my views and many others about Adelaide Beachfront. Tripadvisor.
-- Edited by Technomad on Thursday 26th of June 2014 05:26:39 PM
-- Edited by Technomad on Friday 27th of June 2014 05:42:31 AM
dING said
05:28 PM Jun 26, 2014
Even @ $35.00 a night tis to expensive
If you are traveling on a single pension
Tis Just over $800 per fortnight a 2 week
Stay be nearly $500 which would make
A horrible mess of ya pension
-- Edited by dING on Thursday 26th of June 2014 05:30:30 PM
Big Gorilla said
06:30 PM Jun 26, 2014
Why go to a caravan Park when you can free camp !!
And welcome to the Forum OutbackPhantom. You've started off with a subject that attracts a lot of comment...
-- Edited by Big Gorilla on Thursday 26th of June 2014 06:32:47 PM
Can you send me a link to your review of Adelaide Beachfront. We stayed there last March and were not impressed.
Hawk7 said
07:13 PM Jun 26, 2014
Try the Riverton caravan park , not far from Clare . We stay there each time we come over from the West . Very modern and clean amenities ! Cheers! Almost forgot ! $ 28 !
-- Edited by Hawk7 on Thursday 26th of June 2014 07:27:03 PM
grae and deb said
07:16 PM Jun 26, 2014
a very good point re costs
firstly welcome from grae and deb , i know there are some who will say $35 + is acceptable but i think the majority are geting tired of really what you get for what you pay !
really , for 35 to 40 plus how much is it costing to actually have someone on a pwr site per night , we spent many mths in a c/park in tassie last year , and the owner told us his break even figure per site was $4 so it really is the age old problem , ie when things get busy its make as much as we can , fair enough when its cold and quiet and your park is half empty you need a steady annual income but ! i think greed rares its ugly head in this instance and many others , we are now in sydney area working and when first arrived looked for parks in the areas where work was and what a shock , most said you cant stay here longer than a few weeks and some just didnt want us ,one park ws metered pwr , another was differnt rates for vans of differnt lengths , buses, motoromes the girl said i,m sorry but this is the owners pricing . go figure ! one park was peak season wait for it well over $100 per night flabbagasted we were , priced a close park to where we are now in the nth beaches area and it is in peak season and mid season from $48 to $60,s
way too much , we are lucky to be on private and and have a nice spot but for other nomads wow it isnt easy .
my advise is look for free camps or gold cin donation , for those reading these posts if it is donation fee and a time limit please dont abuse these arrangements , as many will be disadvantaged if these places are closed , lets appreciate what we can have and cherish the gift of camping in the bush or wherever ,
camps book has been our bible to traveling oz and many other sites too ,
safe travells grae and deb
OutbackPhantom said
07:31 PM Jun 26, 2014
Thanks Hawk7.
Found a small and very suitable park only 17km south at a place called Leasingham.
Looks very friendly and quiet. Just what we like.
Kendo said
07:46 PM Jun 26, 2014
Welcome Paul & Pam
Yeah we stayed at Clare a while back...not impressed either. Not so much with the price ( but it was your "off peak" price), but what pee'd us off was the small amenities blocks. 2 of them with only 4 shower cubicles from memory, and each block had 1 cubicle "out of order" . My wife said the ladies side was no better. So 6 showers for a park that was 90% full (we were "out the back" in their overflow area).
We had already promised ourselves that Clare would be a miss next time we go out that way.
Jeff
OutbackPhantom said
07:56 PM Jun 26, 2014
Thanks Kendo.
Our last trip to that area we stayed at Nuriootpa and that was quite pleasant.
I'll post something about Leasingham if it is what I suspect, being a hidden treasure.
Mike196 said
09:16 PM Jun 26, 2014
G'Day Folks,
The little park at Auburn gets a lot of good reports as well.
Regards,
Mike.
P.S. What makes it their "Peak Season"?? it's as cold as a Mother in Law's Kiss at this time of the year up there.
Cupie said
09:18 PM Jun 26, 2014
I reckon that it's relatively cheap at Claire ....
Relative to what we are paying next week at Hervey Bay that is.
$58 per night plus $9 per night for each of out 2 Grand children = $76 per night
But we have a 'Superior' ensuite site. That means that we have our own ensuite (as well as the one in the van) plus our own washing machine (coin operated I suppose) and private BBQ (bet that we have to share it with others in our ensuite quad .. but I'll probably use my own double propane BBQ set up anyway). Oh yes, we have a view of the lake (water hole) as well .. rather than looking at other vans. Lucky aren't we?
But its our choice so I just grin (or grimace) and bear it. Hurts me more when I have to fill up the Patrol (20L/100k) That's around $100 each way! Thanks be that there is a Dan Murphy's up there ... & I have dropped my consumption down to less than a bottle a day.
Santa said
09:26 PM Jun 26, 2014
OutbackPhantom wrote:
Clare valley caravan park.
I am sick and tired of Caravan Parks trying to rip us off. I went to book online into the Clare Caravan Park (Discovery Holiday Parks) for a trip on the way to Yorke Peninsula. I could not believe the price hike so I rang the caravan park and was told it was correct as they were going into their peak season.
I found it offensive that they raised their powered site prices from $35 per night to a huge $48 per night. That's a massive 37% increase overnight. We have decided that we will never stay there, even during off season @ $35 per night on principle. There is no need to be greedy to that extent!!! If the park was something special, maybe I could accept it, but to have that tariff on a 3 star caravan park is ridiculous.
Who else out there is sick and tired of these greedy caravan parks ripping us off? Is there a list somewhere of places/parks we can avoid. Plenty of other places to stay nearby. No wonder free camping is going crazy.
Paul & Pam
Peak season, ha, more like mid winter with stuff all going on in the area.
The Clare valley has been in decline for the past 10 years.
Baz421 said
10:34 PM Jun 26, 2014
Yep we have avoided Clare for years now also for reasons stated by others here. Used to fuel up there but no more. Only stopped there for lunch recently with friend who works in Clare.
Many good places nearby (CP) and heaps of free camping if you look and/or ask a local.
I stated my support for Monto in QLD in another thread,,, ie small town needing tourists and nomads to survive,,, but to us Clare was over the top.
D and D said
11:41 PM Jun 26, 2014
Stayed at both Auburn and Leasingham and was happy with both. Low cost - substantially lower than you've been quoted, facilities are not the latest and greatest but good enough and the people who run them are great as were the other campers. Mind you its a little chilly but then again that sounds like a good reason for a camp fire.
Moonraker said
01:33 AM Jun 27, 2014
I have been thinking that we can continue to complain about how much CP's charge. But is there a way we can do something about it.
Such as consider Farm and Stations. There must be hundreds of farmers out there for one reason or another are finding it tough to exist. If there could be some way of making contact on mass or through some form of organisation web site etc. such as this to offer our custom at reasonable rates to stay at there farms. This would not only give them a small supplementary income but it could also provide a source of possible helping hand in times of need or a harvesting time etc. The Farms and Stations could offer just water and site only or more elaborate facilities if they liked. I wonder if there are any laws that prevent this or if so dispensation could be achieved for rural sector with perhaps a limit on the number sites or nights. I know there are some web sites that offer a very limited similar thing but there seems an opportunity for this to go big time.
There must be a few Grey Nomads on this forum with a background and knowledge to be able establish something like this.
Just a thought.
Cheers
Nigel
aussie_paul said
01:38 AM Jun 27, 2014
Moonraker wrote:
I have been thinking that we can continue to complain about how much CP's charge. But is there a way we can do something about it. Such as consider Farm and Stations. There must be hundreds of farmers out there for one reason or another are finding it tough to exist. If there could be some way of making contact on mass or through some form of organisation web site etc. such as this to offer our custom at reasonable rates to stay at there farms. This would not only give them a small supplementary income but it could also provide a source of possible helping hand in times of need or a harvesting time etc. The Farms and Stations could offer just water and site only or more elaborate facilities if they liked. I wonder if there are any laws that prevent this or if so dispensation could be achieved for rural sector with perhaps a limit on the number sites or nights. I know there are some web sites that offer a very limited similar thing but there seems an opportunity for this to go big time. There must be a few Grey Nomads on this forum with a background and knowledge to be able establish something like this. Just a thought. Cheers Nigel
Sounds like a plan worth investigating.
Aussie Paul.
sandsmere said
05:28 AM Jun 27, 2014
I can understand the anger out there about this sort of thing, but we live in a free enterprise society.
CPs are a business. The owners set there own rates the same as any other business.
There are plenty of alternatives. Cheaper parks and thousands of areas to free camp if you look around a bit.
Technomad said
05:45 AM Jun 27, 2014
Sorry, seniors moment. Tripadvisor Adelaide Beachfront. Good and bad reviews on GOOGLE BAR.
scooner said
07:28 AM Jun 27, 2014
none of us like been ripped off,what we could start is a JDB list i.e. JUST DONT BOTHER, i am sure there could be a lot more abbreviations we could use ,
if any caravan park that needs to charge this ridiculous amount to survive then quite simply they won't ,
we will certainly be using recommendations from the grey nomads community once we hit the road on our first trip around this great land of ours,
marg and ian
Big Gorilla said
07:35 AM Jun 27, 2014
The idea of a list of CPs that are rip offs has been bandied around on this Forum since I joined. Nothing has ever been done. If we asked the Webmaster to make up a section where we could post details, I'm sure the Webmaster would say "No". This site and maybe the posters could leave themselves open to legal action posting derogatory remarks about these Parks... Am I right ? Is there anyone on board with legal expertise who could clarify this point ?
scooner said
07:50 AM Jun 27, 2014
good point Big Gorilla, so why would it be a no go area , then is the first post on this section not derogatory???
maybe some one could explain that,
beiffe said
08:09 AM Jun 27, 2014
Best to set your price you wish to pay IF you frequent CP's and then use the many books available that show their commodities and the price and go from there.
Myself I dont use them so it does not matter what they charge but to try and name and shame would bring repercussions to the forum as well as create hassles.
What one person raves about another will hate the same as the choice of free versus CP's so best to leave it alone.
If you dont like a park then OK give a reason but you cant just name and shame.
The owner decides the price they charge and the customer decides if they wish to pay that price. Simple business facts.
When the CP's find that they have no clients then they may change their ways but I think it will be too late and in the future CP's will turn into cabin parks and if you like to drag your rig then find somewhere out in the bush and get used to it.
If an area is bent on no camping in the shire then I put a red circle in the book around the shire and I either bypass or pass straight through. I also preclude that shire / area from my volunteering list as well and have deciode not to go to a Blazeaid site simply on their no camping policy.
That's my choice and is different to many others but then I decide what I do and go the same as each one her on the forum does.
Regards
Brian
scooner said
08:22 AM Jun 27, 2014
would it then be ok to have a list of prices per cp and let us be the judge of, is this really where we can afford to stay
just a thought
Big Gorilla said
09:10 AM Jun 27, 2014
scooner wrote:
good point Big Gorilla, so why would it be a no go area , then is the first post on this section not derogatory??? maybe some one could explain that,
I don't think the original post is derogatory, the poster is just stating a fact. If we had a special section covering CPs that had high charges and these charges and facilities were highly criticised, we might have a legal problem. I don't really know, that is why I suggested a member with legal background might comment. Your other idea about listing CPs and their charges might be OK, so if members thought the charges were excessive, they could bypass a particular CP. However I'd imagine these posts would have to be strictly monitored to ensure no derogatory comments were included, and who is going to do that ?
shekon said
09:20 AM Jun 27, 2014
Each business will price accoding to what they think is best for them. What they decide to do is really none of our business, however we can then choose not to support what each individual feels as overpriced.There are good CP's and bad ones.
There are plenty of places to find good ones, prices, etc. Wikicamps, youcamp, the camps books, word of mouth, and on this forum is a section with recommendations. I am sure there are many more that I do not know about. I tend to now use Wikicamps the most. Gives prices and comments.
I am currently in Cowra, staying at a little park about 5k's from town. Great little CP. Solo discount, the owners are so nice and helpful, camp fire each night. It is not flash, but it is spotless, and there is plenty of room. TV is a bit hit and miss, however the owners have set up arials for you to hook into. Did not know how to do this, owner came along and set it up for me. Great. Name of park is COWRA HOLIDAY PARK. Took advice from Wikicamps, and glad that I did. Oh this CP is currently $27pn, that was with the solo discount, for two $31pn. So for me that is an OK price, but for others that would be a "rip off" so each to their own circumstances and opinions.
scooner said
09:21 AM Jun 27, 2014
i agree no one needs to get into any legal proceedings ,maybe then a quick comment i.e. went to clare cp charges were xyz and let us be the judge is sufficient,
must agree that this is a real good topic and close to all of us,
Legendts said
10:05 AM Jun 27, 2014
Re farm type options I think the CMCA are kicking off something like that. My wife and I considered it, but these days you have to be extremely careful legally as you may leave yourself open if someone were to get hurt or had an issue with their van whilst within your boundaries.
Cupie said
10:08 AM Jun 27, 2014
sandsmere wrote:
I can understand the anger out there about this sort of thing, but we live in a free enterprise society.
CPs are a business. The owners set there own rates the same as any other business.
There are plenty of alternatives. Cheaper parks and thousands of areas to free camp if you look around a bit.
Well said. Exactly my views.
In my previous post on this thread I mentioned the high cost of our CHOICE at Hervey Bay.
At last count (a few years ago) I found 13 CPs in Hervey bay.
I'm sure I could find a cheaper one if I chose.
By the way I choose not to free camp but understand & accept that many of you choose to use that option.
Pls. note my deliberate frequent use of CHOICE/CHOSE/CHOOSE. IMHO that's what it's all about.
As in most things in our free enterprise society, if you don't like the price or product, then you choose something else.
Clare valley caravan park.
I am sick and tired of Caravan Parks trying to rip us off. I went to book online into the Clare Caravan Park (Discovery Holiday Parks) for a trip on the way to Yorke Peninsula. I could not believe the price hike so I rang the caravan park and was told it was correct as they were going into their peak season.
I found it offensive that they raised their powered site prices from $35 per night to a huge $48 per night. That's a massive 37% increase overnight. We have decided that we will never stay there, even during off season @ $35 per night on principle. There is no need to be greedy to that extent!!! If the park was something special, maybe I could accept it, but to have that tariff on a 3 star caravan park is ridiculous.
Who else out there is sick and tired of these greedy caravan parks ripping us off? Is there a list somewhere of places/parks we can avoid. Plenty of other places to stay nearby. No wonder free camping is going crazy.
Paul & Pam
Have a look at my post. Also as an example my views and many others about Adelaide Beachfront. Tripadvisor.
-- Edited by Technomad on Thursday 26th of June 2014 05:26:39 PM
-- Edited by Technomad on Friday 27th of June 2014 05:42:31 AM
Even @ $35.00 a night tis to expensive
If you are traveling on a single pension
Tis Just over $800 per fortnight a 2 week
Stay be nearly $500 which would make
A horrible mess of ya pension
-- Edited by dING on Thursday 26th of June 2014 05:30:30 PM
Why go to a caravan Park when you can free camp !!
And welcome to the Forum OutbackPhantom. You've started off with a subject that attracts a lot of comment...
-- Edited by Big Gorilla on Thursday 26th of June 2014 06:32:47 PM
Thanks Technomad.
Can you send me a link to your review of Adelaide Beachfront. We stayed there last March and were not impressed.
Try the Riverton caravan park , not far from Clare . We stay there each time we come over from the West . Very modern and clean amenities ! Cheers! Almost forgot ! $ 28 !
-- Edited by Hawk7 on Thursday 26th of June 2014 07:27:03 PM
a very good point re costs
firstly welcome from grae and deb , i know there are some who will say $35 + is acceptable but i think the majority are geting tired of really what you get for what you pay !
really , for 35 to 40 plus how much is it costing to actually have someone on a pwr site per night , we spent many mths in a c/park in tassie last year , and the owner told us his break even figure per site was $4 so it really is the age old problem , ie when things get busy its make as much as we can , fair enough when its cold and quiet and your park is half empty you need a steady annual income but ! i think greed rares its ugly head in this instance and many others , we are now in sydney area working and when first arrived looked for parks in the areas where work was and what a shock , most said you cant stay here longer than a few weeks and some just didnt want us ,one park ws metered pwr , another was differnt rates for vans of differnt lengths , buses, motoromes the girl said i,m sorry but this is the owners pricing . go figure ! one park was peak season wait for it well over $100 per night flabbagasted we were , priced a close park to where we are now in the nth beaches area and it is in peak season and mid season from $48 to $60,s
way too much , we are lucky to be on private and and have a nice spot but for other nomads wow it isnt easy .
my advise is look for free camps or gold cin donation , for those reading these posts if it is donation fee and a time limit please dont abuse these arrangements , as many will be disadvantaged if these places are closed , lets appreciate what we can have and cherish the gift of camping in the bush or wherever ,
camps book has been our bible to traveling oz and many other sites too ,
safe travells grae and deb
Thanks Hawk7.
Found a small and very suitable park only 17km south at a place called Leasingham.
Looks very friendly and quiet. Just what we like.
Welcome Paul & Pam
Yeah we stayed at Clare a while back...not impressed either. Not so much with the price ( but it was your "off peak" price), but what pee'd us off was the small amenities blocks. 2 of them with only 4 shower cubicles from memory, and each block had 1 cubicle "out of order" . My wife said the ladies side was no better. So 6 showers for a park that was 90% full (we were "out the back" in their overflow area).
We had already promised ourselves that Clare would be a miss next time we go out that way.
Jeff
Our last trip to that area we stayed at Nuriootpa and that was quite pleasant.
I'll post something about Leasingham if it is what I suspect, being a hidden treasure.
G'Day Folks,
The little park at Auburn gets a lot of good reports as well.
Regards,
Mike.
P.S. What makes it their "Peak Season"?? it's as cold as a Mother in Law's Kiss at this time of the year up there.
I reckon that it's relatively cheap at Claire ....
Relative to what we are paying next week at Hervey Bay that is.
$58 per night plus $9 per night for each of out 2 Grand children = $76 per night
But we have a 'Superior' ensuite site. That means that we have our own ensuite (as well as the one in the van) plus our own washing machine (coin operated I suppose) and private BBQ (bet that we have to share it with others in our ensuite quad .. but I'll probably use my own double propane BBQ set up anyway). Oh yes, we have a view of the lake (water hole) as well .. rather than looking at other vans. Lucky aren't we?
But its our choice so I just grin (or grimace) and bear it. Hurts me more when I have to fill up the Patrol (20L/100k) That's around $100 each way! Thanks be that there is a Dan Murphy's up there ... & I have dropped my consumption down to less than a bottle a day.
Peak season, ha, more like mid winter with stuff all going on in the area.
The Clare valley has been in decline for the past 10 years.
Yep we have avoided Clare for years now also for reasons stated by others here. Used to fuel up there but no more. Only stopped there for lunch recently with friend who works in Clare.
Many good places nearby (CP) and heaps of free camping if you look and/or ask a local.
I stated my support for Monto in QLD in another thread,,, ie small town needing tourists and nomads to survive,,, but to us Clare was over the top.
Such as consider Farm and Stations. There must be hundreds of farmers out there for one reason or another are finding it tough to exist. If there could be some way of making contact on mass or through some form of organisation web site etc. such as this to offer our custom at reasonable rates to stay at there farms. This would not only give them a small supplementary income but it could also provide a source of possible helping hand in times of need or a harvesting time etc. The Farms and Stations could offer just water and site only or more elaborate facilities if they liked. I wonder if there are any laws that prevent this or if so dispensation could be achieved for rural sector with perhaps a limit on the number sites or nights. I know there are some web sites that offer a very limited similar thing but there seems an opportunity for this to go big time.
There must be a few Grey Nomads on this forum with a background and knowledge to be able establish something like this.
Just a thought.
Cheers
Nigel
Sounds like a plan worth investigating.
Aussie Paul.
I can understand the anger out there about this sort of thing, but we live in a free enterprise society.
CPs are a business. The owners set there own rates the same as any other business.
There are plenty of alternatives. Cheaper parks and thousands of areas to free camp if you look around a bit.
Sorry, seniors moment. Tripadvisor Adelaide Beachfront. Good and bad reviews on GOOGLE BAR.
if any caravan park that needs to charge this ridiculous amount to survive then quite simply they won't ,
we will certainly be using recommendations from the grey nomads community once we hit the road on our first trip around this great land of ours,
marg and ian
The idea of a list of CPs that are rip offs has been bandied around on this Forum since I joined. Nothing has ever been done. If we asked the Webmaster to make up a section where we could post details, I'm sure the Webmaster would say "No". This site and maybe the posters could leave themselves open to legal action posting derogatory remarks about these Parks... Am I right ? Is there anyone on board with legal expertise who could clarify this point ?
maybe some one could explain that,
Myself I dont use them so it does not matter what they charge but to try and name and shame would bring repercussions to the forum as well as create hassles.
What one person raves about another will hate the same as the choice of free versus CP's so best to leave it alone.
If you dont like a park then OK give a reason but you cant just name and shame.
The owner decides the price they charge and the customer decides if they wish to pay that price. Simple business facts.
When the CP's find that they have no clients then they may change their ways but I think it will be too late and in the future CP's will turn into cabin parks and if you like to drag your rig then find somewhere out in the bush and get used to it.
If an area is bent on no camping in the shire then I put a red circle in the book around the shire and I either bypass or pass straight through. I also preclude that shire / area from my volunteering list as well and have deciode not to go to a Blazeaid site simply on their no camping policy.
That's my choice and is different to many others but then I decide what I do and go the same as each one her on the forum does.
Regards
Brian
just a thought
I don't think the original post is derogatory, the poster is just stating a fact. If we had a special section covering CPs that had high charges and these charges and facilities were highly criticised, we might have a legal problem. I don't really know, that is why I suggested a member with legal background might comment. Your other idea about listing CPs and their charges might be OK, so if members thought the charges were excessive, they could bypass a particular CP. However I'd imagine these posts would have to be strictly monitored to ensure no derogatory comments were included, and who is going to do that ?
There are plenty of places to find good ones, prices, etc. Wikicamps, youcamp, the camps books, word of mouth, and on this forum is a section with recommendations. I am sure there are many more that I do not know about. I tend to now use Wikicamps the most. Gives prices and comments.
I am currently in Cowra, staying at a little park about 5k's from town. Great little CP. Solo discount, the owners are so nice and helpful, camp fire each night. It is not flash, but it is spotless, and there is plenty of room. TV is a bit hit and miss, however the owners have set up arials for you to hook into. Did not know how to do this, owner came along and set it up for me. Great. Name of park is COWRA HOLIDAY PARK. Took advice from Wikicamps, and glad that I did. Oh this CP is currently $27pn, that was with the solo discount, for two $31pn. So for me that is an OK price, but for others that would be a "rip off" so each to their own circumstances and opinions.
must agree that this is a real good topic and close to all of us,
Well said. Exactly my views.
In my previous post on this thread I mentioned the high cost of our CHOICE at Hervey Bay.
At last count (a few years ago) I found 13 CPs in Hervey bay.
I'm sure I could find a cheaper one if I chose.
By the way I choose not to free camp but understand & accept that many of you choose to use that option.
Pls. note my deliberate frequent use of CHOICE/CHOSE/CHOOSE. IMHO that's what it's all about.
As in most things in our free enterprise society, if you don't like the price or product, then you choose something else.