Cycling UK Forum

I used to do a lot of cycle camping but stopped because of the noise on your average campsite (tellies, radios, children, people with instruments, engine noise, etc.).

So, peace and quiet is of paramount importance - everything else is secondary for me (apart from the showers).

Good luck with your undertaking, I hope you'll make it work.

EC

ElCampesino wrote:I used to do a lot of cycle camping but stopped because of the noise on your average campsite (tellies, radios, children, people with instruments, engine noise, etc.).

So, peace and quiet is of paramount importance - everything else is secondary for me (apart from the showers).

Good luck with your undertaking, I hope you'll make it work.

EC

Just so I remember, because I forget EVERY year: Campers who just can't bear to give up the reliance of their cars, and spend the night going in and out of their vehicle, slamming the door EVERY blinkin' time. What the blazes are they getting/putting away?

Dutch sites are great: You have to leave your car in the car park and the campsite JUST has tents. Erm and a couple of bicycles.

Thanks a lot, but the weather is sort of mid November at the moment...

The weather at least respects no borders and waits for no passports.

I spend three months of the year in campsites (this year I've stayed in campsites in France, Italy, Germany and Austria) and rarely experience any problems with noise. Although, yes, there's nothing like the noise of a slidey door on a VW camper to set my teeth on edge.

Anyway BB, amid the mid-November gloom, here's a completely unserious suggestion for you:



Mind you this campsite charges 4.50€/night for dogs - which is a bit steep really.

Well we used he place in May and it was adequate, quiet and clean with loads of space although the ablutions still had the workmen in so we were sharing the disabled facilities.

Went back in late June and what a transformation - all the ablutions renovated, redecorated and clean. Clothes washing facilities, the campers kitchen in place. Posters about where to go and what to do and STILL loads of room.

Just lovely!

Julia

Bit of (tent sized) grass....Tap.....Bog......

Why anyone would want Wi-Fi and phone charging points is beyond me....When I'm 'away' I'm 'away'...I can absolutely guarantee that the world WILL revolve and life will go on nicely without my input.......

JBB wrote:Well we used he place in May and it was adequate, quiet and clean with loads of space although the ablutions still had the workmen in so we were sharing the disabled facilities.

Went back in late June and what a transformation - all the ablutions renovated, redecorated and clean. Clothes washing facilities, the campers kitchen in place. Posters about where to go and what to do and STILL loads of room.

Just lovely!

Julia

Cheque's in the post Julia;-)

Peace and quiet. Tents separate from camper vans if possible. Trouble is, your peaceful idyll can be shattered by noisy late arrivals, has happened to me numerous times. Also no dogs. Dogs are a nightmare on campsites. They bark a lot, most ignorant owners let them wander and foul and pee everywhere. I caught one micturating up someone's tent who were out for the day. I've had one pee on a gadget I was charging up

robing wrote:Peace and quiet. Tents separate from camper vans if possible. Trouble is, your peaceful idyll can be shattered by noisy late arrivals, has happened to me numerous times. Also no dogs. Dogs are a nightmare on campsites. They bark a lot, most ignorant owners let them wander and foul and pee everywhere. I caught one micturating up someone's tent who were out for the day. I've had one pee on a gadget I was charging up

Quite agree and we have all that except for the dog thing - we do allow dogs but we don't charge for them so they are there as 'guests' and so we say how they are looked after - i.e. tethered and all cleaned up after tham (there is a separate area from the campsite where dog owners can run their animals free but it's not part of the campsite proper.

I do not have a dog (a cat is well enough at home! ) but I used to, and I'd be rather annoyed to be charged for the dog admission!
On the other hand, I'm not sure I would have taken my dogs to a campsite, in fact I never did, because they would bark at night sometimes.

Another thing I'd look in a campsite, is flexibility. I understand it's a business and money has to be made, but I don't see why the spartan cyclist with its own very small tent, using no electricity, barely using water and other resources, should pay like the others.
Some campsites have a reduced rate for backpackers/cyclists, and I welcome that!

Gattonero wrote:I don't see why the spartan cyclist with its own very small tent, using no electricity, barely using water and other resources, should pay like the others.

Because an emplacement is just that and you can put a small single occupant tent on it or you can put a huge caravan with single occupant. You are paying for the pitch with additional charges for extra people/extra vehicles/pets.

Some campsites have a reduced rate for backpackers/cyclists, and I welcome that!

That works best where there is an area that is not divided into pitches but is open. I have seen that on UK sites and also on French sites, just an open area for lightweight users.

tatanab wrote:

Gattonero wrote:I don't see why the spartan cyclist with its own very small tent, using no electricity, barely using water and other resources, should pay like the others.

Because an emplacement is just that and you can put a small single occupant tent on it or you can put a huge caravan with single occupant. You are paying for the pitch with additional charges for extra people/extra vehicles/pets.

Some campsites have a reduced rate for backpackers/cyclists, and I welcome that!

That works best where there is an area that is not divided into pitches but is open. I have seen that on UK sites and also on French sites, just an open area for lightweight users.

We have exactly that - an open area just for cyclists/lightweights... However the costing thing is difficult. I'm exactly the same - I rock up to a a campsite and can't see why on earth my little tent should get charged the same as a bloody great caravan. But now running my own site I have a little sympathy. 'Emplacement' space on our site isn't an issue because the area is massive for the maximum number of people, but the main costs to the site are showers, water, cleaning etc. A camping car that arrives, uses their own shower and electricity costs us nothing except maybe mowing their patch of grass;) A cyclist will arrive, use our showers at least once, use the covered area, the on-site kitchen, the tables and chairs, do their laundry - in affect he/she will be far more expensive to us. They will usually only stay a night so even the admin and time and effort in dealing with them is more. Don't get me wrong - I'm in this game because I want as many cyclists here as possible because it's what I love; but in the end they barely cover their costs.

This year we've operated a very simple system - 5 Euro per person (2.50 for under 18's) and 5 Euro for hook-up. No costs for emplacements, vehicles, dogs or anything else.

bretonbikes wrote:We have exactly that - an open area just for cyclists/lightweights... However the costing thing is difficult. I'm exactly the same - I rock up to a a campsite and can't see why on earth my little tent should get charged the same as a bloody great caravan. But now running my own site I have a little sympathy. 'Emplacement' space on our site isn't an issue because the area is massive for the maximum number of people, but the main costs to the site are showers, water, cleaning etc. A camping car that arrives, uses their own shower and electricity costs us nothing except maybe mowing their patch of grass;) A cyclist will arrive, use our showers at least once, use the covered area, the on-site kitchen, the tables and chairs, do their laundry - in affect he/she will be far more expensive to us. They will usually only stay a night so even the admin and time and effort in dealing with them is more. Don't get me wrong - I'm in this game because I want as many cyclists here as possible because it's what I love; but in the end they barely cover their costs.

This year we've operated a very simple system - 5 Euro per person (2.50 for under 18's) and 5 Euro for hook-up. No costs for emplacements, vehicles, dogs or anything else.

You might be interested in the approach taken by some (most?) Slovene campsites which is that instead of charging for the car/vehicl they charge a flat rate per person but then they offer a discount for walkers and cyclists. So there's a nice simple price structure and they get a bit of goodwill from the walkers/cyclists - which of course they wouldn't get if they charged separately for the vehicle. They all charge a good deal more than 5 euros though ...

andymiller wrote:

bretonbikes wrote:We have exactly that - an open area just for cyclists/lightweights... However the costing thing is difficult. I'm exactly the same - I rock up to a a campsite and can't see why on earth my little tent should get charged the same as a bloody great caravan. But now running my own site I have a little sympathy. 'Emplacement' space on our site isn't an issue because the area is massive for the maximum number of people, but the main costs to the site are showers, water, cleaning etc. A camping car that arrives, uses their own shower and electricity costs us nothing except maybe mowing their patch of grass;) A cyclist will arrive, use our showers at least once, use the covered area, the on-site kitchen, the tables and chairs, do their laundry - in affect he/she will be far more expensive to us. They will usually only stay a night so even the admin and time and effort in dealing with them is more. Don't get me wrong - I'm in this game because I want as many cyclists here as possible because it's what I love; but in the end they barely cover their costs.

This year we've operated a very simple system - 5 Euro per person (2.50 for under 18's) and 5 Euro for hook-up. No costs for emplacements, vehicles, dogs or anything else.

You might be interested in the approach taken by some (most?) Slovene campsites which is that instead of charging for the car/vehicl they charge a flat rate per person but then they offer a discount for walkers and cyclists. So there's a nice simple price structure and they get a bit of goodwill from the walkers/cyclists - which of course they wouldn't get if they charged separately for the vehicle. They all charge a good deal more than 5 euros though ...

It is a flat rate per person. But as I explained - from an economic point of view cyclists probably should pay more;-)