New camping pods are now available for those wishing to experience the latest twist on camping.
Europe’s premier touring organisation, The Caravan Club, is renowned for representing over one million caravanners, motorhomers and trailer-tenters as well as welcoming tent campers onto many of its 200 sites across the UK. However, The Club is now offering a new camping experience in the form of cosy wooden pods, extending the choice available to outdoor enthusiasts.
On the 15 August, The Club introduced the aptly named pods; ‘Belle’ and ‘Rock’, to their Brighton Site, near to the East Sussex coast. With ‘Eye Pod’ and ‘Paddington Pod’ on their London Abbey Wood Site and ‘Bonnie’ and ‘Clyde’ on their Scottish Strathclyde Country Park Sites, available for booking from 18 September.
The pods are designed to bridge the gap between tent camping and caravanning, providing a permanent structure which offers the essence of a tent but does not require any erecting and is therefore a convenient and ready-to-use option, just like a caravan.
UK Sites Product Development Manager, for The Caravan Club, Ellen Shotts, says, “The Caravan Club understands that the overriding reason why people choose to caravan or motorhome is because they enjoy the outdoors. The ethos of The Club has always been to enable access to the outdoors, therefore these pods allow The Club to extend the choice available, giving people the freedom to choose how they wish to experience it.”
Shotts continues, “The pods are simple and basic in design, providing an accommodation option on site that can be used to peoples own level of requirements. Unlike a tent they are well insulated and have beds, a table and chairs and heating, with lighting and electrics included. Club Sites all have full shower and washroom facilities on hand completing the package. Due to their level of comfort the pods are available for booking 365-days-a-year ensuring that camping doesn’t have to be seasonal.”
The new pods are a cost effective way to holiday in the outdoors but also provide a viable accommodation option for those on a budget, who wish to visit a certain area. At £35 a night they are cheaper than most hotel or B&B rooms. The pods have beds for two and the space to accommodate two small roll-out or inflatable beds on the floor for children, along with a porch area for cooking, making them perfect for families of four who have previously tent camped.
The six pods are a trial for The Club, and while the two in Brighton have already proven extremely popular with over an 80% occupancy rate since it was available for booking, The Club is hoping to receive further feedback once all six are in situ.
The Club plans to roll-out additional pods to other sites on its UK Site network and is keen to hear if people like them as they are or if they have any ideas of how they can be improved upon.
For pod bookings and enquiries please contact the sites directly:
Abbey Wood Caravan Club Site, London – 0208 311 7708
Brighton Caravan Club Site, East Sussex – 01273 626546
Strathclyde Caravan Club Site, nr Glasgow – 01698 853300
For further information visit http://www.caravanclub.co.uk/uk-holidays/camping-pods
Christopher Macgowan
@motorhomenews
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