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Camp Sparkle 2012
Jun. 1st, 2011 12:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
nopseudWe don't hang about around here :-)
For those of you who don't know, the owners of the house at Alfreton won't be letting it out next year. Pen and I have already started searching for an alternative venue.
Prices in general for holiday rentals have risen steeply since we started Camp Sparkle, and we have been very, very lucky in being able to use Beech Hill House for the last two years. For reference, The Old Stables in Lyndhurst now charges £3900 for a week in May, while Beech Hill House this year was £1250.
Unless we strike equally lucky again, we're unlikely to find somewhere else with such amazing facilities for such a low price. (And I promise, we will keep looking!) Without that luck, though, one of two things will have to happen -- the price for accommodation will have to go up, or the quality of the house will have to go down and we'll probably need to move back to a February/March date.
We won't be going back to Ebenezar Chapel, but if we keep the price even close to what it was last time (which worked out at £75 per person for 7 nights), then we're looking at somewhere much more plainly furnished, without a hot tub, and probably without the same quality of TV, kitchen, beds etc -- think more 'old fashioned guest house' than 'chic modern home'. On the other hand, the higher the price bracket Pen and I can look at, the more options we have when it comes to finding houses, and it also means that we can book months when the weather is likely to be better.
So a (locked) poll. I know it goes up a long way, but we wanted to get as clear an idea as possible of our options.
[Poll #1747746]
Another thing that determines price is the number of people who can make it. If we book a house that's too big, then we waste money on bedspace we don't use. On the other hand, if we go for a smaller house, then we might fill up and leave some people unable to come. However, considering houses that take 16 or 18 max would increase our options quite a lot. So, even though it's a long way in advance, we'd like to do some polls on when people would be able to come.
The first poll is for months in 2012 when you COULD come to Camp Sparkle. The second poll is for when you would PREFER Camp Sparkle to take place. October is missing because Pen can't make that month, and we ruled out December and January for weather, finances and people being busy. We've included July and August, but there is a significant price hike for properties during those months, because the UK schools have the main summer holidays then.
Please only fill in the poll if you definitely intend to come to Camp in 2012, barring Acts of God, unexpected unemployment etc. There's also a write-in option for specific dates you definitely can't make it.
[Poll #1747747]
Finally, we'd really like to hear your thoughts in more detail on the type of accommodation that you'd be happy with for Camp. For example: Is it important that there's one living room that seats everyone? Do you think we all need to be able to sit down to eat together? Would it be acceptable to have some sofabeds as well as real beds? Would you be happy without a shop in walking distance and having a schedule for shopping trips? Should we have a large flatscreen TV, or was the projector okay? What about hot tubs? What about having a swimming pool, or wireless broadband in the house? What's the minimum standard, what amenities do you really need to have a good holiday, what you can't live without and what you don't care about, etc, etc.
Comment away on anything and everything! (Or e-mail Pen and me if you'd rather.)
For those of you who don't know, the owners of the house at Alfreton won't be letting it out next year. Pen and I have already started searching for an alternative venue.
Prices in general for holiday rentals have risen steeply since we started Camp Sparkle, and we have been very, very lucky in being able to use Beech Hill House for the last two years. For reference, The Old Stables in Lyndhurst now charges £3900 for a week in May, while Beech Hill House this year was £1250.
Unless we strike equally lucky again, we're unlikely to find somewhere else with such amazing facilities for such a low price. (And I promise, we will keep looking!) Without that luck, though, one of two things will have to happen -- the price for accommodation will have to go up, or the quality of the house will have to go down and we'll probably need to move back to a February/March date.
We won't be going back to Ebenezar Chapel, but if we keep the price even close to what it was last time (which worked out at £75 per person for 7 nights), then we're looking at somewhere much more plainly furnished, without a hot tub, and probably without the same quality of TV, kitchen, beds etc -- think more 'old fashioned guest house' than 'chic modern home'. On the other hand, the higher the price bracket Pen and I can look at, the more options we have when it comes to finding houses, and it also means that we can book months when the weather is likely to be better.
So a (locked) poll. I know it goes up a long way, but we wanted to get as clear an idea as possible of our options.
[Poll #1747746]
Another thing that determines price is the number of people who can make it. If we book a house that's too big, then we waste money on bedspace we don't use. On the other hand, if we go for a smaller house, then we might fill up and leave some people unable to come. However, considering houses that take 16 or 18 max would increase our options quite a lot. So, even though it's a long way in advance, we'd like to do some polls on when people would be able to come.
The first poll is for months in 2012 when you COULD come to Camp Sparkle. The second poll is for when you would PREFER Camp Sparkle to take place. October is missing because Pen can't make that month, and we ruled out December and January for weather, finances and people being busy. We've included July and August, but there is a significant price hike for properties during those months, because the UK schools have the main summer holidays then.
Please only fill in the poll if you definitely intend to come to Camp in 2012, barring Acts of God, unexpected unemployment etc. There's also a write-in option for specific dates you definitely can't make it.
[Poll #1747747]
Finally, we'd really like to hear your thoughts in more detail on the type of accommodation that you'd be happy with for Camp. For example: Is it important that there's one living room that seats everyone? Do you think we all need to be able to sit down to eat together? Would it be acceptable to have some sofabeds as well as real beds? Would you be happy without a shop in walking distance and having a schedule for shopping trips? Should we have a large flatscreen TV, or was the projector okay? What about hot tubs? What about having a swimming pool, or wireless broadband in the house? What's the minimum standard, what amenities do you really need to have a good holiday, what you can't live without and what you don't care about, etc, etc.
Comment away on anything and everything! (Or e-mail Pen and me if you'd rather.)
