woodswave

The following 'thoughts' have some disadvantages if implemented but they have worked for me for the last five years with the charter of three yachts 'bareboat'. An area of 'hire' notorious for 'bad' customers. Perhaps some of it could cross over to holiday accomodation. a) I am always present to greet and jointly inspect at the start and take back at the end, and it is a condition of the booking. b) I always take photos of detail I on rare occasions subsequently find during my deep clean, before rectifying it. With digital it costs nothing if they are not needed, and it makes argument more difficult. c) I only ever accept last minute bookings from repeat clients I really want to see back again. d) I take a meaningful security deposit, something which generally doesn't seem to happen in holiday accomodation. £50 doesn't compensate for much. Without a doubt this approach 'costs' me some bookings and I won't ever get rich, but it also helps keep some very expensive kit in top condition and helps retain some very loyal customers who won't charter with anyone else. I know which I regard as the priority. woodswave  

Blimey, your amazing! I've learnt more in 24 hrs than I've been able to make sense of by reading in three months. All advice taken and greatly appreciated. Thanks.  

Apologies to everyone if these queries have been answered before but if they have, I can't find where. If for reasons of convenience (ie. time to look and to be supplied) I buy my baths / Showers / Basins and Toilets in the UK, will the standard French fittings match up? Secondly, anyone know where I can get some doors 'dipped' in Normandy? Any thoughts would be appreciated.  

As a new contributor to this or any other forum I have read this topic in full. It is interesting to read what contributors will find acceptable as against what they will not, whilst seeking 'economy'. Having used them all with the exception of Norfolk Line (because I cannot for the life of me get the online booking to work) I have established that for me the priority will always simply be the 'attitude' of the staff. For that reason in spite of having purchased 5 Speed Ferries 'Super Tickets', then subsequently travelling on only one round trip with them, I shall never travel with them again. Thus discarding the best part of £250. Foolish and extravagant I know, but for me an essential reaction to their apparent arrogance. Allow me to explain, I did one round trip with them and was late loading by an hour and a half on each trip. No explanation and no apology. So be it, this happens. Then on the return trip I was early enough to be first in the queue. I was loaded first and sent down into the front of the nose and of course was then literally the last vehicle off. It being a busy Saturday night on our already late arrival at Dover it then took me 45 minutes to get through the queue to get out past customs. I have since sent two polite E mails querying whether I should expect this because it was loading policy (apparently 1st on last off) or whether it was a one off and therefore an error. Both were 'auto' acknowledged but never replied to. In other words I appear not to be worth even the courtesy of confirmation of policy or even an explanation never mind an apology. In my book that sort of discourtesy borders on arrogance and only invites accusations of treating customers with contempt. Thus my future guests, fee paying and otherwise will all be notified of this experience. How they view it is a matter for them of course, but with three ferry operators all asking almost identical fares, Speed Ferries may yet discover that attention to detail and attitude might be at least as important as competitive fares. Or perhaps more likely, they will not. Thus relying on being 'cheap', from my perspective, in more ways than one.