cheque vacance?

[Tony F Dordogne]

Does anybody have any idea on how these things work? Though I'm likely not to have spelt it correctly, I think they're sort of luncheon vouchers for workers going on holiday.

A friend of mine who has a gite has asked me to post this as they have never come across it before.

[Clair]

You'll find some basic info (in French) at the following:

http://www.tourisme.equipement.gouv.fr/fr/z2/vacances/cheques/cheque_aujourdhui.jsp

http://www.ancv.com/

and here.

[Quillan]

If it helps we have had two people ask to use them in 4 years although this may differ in different areas. We said no but they came anyway and paid in cash.

[Teamedup]

Why didn't you take them Quillan? They are so common in France and a good way of compensating folks for their lousy wages.

[Quillan]

Hey can somebody give me some then, you want to try our line of work [;)] . Actually we looked in to them ages ago after we got the first person asking about them and found it quite expensive for us. We thought we would wait and see. For the last three years the tourist office has had us (incorrectly) in their book as taking them but we have only had one other person ask so it just does not seem worth the effort. Believe me if I thought taking them would have people queuing at the door I would.

[Teamedup]

Why was it going to be expensive for you. Surely you get reimbursed with the value on these cheques.

We have never had them as the CE we have is rather good. Not as good as the EDF CE though which is so big that it's CE has it's own CE and there was a book out about the millions that have gone missing from the funds, can't remember if it was the EDF's CE or the CE's CE though.

[Jo Taylor]

Cheques Vacances are worth €10 or €20, and can be used to pay for holiday accommodation, leisure activities and restaurant meals amongst other things. They’re valid for two years from the date of issue. If you accept them, you must register with the Agence Nationale pour les Chèques-Vacances (ANCV). Registration is free, details are on their website. They charge a one per cent fee, with a minimum of €2 for amounts under €200. You will be paid by bank transfer within 21 days.

www.ancv.com

HTH
Jo

[nimportequoi]

It's worth adding that you are only allowed to join the scheme if you are with either G de F or Clévacances. ANCV explained this when they rejected my application last week!

[Clair]

[quote user="SusanAH"]It's worth adding that you are only allowed to join the scheme if you are with either G de F or Clévacances. ANCV explained this when they rejected my application last week![/quote]

That's not the impression I had when I looked at their website:

[quote]Information:  Pour les meublés et les chambres d'hôtes, merci de nous indiquer votre classement

préfectoral et/ou le nom de votre label dans la zone "commentaires" en bas de page.[/quote]

I assume they would not consider any gîte indépendant (i.e. not linked to GdF, CV or préfecture), as there would be no way to assess the level of rating. Is this your case?

[nimportequoi]

Yes, that's my case, I'm not with either organisation. Don't get me started on their criteria of rating. My accommodation is far superior to a lot of G de F properties (the opinion of all the French people who have stayed here) but two of my properties do not qualify on technicalities, e.g. in one of them a beam being 2 cm too low in the living area.

[Clair]

[quote user="SusanAH"]Yes, that's my case, I'm not with either organisation. Don't get me started on their criteria of rating. My accommodation is far superior to a lot of G de F properties (the opinion of all the French people who have stayed here) but two of my properties do not qualify on technicalities, e.g. in one of them a beam being 2 cm too low in the living area. [/quote]

I know exactly what you mean.

I had a similar problem with the préfecture's tourism bloke, who came to assess my gîte indépendant (9 months after I sent the form!): my living room is 2m2 too small to be given the superior star rating, even thought the assessor admitted "the property is better equipped than many visitor's own homes"...

Although the bookings had been coming along nicely even before the rating,  I still thought it worthwhile as the assessement covers me for 5 years for only €50 and offers some  legal assistance in case of disagreement with a visitor.

This also allows me to advertise the property in the local tourist offices (they would not accept me before I was listed by the préfecture) and knowing how much French people rely on officialdom,  I suppose it also offers them some kind of reassurance to know we have been assessed and rated. [um]

[Quillan]

We have a room we can't advertise with both of them as it is half a square metre to small. The French like you to be registered as they have some form of protection and from our point of view it offers us protection as well. Not to mentiuon the fact that compaired to last year our reservation rate has incesed by around 35% so far. Shame I can't send people on unles it's to fellow members

[nimportequoi]

Chambre d'hotes are different to gites in that case. I understand there are advantages to belonging to a group like Clévacances or G de F but with website advertising now people get a pretty good idea of what they will get for their money. I get plenty of bookings from my other advertising, from the French as well as the UK market. If I went with G de F I would have to half my tariffs as well as pay them for the pleasure of being a member. I also fail to see that meeting their criteria is necessarily a guarantee of quality. I would rather have a clean, nicely furnished place with a beam that is slightly under 2m than a coalhole which conforms because it is the right size and has a pressure cooker. I was speaking to a French gite owner only yesterday who has always been with G de F but wanted to know where else he could advertise because he is fed up with the amount he is paying G de F.

[Quillan]

Judging by your comments you were a bit upset about not being able to register with GDF.

You are correct there are different rules for Gites than for B&B's which is rather obvious really because they are two totally different things as I am sure you are aware. To imply that GDF Gites are, in your words "coalholes" shows a total lack of respect and understanding not only for GDF members but for GDF themselves, sour grapes I rather suspect.

There are rules and obviously you could not meet them hence you were refused entry. Before you spout of about cotistations from GDF you should make it clear what it is that you get from them in the form of publicity from not only their multi lingual website but all the books world wide in which your Gite or B&B will be advertised. There is also the matter of legal and financial protection that you get, the ability to get grants and many other things besides. One good thing is the regular notices about scam’s, none payers and alike which there are many and for warned is for armed and it’s something YOU don’t get as a none member. To be honest if you have to loose half you Gite income to pay GDF then you are either not doing very well or you are charging some ridiculously low price.

I am with GDF and Clévacances for all the reasons I have mentioned and I view them as organisations to which I pay and am a member and like in any business if they did not provide a good return on my investment I would not use them. I am also a member of other organisations world wide from which I receive a grading which also helps my business.

As for your French friend and him leaving GDF because he “is fed up with the amount he is paying” this probably means he is paying out and getting little or nothing back in the form of guests. Well that’s hardly GDF’s fault is it? As in any business that does not perform you need to look for the reason why and not go around blaming it on others.

Now you have read this you are probably seething but then if you go round talking about something you know little or nothing about then expect to get called to task.

 

[nimportequoi]

I don't understand why you are getting quite so agitated about this. Did you read my post properly? I am not against the organisations at all, I have no sour grapes about one of my properties not conforming, the other two do, but I choose not to go with them. I like doing my own advertising and marketing and I have bookings for 11 months of the year. So I think I do know what I'm talking about. I did not imply that ALL G de F properties were coal holes at all. All I can go on are the comments from French guests who I have had staying here who much preferred my accommodation even though it didn't conform to G de F criteria. I can earn more by NOT being with G de F than I could by joining the organisation. So that is what I have done. 

I gather by your rather defensive reply that I rather hit an open nerve, I presume that you're having a tough time with bookings.

[Tony F Dordogne]

Thanks for the very useful replies about cheque vacance.

Interesting how quickly the original thread was lost and turned into something completely different, I didn't actually ask about GdF or anything about registration with them, size of rooms, whatever.

[Clair]

[quote user="Tony F Dordogne"]Thanks for the very useful replies about cheque vacance.Interesting how quickly the original thread was lost and turned into something completely different, I didn't actually ask about GdF or anything about registration with them, size of rooms, whatever.[/quote]

True enough Tony F, but being registered with one of the official classifying bodies is a requirement in order to be accepted in the Chèques Vacances register...