Bookings 2004

[Jbardot]

Hello there,

New to the forum, just wondered how bookings were going this year in dept 47 for gte owners.

For us its a little slower than normal.

Many thanks

JB

[JudyM]

LAST EDITED ON 14-Mar-04 AT 08:12 PM (GMT)

Welcome aboard! Where is 47? We're in 14 (Calvados, Normandy), and our place is fully booked for this year, plus we have 3 weeks booked for 2005! I have also passed on loads of other booking requests to local gite owners.

I really don't know the reason for the huge number of enquiries -it can't all be the 'D-Day 60th anniversary effect', surely?

JudyM

[letrangere]

Hi JB,

Hate to appear bit of wet blanket but could it be over-supply in the SW? From a gite renter's perspective there are so very many more places to choose from these days. I nearly pulled a muscle lifting the Chez Nous brochure (must weigh nigh on a kilo) and look at how even the ads in LF magazine have, what, quadrupled in the last couple of years?

Good luck though.

M

[Liz]

We are nowhere near you but I have found this year that bookings have really taken off, particularly when compared with last year when we only got 13 weeks. We are not in a major tourist destination, people tend to by-pass us and head for the South Brittany coast.

I have found it of great benefit to spread my advertising around quite a bit. I don't think you will ever get one company that will fill the place for you and you need at least least 3 or 4 outlets IMHO. This is helped by the proliferation of web sites offering free trials. They cost nothing other than a bit of time to set up your copy and photos and you can do this all yourself. If you are satisfied with the results you can then pay up the amount required to continue for a longer period. I have found some of these sites generate nothing at all but others have been very successful. I also find that people leave bookings from Internet sites much later than they used to when everything was in a printed brochure.

Liz (29)

[letrangere]

JB, further on this. I sent off for a handful of brochures at the beginning of the year, Chez Nous, French Affair, etc. Have never booked through a brochure but just wanted to see what was available. 2 months on, I've started to receive flyers from these companies urging us to "book now and save money". Offers include GBP 50/week off ALL bookings, even in high season, and what look to me to be some incredible bargains on ferry crossings and en route hotels. So they too must be finding things a bit quiet this year.

Margaret