gite bookings for 2017

For topics that are specific to France, please go here.
cab47
Posts: 2
Joined: Fri Feb 03, 2017 12:16 pm

gite bookings for 2017

Post by cab47 »

Just wondered how anyone else is doing ?
We would normally get plenty enquiries / bookings at this time of year but nothing much at all in the last month or so..
GillianF
Posts: 826
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2012 12:06 pm
Location: Dordogne

Post by GillianF »

This time last year we'd hardly had any enquiries and although we ended the season with five weeks booked they all came in late. The season started and finished later than usual.

This year we've had a few enquiries but they've all been of the "we want to book" rather than the "is it available, does it have this etc." nature and turned into bookings without hesitation. We've got four weeks confirmed and waiting on a fifth as I type.

This year's bookings are mostly week only though which might reflect the current uncertainty, financial situation.

But, in our experience there is rarely any 'logic' to a good year or a bad year - it just is!
Joffan
Posts: 32
Joined: Tue Nov 10, 2009 9:29 am
Location: Prades, 66500

Post by Joffan »

I manage a number of properties and at the beginning of the year I had 30% less bookings but that has steadily improved and as of today I am 10% down on 2016.

I think some of it is to do with the poor exchange rate but when this happened a few years ago bookings were received later with people waiting for sterling to strengthen. Although sterling didn't strengthen they then thought what the heck we'll book anyway.
Dusty
Posts: 356
Joined: Wed Dec 19, 2012 3:32 pm
Location: St Cernin de Labarde, Dordogne
Contact:

Post by Dusty »

Its been a funny old year so far....we started off taking quite a few bookings before Oct last year, which was the first time we had done so since we started 4 years ago. Then it died without so much as an enquiry until last week when we suddenly got 2 bookings and an enquiry, very strange.

I wonder whether it is anything to do with our subscription to OD ending this week and OD putting us to the top of the list to boost our confidence in renewing...just because I am paranoid doesn't mean that everyone isn't out to get me.

Good luck
petitbois
Posts: 347
Joined: Fri Jun 20, 2008 6:54 am

Post by petitbois »

dreadful year - our worst ever since we started. Our little Gitefor2 used to have at least 20wks booked by now for the season, but this year not even any regulars - up till this last Thursday I had nothing booked at all, but over last few days have taken 4 wks of 1wk bookings - all enquired, booked & paid within 2hrs.... our family gite is also normally fully booked for the summer season by now - I have 11wks of regulars booked, not 1 single new enquiry since July2016 & most of July & August remains empty. Fortunately my regulars are all shoulder season couples only, so just hope that enquiries will start coming for summer family holiday time soon. Am going to have to discount i think. As for B&B just French regulars booked with 3 new bookings only via bdotcom for long weekend stays (probably weddings) For various reasons think there will be less from Uk this year (elections, refugees, exchange rate, terror alerts etc)Am waiting for France, Holland & Belgium to 'wake up' & start thinking about holidays.
GillianF
Posts: 826
Joined: Mon Aug 20, 2012 12:06 pm
Location: Dordogne

Post by GillianF »

We put last year's late and poor bookings down to the referendum, exchange rate, terrorism, ferry/air strikes, refugees etc. etc. I don't think any of those things have gone away but maybe people have got used to it all or just think "What the hell, we need our holiday."

Last year all our bookings were paid by bank transfer which was a first for us. This year everyone has confirmed they will book within hours of my e-mail but are paying by cheque and not in any hurry to do so.

Dusty: We had this with OD when our subscription was up for renewal. Three enquiries all arrived within minutes of each other at midnight on a particular day. I was very suspicious as when I replied I never heard back from any of them. I questioned OD as I suspected they had either been 'hacked' or staff were being used to generate false enquiries. I never got a satisfaction reply and voted with my feet, and cheque book, in the end.
User avatar
Bassman
Posts: 757
Joined: Tue Oct 05, 2010 1:08 pm
Location: Charente Maritime
Contact:

Post by Bassman »

Its been a very good year for us to date, pretty much late May to end of August is booked in all our 3 larger properties. Our 1 bedroom however is doing really badly with only 1 summer holiday week booked, hopefully that will start to improve as we get closer to the summer. We nervously gave OD the boot last year & spent some time looking for niche sites to advertise on which seems to have paid off! No particular site has stood out but is been a few from most of them, saying that we have had a lot more bookings from HFD since their new site was launched.
Post Reply