The Sun - Holidays for £9.50 - What a load of Sh**
I recently got sent some junk mail from The Sun Holidays for £9.50 offer which they are about to start plugging again. It annoys me as we got totally stitched up last year by one of their holiday destination partners.
We decided to take them up on the offer and arranged for 8 of us to go down to a place near Bournemouth for a couple of nights to stay in a mobile home thingy. We are all nearing 30 and are married or in a couple. So, we paid the £9.50 each and booked the holiday through the Sun. (£76).
About a month went by and then we recieved a letter from the campsite saying that we had to pay a £25 booking fee, a £50 security deposit and worse still, a £50 “Noise Deposit” that was payable on arrival in cash and would not be given back until 2 weeks after we got home.
It sounded to me like the campsite was trying to make-up it’s costs for being involved with this Sun promo. So, I phoned them to ask them why they needed this noise deposit and even if they did need it, why couldn’t I have it back the day we left? We were duly told that people like us cause trouble and the £50 deposit was to make up for lost bookings that would be caused by our actions!
I stressed that we were couples nearly in our thirties and that this wasn’t a teenage holiday. I also asked, who decides if we are too noisy then, and what is the criteria? She said that if one person complains, then you lose your deposit!!
What a load a shit! So basically, we would have to pay our original £76, plus £25, plus £50, plus £50 = £201. Suspiciously, this was exactly how much they charge at their normal rates for the weekend. Obviously I knew we would never see that money again so I cancelled the trip and asked for our money back.
Guess what - apparently we broke our contract with them and were therefore not entitled to our money back. What a con!
So, in conlusion - do not go anywhere near Hols for £9.50 promo - it’s a total con. Grrrr!
Pete said,
January 16, 2007 @ 3:26 pm
It sounds like it is the campsite that is acting unscrupulously here and not The Sun, I think you should name and shame the campsite, I’m pretty sure that charging a ‘noise deposit’ is far from legal! Di you report what the campsite was doing to the company that organise this promotion for the Sun? I’m sure if you did they would stop using them.
HW Jon said,
January 16, 2007 @ 3:46 pm
Yeah I agree, I think it’s the campsite that’s at fault. I was going to chase it further but I just couldn’t be bothered in the end. I’ll put the campsite name up later on - I can’t remember it at the mo, I’ll ask the wife and do it then. Cheers Pete.
steve said,
March 1, 2007 @ 7:11 pm
we had a similar problem last year in devon,we arrived at the site and were told by one young lady at reception that if we were not satisfied with our caravan we could upgrade,so we had a look at it and it was filthy so we went back to reception and asked for an upgrade only to be told by another young lady that there werent any left.so we went back and cleaned that van ourselves (it hadnt even been vacuumed).but we still had to pay for entertainment passes,electric and linen hire which i thought was a cheek.total cost was £107.and back in 2000 i was told at one site “well what do you want for £9.50?.at which point i replied that i wouldnt stay another night there and i would be reporting the site to the sun,and guess what?the manager suddenly remembered that they had some brand new chalets and i could have one of those.so you see it pays to open your mouth AND OPEN IT WIDE!!!!
mandy said,
May 21, 2007 @ 12:16 pm
i have been going on the sun 9.50 holidays for 5years now and have never had a problem,this is the first time i have been turnt down for a short break,mainly as i normally book out of season and i tried mid season this time i also have to pay extra for this,a total of £60.00 this does not include passes or electric ang gas use,but this is still cheaper than booking a break without the vouchers as i have been trying to do all week,so i say well done to the sun just watch the parks that you choose.
Dave Murray said,
May 30, 2007 @ 12:05 pm
HI all lets see the name of the camp site and ill send all i know that us camp sites for work or pleasure, we use them alot for our work away stays
Cheers
Dave
kevin said,
June 1, 2007 @ 11:58 am
Hi all.
apologies but I have only just come across your website. I work for a family Holiday park group which was approached by the Sun Newspaper to participate in this ‘£9.50′ scheme. Because every holiday company has a different style of tariff it is impossible to do a cross comparison. For example we run weekly prices which are inclusive of all electricity and Club membership and some of our competitiors charge seperately for ithose items. So I believe the sun has tried to create a level playing field but it appears that both Steve and John have had a really bad experience. We for example were asked by the sun to charge for electricity and club membership seperately - And we have found that sometimes it is cheaper to book direct with us rather than go through the Sun!! We only have one park that participates and to be honest we find that we have some extremly wealthy people who change their reading habits just for this promotion and who expect something for nothing when they turn up on our Parks - and they still complain about everything!!
Usually each holiday Park group is trying to stimulate bookings in the shoulder periods of their business year and the Sun has tried to capitalise on this to increase their readership figures. Based upon our experiences, that works for them in the short term but anyone who is sensible should be able to see that it is false economy in the long run.
I have also found that this year some of the larger Holiday parks have been offering 50% discounts for holidays in July and August but when I started looking at this they had already inflated their weekly rates by at least £100 to compensate for this offer .
We are an extremely ethical and friendly company that has been around since 1912 and we offer value for money holidays on parks with great facilities.
For 2008 we intend to move away from this discounting policy and offer truthfull representations.
At the end of the day our loyal return business is between 70 and 80% annually. Something our competitors would die for.
check out our website www.hoburne.com
anyway sorry if this comes across as a sales message
regards
kevin
John Welsh said,
June 16, 2007 @ 12:34 pm
I was sorry to hear that you were ripped off. We have had 3 good holidays through this promotion. We were disappointed with the accommodation the 1st time around but since we have taken the chosen site up on the upgrades we have been very happy. It looks like you have to choose your site very carefully.
mrs lockett said,
July 25, 2007 @ 7:22 pm
sorry about your experience with sun hols we have had 3 lovely hols with them but i am fussy and always very cheeky. the campsite shouldnt have charged you extra and the sun should have stepped in. i know they have something in small print about all young partys but as you said your near 30yrs .i dont know if its too late but i would write to them i am awaiting news on my 4th hol with them. yours toni
pam every said,
August 11, 2007 @ 12:42 pm
I have been on 3 Sun holidays and never had a problem. I have been to Brean Sands twice and Trecco Bay once, on all occasions had a great time. You cannot blame the Sun, we are looking forward to 2 more trips this year, one in |September and one in October. We have to pay for services, linen and sometimes entertainment passes, but all in all, it was great. Considering the cost I know some people have paid to go to the same places, we considered our holidays cheap, with the same conveniences as others had paid a lot more.
carl said,
August 12, 2007 @ 4:21 pm
i have been on the sun hoildays about 6 or 7 tamrs and had a goog time and say it good vauje for money
Sabrina said,
September 6, 2007 @ 1:09 pm
yes totally agree - i booked my £9.50 holiday with the Sun and waited patiently to find out what date i had been granted - 3rd choice and 5thdate later (after making calls to the sun as I had not heard from the holiday resort) i was informed that the holiday camp will be sending me a written confirmation - instead today i receieved a letter telling me that my booking had been cancelled due to an outstanding balance????!!!!! what a con i am fuming - a stern letter has been written now to camp site and The Sun wanting my money back!!!