Keith Gooden:
Welcome back to the Motorhome Matt podcast. I’m Keith Gooden and I’m with Motorhome Matt! A lot’s happened since we last spoke, Matt, we’ve had Omicron boosters. Well, a happy new year to you because we are at the beginning of January! So where should we start?
Matt Sims:
Happy new year, Keith. Indeed, what a Christmas it has been! I remember we discussed this podcast back in December and being boosted wasn’t even a prospect for either of us. We are both old enough to qualify. It’s been an incredible month has’t it? I think the reality is dawning upon all of us that a holiday in the UK is looking likely again. I was talking to a customer this morning who has two weeks planned in Turkey in the summer and they, well who knows, will they be going? I think you booked a holiday this weekend, did you not, for later this year and you’re anticipating EasyJet will refund you yet again. So, lots of uncertainty is certainly the landscape we find ourselves in, which of course means now is a great time to be booking and planning a UK holiday.
Keith Gooden:
We should talk about boosters because obviously people are being very guarded. They’re being very careful about where they’re going, particularly if they’re of a certain age. Let’s talk very briefly about when they come to see you here in Weston-super-mare, you and your staff wearing masks, of course. You’re boosted aren’t you?
Matt Sims:
We are indeed, yes. We’re all double jabbed and we adopted a really strong COVID protocol back in 2020. I, remember thinking how on earth are we gonna do this? You know, it was very, very daunting. I became a bit of a chemical nerd when it came to fogging machines and treating the interiors of motorhomes. We continued with that kind of regime throughout 2021 and we will, of course, be continuing with it in 2022. In reality, we fog all the motorhomes on their return. Then they’re deemed safe for our team to enter and clean them. They go through a fingertip antiviral clean, plus the usual domestic clean, and then they’re fogged again. After that they’re sealed prior to its next holiday maker arriving. So there’s a whole regime and costs to us that we go through and endure, but they are essential and they will once again be our norm as we go into 2022.
Keith Gooden:
I’ve got a father-in-law who has just come back off a cruise around the Canary islands and the holiday business does actually seem to be very, very careful and they’re regimes, as you say, do seem to be working. He himself had to take three tests while he was away. When he came back into the country he got a negative PCR test. Cruise ships are well known for passing, viruses around in the past, norovirus has hit cruise ships very badly and COVID-19, particularly Omicron, is easily transmitted. So, if they’re across it, people can put their minds at rest for businesses like yours, can’t they?
Matt Sims:
Absolutely, yes. We even go as far as fogging our own offices and our little shop as well. We want to keep our teams safe. We’ve been temperature testing and doing a self declaration of health every day. We’ve been doing that religiously on arrival at work every day, as many businesses have. And I think you giving peace of mind to customers is of paramount importance, down to wearing a mask whilst you’re inside. We do try and avoid getting in a motorhome with a customer at the handover and the handovers are all done on video so the customer can watch that from the comfort of their sofa, or the bath even, as somebody admitted to me they had done. And then when they arrive, they are pretty clued up on how everything works and we can answer any basic questions before they head off.
Keith Gooden:
Let’s use the dirty word: Staycation. Now, you’ve been talking to me, but off mic about this and how people online say a staycation isn’t holidaying at home, it’s just taking day trips. But I think most people now accept that the word staycation is in the lexicon. It’s in the vocabulary as having a holiday at home in 2022. What with Omicron and COVID-19 uncertainty, it looks like a lot of people are gonna be going for that. We’re in early January, speaking now at the traditional time to book holidays, what is your advice for people who want a motorhome this year?
Matt Sims:
Book early. Simple as that, just book early, reserve the motorhome and then start thinking about where you want to go. A lot of campsite still aren’t open yet, but if you’re thinking of a motorhome hire holiday this year then just book it now, whoever you’re gonna book with. The good news is there are more motorhome hire businesses in the UK than ever. That would be my guess anyway, because lots of people bought them last year and probably think “we need to earn some money from this”. And there’s a whole podcast episode there, which we’ll cover another time, on how to do that. But there will be lots of people having a go hiring them out on Airbnb or companies like our own motorhome holiday company, where you can hire one of a number of motorhomes from a business like ours. But my advice would definitely be to book early, beat any price rises that are inevitable. The VAT is going back up in March for the leisure and tourism sector, so our costs are going to go back up and I’m sure you will see costs of holidays going up in line with that too. Operating costs have really risen this year, just for us in terms of the chemicals that we’re using, the fogging machine, our staffing costs have gone up and so everything is going to become more expensive. So, book early to save money, but book early just to get availability as well.
Keith Gooden:
We’ve mentioned this in a previous podcast, but some people might be put off by the sheer size of a motorhome and their ability to handle it on what you might call a normal driving license. Can you put people’s minds at rest?
Matt Sims:
Of course! I maintain that anybody can drive a motorhome. If you can drive a car, you can drive a motorhome. The reality is you’re on holiday, you’re not in a rush, you’re up high and you’ve got a huge view in front of you. It’s just about taking your time. We do give some advice, helpful hints and tips on how to drive a motorhome. The key things are good use of your mirrors and good observation when turning, that’s when you have to be aware of the size of it, but really it’s more about the width than it is the length, and anybody can do it. You’re not in a rush. You’re not racing to a meeting. You generally have got all the time in the world, so take your time and take it easy. Plan ahead. Look ahead. Some good sensible driving techniques. We help pass on this helpful advice prior to arrival with us during the handover videos. If people are really worried, then we’ll take them up and down the road, wearing masks, of course, just for a 10 minute drive to quickly familiarise people with what it’s like to drive one.
Keith Gooden:
Let’s say I’m at home, I’m listening to this, I’ve been looking at the possibility of holidaying in the UK because of the virus. Maybe going down to Devon or Cornwall – you’re based at Weston-super-mare so that’d be an obvious place to travel. What sort of cost am I looking at for a family of four, two kids and two adults?
Matt Sims:
Motorhoming definitely is not a cheap holiday. Comparing it to camping, it’s not price comparable at all. It is more expensive. It’s very comparable, having just done some research this morning, to the other more traditional types of family holidays; A cottage in Devon, a canal boat, or even a static caravan. They’re all typically around £1200 to £1600 a week for a family of four. And that’s where motorhome costs sit as well. We price our motorhomes based on their caliber and bill quality and the features within, so there is a choice, but prices typically start around £1200 for a week in a six berth and up to nearly £2000, depending on the spec of the motorhome.
Keith Gooden:
Is that all the cost that you’ve got to take into account?
Matt Sims:
No, that’s a very good point. So you have to bear mind you’ve got fuel, obviously your food and drink and then you’ve got to pay for the campsites. We recommend people do book into a campsite rather than staying in lay-bys or randomly parking up, often referred to as wild camping. It’s not legal to do that and we don’t recommend you do it. So campsites typically are anywhere from £15 – £20 and up. You can spend a hundred pounds a night if you want the full red coat treatment, with swimming pools and everything else. But, if you prefer a quieter campsite with a view, then you are into about £15 or £20 a night potentially.
Keith Gooden:
And what about insurance? As a driver, when I hire my motorhome and go on my holiday, do I have to buy lots of extra insurance?
Matt Sims:
No, not at all. Insurance is usually included in the daily hire rate. Some companies operate in a different way and there are lots of added extras, a bit like when you hire a car. We offer what’s called a collision damage waiver, which is a small premium to reduce the excess. You’ll be familiar with that, if you’ve hired a car before. Generally we include everything and we pride ourselves in a simple all inclusive daily rate or weekly rate, which includes knives fork, spoons, pots, pans, everything you need to use the motorhome and you can park your car with us for free too. There are some optional extras which you would accept as optional things like second driver, hiring a car seat, you know, things that would be very optional and entirely reasonable to pay extra for.
Keith Gooden:
And the great thing, if you’re listening to this say down in London or another major city, is that the rail connections to Weston-super-mare, where you are based, are very good and people could actually take the train down with the family, couldn’t they? It means that their journey doesn’t have to take in places like the M25 or the M5 south of Birmingham. You can actually book clever with your motorhome hire, get down to Devon and go, or perhaps into Wales, and take some of the stress out.
Matt Sims:
Absolutely. We’re also really close to Bristol airport. In fact, we’re on the final approach to the airport here, just 12 minutes away from it, so a really quick taxi ride. We have historically offered free transfers from railway stations and the airports, whether we’ll do that this year though, we’re not sure. We didn’t last year because of COVID. Of course, taxis are plentiful and are geared up for carrying passengers. We’re really close to many transport links here and if you are coming to us by road, we are right on the edge of the M4 and the M5 itself. So we’re really easy to get to.
Keith Gooden:
It’s the Motorhome Matt podcast with me, Keith Gooden, and Matt Sims. You’ve got some figures here, haven’t you? Some comparisons.
Matt Sims:
I have, yeah. So, we looked at a seven night stay in July around Devon and Cornwall just to make some comparisons with a motorhome holiday. A week in a basic static caravan starts around £1500 for a family of four. A cottage in Cornwall is typically around £2000, a canal boat is around £1600. There are some extra costs associated with the canal boat, so it is very comparable to a motorhome holiday. Bearing in mind the campsite costs, so if you’re doing a week away you should probably budget another few hundred pounds on top, plus a bit for fuel. A motorhome holiday really is very comparable to those traditional other types of holidays that we’re used to taking as British families.
Keith Gooden:
And we have to be aware that prices have gone up over the last couple of years as owners of holiday homes have frankly taken advantage of the situation. I know of one family who took a week in Salcombe for £3,250 a week.
Matt Sims:
Well, these were starting prices. And I have a similar story, it’s seven and a half thousand pounds for a very lovely house for a family of four, but that’s ridiculous money. And we observed holiday cottages and destinations, absolutely milking it frankly, last year. Some tripled their prices. We actually didn’t put our prices up at all. Should we have done? Maybe, but we chose not to. I’m afraid we will be putting our prices up this year, as I mentioned earlier, the VAT rates are going back up for the tourism sector in March. Rishi Sunak, probably isn’t going to change that, although it would be a massive help if he did. So if you’re listening, Rishi, go for it! Please keep the VAT low for us. It’s a massive help. Otherwise, costs will go up this year. And if Staycations are here again, then I think the British tourism industry will see a boom, but I think it will capitalise on it just to try and offset costs and continue to recover from what was a very, very difficult last couple of years.
Keith Gooden:
Thanks for listening to the Motorhome Matt podcast. Remember to check back here for more episodes full of hints and tips and helpful advice. We’ll see you soon for another Motorhome Matt podcast, brought to you by thatleisureshop.com.
