Late check out

Lantley wrote:

valhalla360 wrote:

Lantley wrote:
"but if it's a blanket "no" when it's clear there are plenty of open sites and will have zero impact on your costs/staffing and you can't articulate why, you just made it more likely that I don't use your campground/hotel next time around"



Or you will plan your time better in the future and hopefully not blame the CG when they won't let you extend your allotted time

It's not that complicated. When you extend times you disrupt the schedule all around. Sites may not be cleaned, or properly checked out.
Campers arrive early and find you in their spot!
All this nonsense is easy to avoid by just saying No to extending times!
Yes as a business owner I want to avoid unnecessary headaches. I already have enough necessary headaches I don't need any headaches I can easily avoid!

That is an option but if your customer service skills are non-existent in articulating why in a pleasant meaningful manner...the result is the same...the customer is going to avoid using your services.

So while I will accept "no, it's company policy"...it does have consequences if you can't convey that message in an articulate way.

Telling the customer to plan better in the future...is not an example of articulately conveying the message.

If it is my business . I run it the way I choose. My CG is not managed by the campers. I don't owe them any explanation, but a simple schedule disruptions have created too many communication and scheduling problems in the past would suffice.
If my CG is run well otherwise, I don't think a blanket no late check ins or early arrivals will be detrimental to overall customer experience. If the place were managed poorly, I doubt you would have many looking to stay longer.
AS we can see from this post, late departures and early arrivals can easily create confusion and havoc. As the owner I set a fixed schedule that allows me to operate efficiently altering that schedule too often hurts the customer experience

I agree. If the only way I can please a customer enough to return is to change my policies they are a customer I do not need.
Obviously there are situations that cannot be avoided. I can't make someone leave if they had a heart attack and are in the hospital. I can't suddenly make a vehicle that won't start operate. Otherwise, I expect guests to honor what they agree to, which is the arrival and departure time. We have a two hour gap between departure and arrival time. During this time we need to do all site maintenance and have everything ready for the next guest. Our policy is to give around 15 to 20 minutes of leeway on the departures after which we will be checking up on you. We are a bit more liberal on arrivals in that if the site has been cleared and checked off the list we will accommodate that arrival, but that is something we would never agree to during the reservation process or prior to actual arrival via a phone call, email or text from the guest. If you truly need to extend your stay past checkout time, book the extra day.