You don't need to be an 'investor' to invest in Singletrack: 6 days left: 95% of target - Find out more
Well, they're now available to book from November. Jeezus they make centerparcs look good value.
If you want to work out which organ you need to sell to stay in one here's the link
https://www.forestholidays.co.uk/locations/scotland/glentress-forest/
Think I'll be staying in the pods as usual.
They do look quite posh though, clearly not aiming at the ‘sleeping bag in a shed’ Pod crowd.
The bigger ones (split between more wallets) seem better value too.
£280 a night for the pod that sleeps 2 in November, in what used to be the carpark. What 3rd rate consultants came up with this? 😂😂😂
Nicer conditions then the back of my van in Innerleithen car park but I’ll keep my cash all the same.
A one bedroom pod Monday to Friday in May is £1145??
That’s a ridiculous price, and that’s before you look at their stupidly expensive extras, £15/night for the dog, £53 to check in 2h earlier and out 2h later etc. You’d have to be loaded or mad to pay these kind of prices.
It better happen as they've started.
Support the wigwams at the bottom. £55 a night last time I stayed and much more fun
Seems like standard forestholidays pricing: utterly wild. It’s honestly cheaper for us 5 to drive to Morzine from the north east & have a week in a decent chalet there than spend a week at the site in Bedgellert or the equivalent down the road in Kielder.
Think I need to review the price of my cabin with private ensuite and kitchen!!!!
If anyone is coming to Dirt Farm i'm just around the corner. Just saying 😉
The worst thing is they pay FLS £5 and a bag of peanuts for every time the cabins get used.* That means cabins generate very little income for the other forest activities.
* I don't remember the exact number but you'd be surprised what the annual ground rent per cabin is; it's very low relative to their rental price.
I'm surprised anyone is surprised how much they're charging.
I don't think MTBers were ever their target market.
My main concern along with most of my mates is that it may attract the don't want to share the forest with dirty MTBers type.
Was this not a spin off from FLS (or FC) and it all went a bit 'odd' and the spin-off company has the forestry over a barrel and basically pays incredibly little but commands control of all aspects?
People will pay that, but the way the rest of the forest is, I'm not sure they'll be paying that for the experience they'll get in the forest. I suspect a lot.of the people staying won't be spending their time in the immediate area, but more out in the car to go see other things...
We already have a crazy high concentration of Land Rovers and Range Rovers per person here in Peebles - once this starts off it will be off the scale!
Was this not a spin off from FLS (or FC) and it all went a bit ‘odd’ and the spin-off company has the forestry over a barrel and basically pays incredibly little but commands control of all aspects?
Forest Holidays is a commercial company owned by the government, so although the 'rent' they pay will likely be minimal, overall profits ends up back with the government, just like any that FC/FLS/NRW make, so the rent doesn't really make any difference when you look at the big picture.
Yes it is expensive, but this is the same all over for holiday accommodation IMO. I have even started threads on it.
My in-laws have just booked a hotel in Fort William I have used for work before. Our work budget used to be £85 a night, and it was under that or around that in Peak Season with breakfast. I went to check for my in-laws - £265. No breakfast. A night.
Was this not a spin off from FLS (or FC) and it all went a bit ‘odd’ and the spin-off company has the forestry over a barrel and basically pays incredibly little but commands control of all aspects?
It was a spin off, then a JV, now fully (or at least effectively) private, but with all the original rights granted to the spin off company in the 90s. Hence it pays peanuts and has rights to every public forest in the country.
I can't see it working out in some sites TBH. Glentress for example. People of Peebles please don't get offended, I love the place (both peebles / inners and GT), but as a forest its not the prettiest, and as a general tourist area its not a hot spot is it? Would you really go to GT over say Loch Lubnaig? Which is not only one of the most beautiful spots in the whole of the UK, it has more touristy stuff, and its cheaper too on their website.
My point being that some places I get it, expensive cabins in the woods on the shores of a loch, very nice. Expensive cabins in a forest like GT (Or indeed my local Hamsterley within a couple of years as I understand it)... can that really work? Its not like a Centreparcs with other reasons to go there.
It’s honestly cheaper for us 5 to drive to Morzine from the north east & have a week in a decent chalet there than spend a week at the site in Bedgellert or the equivalent down the road in Kielder.
This. I can’t afford UK holidays anymore.
Quite nice accommodation in tourist hotspot in quite expensive shocker.
A quick look on Vrbo.co.uk suggests their priced at about market rate.
Based on my experience, if you want to rent a place that's big enough for 4 and not a complete hovel for a week ANYWHERE even vaguely rural you're looking at 1500quid. Prices went up during COVID and haven't come back down. Dunno if a reckoning is coming as those priced out of flying will see that as a "cheaper" option.
I haven't been able to justify the price of UK holidays for years.
I haven’t been able to justify the price of UK holidays for years.
Where are all these cheap foreign holidays?
I looked earlier this year and a week in pretty much any med country in a decent hotel was easily £1k+ per person and that's before you add on all the extras like airport parking and new speedo's! 🙂
UK holidays are still cheaper for us - but we don't do Centre Parcs type places.
My main concern along with most of my mates is that it may attract the don’t want to share the forest with dirty MTBers type
I'm expecting to find loads of tourists walking up and down the bike trails
Quite nice accommodation in tourist hotspot in quite expensive shocker.
I'd say these are very much the going rate for a nice cabin in Scotland. You are looking at £2kish for a week's family accommodation during school holidays.
Accommodation has become way more expensive since Covid
Not really surprised at the "aspirational" pricing.
I think they'll be rented by the same kind of people who go to Centre Parcs, but when they want to do a bit of mountain biking.
Which is fine, I suppose. I'd rather stay at the Traquair and get a nice brekkie anyway.
Its certainly a different market from the rest of the accomodation options around Peebles- but I agree with Ben, Tweed Valley is certainly not the family holiday type of area. It might suit Yeti owners at those prices though...
I did notice that a lot of the prices are discounted already, which surely can't be a good sign?
Where are all these cheap foreign holidays?
A quick check of the Les Gets website gives a number of 2 bedroom / 4 to 6 person apartments with MTB storage from €500 (say £450). Drive over and you’re cheaper than a £1500 place in the UK (assuming there’s still some travel costs in the UK).
Last couple of years we’ve had a 15 bed half-board, drinks included posh chalet with bike garage underneath in Les Gets for €4500.
We shared with another family so there were only 8 in it, but given the exchange rate that came in at circa £500 a head catered.
Plus the drive over, but I’m ok with that. I haven’t flown to the Alps since 2019 (and never flown in the summer).
Are you kidding?
Tweed Valley is becoming very much a family holiday area. The newish owners of the Hydro seem to be pitching for this market, adding loads of family type activities to the hotel. Anecdotal I know, but I walk/bike through the grounds frequently and in school hols the parking lot is chokka with family vehicles with top boxes, bike racks etc.
Add to that there are loads of touristy things to do in the borders, it is less than two hours drive from Newcastle, three from Manchester and the kicker - Edinburgh adjacent.
Nothing quite like sitting on the balcony of a luxury lodge in the forest after a hard days riding being eaten alive by midges. I'll continue to kip in the van/the Tontine.
Those cabins don't appear to dedicated secure bike storage.
So expect flat pedal gouges on kitchen cupboards soon after opening...
Hydro is absolutely pitching for that market, but its relatively cheap especially compared to those cabins (probably half the price of a cabin). And it also has the family facilities you mentioned plus a pool and also has bike storage so naturally attracts that market too.
In fairness, Forest holidays are known for being daft expensive at all of their locations.
And always have been ridiculously expensive.
Nothing new IMO
Nearly a grand for a long December weekend away for 2. Maybe not this year.
To use a common phrase:
How much?....
Hydro is absolutely pitching for that market, but its relatively cheap especially compared to those cabins (probably half the price of a cabin). And it also has the family facilities you mentioned plus a pool and also has bike storage so naturally attracts that market too.
But it doesn't have cabins for that back to nature experience, eh?
But it doesn’t have cabins for that back to nature experience, eh?
Aye true!
Used to regularly see red squirrels around that area at dusk, bet they've buggered off somewhere quieter already
A quick check of the Les Gets website gives a number of 2 bedroom / 4 to 6 person apartments with MTB storage from €500 (say £450). Drive over and you’re cheaper than a £1500 place in the UK (assuming there’s still some travel costs in the UK).
And if driving from anywhere south of London, not that much further. Canterbury makes it 450 to GT 600 to Les Gets. Even from where I am GT is far enough that it's into "I'd rather stop somewhere overnight and take a break" territory.
Obviously the anti EV crowd could do it in one go without even stopping to pee.
Forest Holidays is a commercial company owned by the government, so although the ‘rent’ they pay will likely be minimal, overall profits ends up back with the government, just like any that FC/FLS/NRW make, so the rent doesn’t really make any difference when you look at the big picture.
True, but if it stayed in the FC 'pot' there's more chance of it being spent on FC things, like trees and trail centers.
Remember it wasn't that long ago the government tried to sell off large amounts of forestry. It'd be harder to do that if the accounts looked more profitable.
True, but if it stayed in the FC ‘pot’ there’s more chance of it being spent on FC things, like trees and trail centers.
Remember it wasn’t that long ago the government tried to sell off large amounts of forestry. It’d be harder to do that if the accounts looked more profitable.
Its not the case: Forest holidays was once a gov. owned company, but got sold off for sweet FA (really the number was stupidly low) many years ago before it had many lodges, so had little revenue but it kept all its rights going forward. Since then I think its maybe been sold to/invested in at least one more time by a private equity house.
[this is a joke, please don't send Michael Gove to get me]
Well in that case I'll just grab my little red book and burn the cabins to the ground in the name of communism.
[/this is a joke, please don't send Michael Gove to get me]
Those prices are a joke, especially off season. I've got the bank holiday weekend in May booked in Inners staying in a 4 bed apartment for £400. This week in the lakes near Keswick for a 5 bed was £600.