Campsite: handling calls in high season without neglecting reception

Is there still space next week? Are dogs allowed? How big are the pitches, what is the amperage of the electric hook-ups, what are the arrival and departure times? Is the pool heated, is the snack bar open in the evening, is the market on Tuesday or Thursday? These questions tie up reception even though the answer already exists somewhere, on the website or in the welcome booklet.

The first step is to gather these answers in a single, up-to-date document that anyone who answers the phone can use: seasonal staff, manager or automated tool. A single document prevents a customer from getting two different answers depending on when they call.

In France, the order of 24 December 2014 on prior consumer information in outdoor accommodation establishments requires campsites to display the prices, including all taxes, of the services sold, at the entrance to the establishment, at the reception area and wherever the services are sold, including online. The entreprises.gouv.fr website (the French government’s site for businesses) also points out that the site rules must be displayed at the entrance to the site and at the reception office.

So the phone must draw on the same price list as the display and the website, supplements included: extra person, pet, vehicle, electricity. If prices change during the season, the update is made everywhere at the same time, the phone included. A price given from memory by seasonal staff, different from the one displayed, risks causing a dispute on arrival.

A booking taken over the phone and copied into the software later carries a risk of double booking. A simple rule: the phone provides information, then directs callers to the online booking tool or notes the request so that someone enters it directly into the system, without ever confirming a pitch verbally.

Cancellation terms are found in the terms and conditions, not improvised. Two rules of the French Consumer Code come up often. Unless otherwise stipulated, sums paid in advance are arrhes (a deposit that can be forfeited): a customer who withdraws loses them, and a business that withdraws must pay back double (Article L214-1). And for a booking made at a distance, the fourteen-day right of withdrawal does not apply to accommodation services, other than residential accommodation, provided on a specific date or for a specific period (Article L221-28, 12°).

Delays are often announced by a call from the road, after reception has closed, from a tired customer who simply wants to know whether they will be able to get in. The instruction must be written down and known to everyone: closing time, the out-of-hours arrival procedure, where to pick up documents and the site map, where to park for the night if setting up has to wait until the next day, and the number to call if there is a real problem.

One point to watch: sensitive access information, such as a barrier code, is not given to an unidentified caller. Plan to send it only to customers with a booking, through the channel you have chosen.

Not a specific pitch without checking the schedule, nor a discount, nor an exception to the site rules, nor availability that no one has checked. When a request falls outside the framework, the right answer is to note it with the customer’s contact details and pass it on to the person who decides.

The preparation comes down to three documents: the base of answers to common questions, the price list identical to the display, and the late-arrival instruction. Everything else is handled with a complete message and a callback the same day.

Alyas answers 24 hours a day based on the information the campsite gives it (website, text or PDF), collects the caller’s contact details and request, and transfers to a single number if the caller asks. It is not connected to your booking software by default: it can book an appointment if a Google Calendar or Cal.com calendar is connected, and compatibility with other business software is checked case by case. The trial is free for 10 days, with no credit card required.