August 2010

'Caravan parks should not be corporate monsters'

Aspen Parks under fire as annual site fees skyrocket

A FURIOUS battle over soaring annual site fees at Aspen parks in Victoria continues to gather momentum.

Perth-based Aspen Parks, which operates a nationwide chain of caravan parks, is under fire after jacking up prices at six of its holiday destinations in Echuca and Moama.

Five hundred angry site renters staged a protest meeting after they were told fees would rise by up to 30 percent in some cases.

They formed an action committee and have taken their fight to local MPs, the Australian Competition and Consumer Committee and Consumer Affairs.

Martin Luby, from Melbourne, has enjoyed holidays in his caravan at Aspen's three-star, 32-acre Horseshoe Lagoon Holiday Park for eight years and believes the hefty increases cannot be justified.

"We go to our caravan as often as possible," he told Caravanning News. "We spend three weeks in January and every long weekend there plus the occasional two-day midweek getaway. But they are driving people out of their parks."

Mr Luby said he had investigated moving to Yarrawonga/Mulwala but at this stage could not find a suitable site.

"Park fees at Yarrawonga area are about $3000 annually, which is $2000 cheaper," he explained.

He claimed many caravans had gone on the market at Aspen parks, with owners holding little hope of selling with annual site fees around $5000.

"They have ruined the resale value and Aspen will have to do a lot of work to get new patrons into their parks," he claimed.

"With such a high fee structure, there will be a lot of vacant lots in Aspen parks and they will not to able to fill them," Mr Luby warned.

An annual site holder at Aspen's four-star, 24-acre riverside Yarraby Holiday Park, who declined to be named, accused Aspen of trying to keep its profits high at the expense of budget-conscious holidaymakers.

"While any tourist site rises are yet unannounced, the increase in rates to annual site holders for 2010/2011 will jump from $3900 to $4780," he told Caravanning News.

"This with an apparent drop in services, capital developments and staffing levels at the park. One can only imagine what this will do to the affordability of a stay at an Aspen park.

"Caravan parks should be friendly family operations ... not corporate monsters."

Aspen Parks has declined to comment.

Its parent Aspen Group earlier this year announced an after-tax first-half profit of $15.6 million, revealing that its Aspen Parks division continued to be a "standout performer" and was expected to continue being a strong contributor to earnings.

Formed in 2004, the division now owns a portfolio of 25 holiday destinations in Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland, with a total asset value of over $270 million.