Chickenrun portugal (1 Viewer)

Status
Not open for further replies.

flatpackchicken

LIFE MEMBER
Jun 27, 2010
1,276
1,755
BICESTER OXFORDSHIRE
Funster No
12,314
MH
A Class Frankia I8000
Exp
Since nov 2009
This i have poste on our sister site RVOCas well,
Hi Alan, I am very sorry that you had a problem at Chickenrun, cannot say why Leslie or Andrew did not reply to your message, and can understand that you was p*****d of after driving all that way, but as you say the fields were flooded therefore the only room for anyone would have been at the entrance and drive to the site which is graveled and hard standing when i was there, so maybe the vans that were already on the site would have retreated to the hard standing making site completely full up also 1 big super type pitch that Andrew especially made for me before i arrived with my 38' Monaco Diplomat may have been unusable as well if water flooded the site, having said all of this, maybe (i am only guessing here) Andrew or Leslie did not respond to your email (although they should have) because they had room for you, but then the flood water came and bingo any new arrival would have been refused entry for obvious reasons, as literally no room in the inn so to speak as drive would only take about 7/8 motorhomes at a push.
I drove my RV to the site twice on the small road which is only about 1km at the very most and not 10km, from the main road from the village and was not a problem for me at all, yes it is a small road but far from un negotiable, and i don't think that you will get anything much bigger than my RV, so the road for me was quite ok, a little narrow in places but no more than some other sites have, at least no bushes to scrape the side of the RV. To sum this site up, i don't think you will get a better 2 hosts than Leslie and Andrew who bend over backwards to pamper to most RVs/motorhomers needs as i needed serious help when i arrived on xmas eve last year and broke down in the actual village 1km from the site, and Andrew came straight out to me and offered what assistance he could give me, also leslie bought a sack load of oranges and other fruit for us as well, he helped negotiate with the local farmer who's entrance i was completly blocking and was on hand at all times whilst we were waiting for the recovery gge to attend to us, Then after i got going, personaly escorted me right to the site, after arriving at the site he arranged for a local gge man to come and look at the RV and kept the pressure up on the ggs to get the RV fixed, on arrival of the spare parts, he was on the the gge man straight away within 5mns of them arriving, geeing up the gge man to come and fix it, and within 2 hours the gge man was there and 1 hour later all done and engine running fine with air compressor working perfectly, and this cost me €130 in total for the gge mans time and to strip down the compressor and put back together is no mean fete, and all organized by Andrew looking after me his customer i suppose, also 2 months later i went out of site and had another problem on the road, and again upon arrival back at the site, Andrew was straight on the phone to the gge man and he was there within 3 hours again and diagnosed the problem (speed limiter broken) so i ordered the part and again within 5 mns of part arriving 4 days later, Andrew was on the phone yet again the the gge man who arrived next morning and fitted the part again for €45. All these problems that i had Andrew dealt with them very well for me, and i was charged NOTHING for all his time and effort that he gave to me as his customer, not even charged for all the phone calls he made for me?????,, so therefore i actually stayed at the site for about 5 months in all and enjoyed it immensely, especially as it was my first time away abroad in my RV. So Alan to sum up your description of the site, was i think rather hurtful (although i can understand you were P****d of) at Chickenrun, when they probably had there hands full trying to look after the other vans that were already there, and i i can say it that i had a great time there, and Andrew and Leslie were the best hosts that i have come across of any site, Do you think that any other site owner would have done all that he done for me when i was in trouble, i don't think so, and if you had been able to get on the site, they would have looked after you just the same as me and every other motor homer. Anyone reading your post would may of been put off by what you said, although true, could have been put another way i think, although you were mad and angry at the time and i understand this, this sort of review does not help anybody wanting to go there and enjoy a really relaxing holiday (if they can get on the site lol).
Regards Garry Flatpackchicken
 
OP
OP
flatpackchicken

flatpackchicken

LIFE MEMBER
Jun 27, 2010
1,276
1,755
BICESTER OXFORDSHIRE
Funster No
12,314
MH
A Class Frankia I8000
Exp
Since nov 2009
This is the response from Alan on the RVOC site where post originated from, so thought nice to post on here after my post above.

Originally Posted by amoffatt
Looks like I stirred up a hornets nest! The guy there, Andrew was nice enough, he didn't know we were arriving, we did the correspondence through his wife, a breakdown in communications!!, the GPS coordinates would not go into our garmin, so we relied on directions given, the site is not signposted, and of course we missed it, Andrew explained that they were just starting off with the campgroung, I wish them the best of luck and that they make a go of it, some locals sent us the wrong direction, but a friendly lady offered to lead us there, stopping at the end of the lane, and pointing, after driving all day, most of it in the rain, can you guess I was a little disappointed, I am only human, perhaps I have been spoilt by rv ing in the States, Humbly, Alan

Good for Alan,, Regards Garry Flatpackchicken
 
2

2657

Deleted User
Bump !!

To paraphrase......alternative opinions may be available.
 

weejocky

Funster
Jan 20, 2010
157
420
Yorkshire and France
Funster No
10,034
MH
Hymer A Class
Exp
not long enough
Not surprised they never emailed the poor guy. I emailed them twice last year about aranging a long winter stay. They never bothered replying. No way to run a business. I won't be trying again.

Anyway I heard that the authorities will be closing them down as they built the site without a stitch of planning:RollEyes:
 

JJ

Mágica
May 1, 2008
19,228
47,725
Quinta Majay, Pinheiro Bordalo, Portugal
Funster No
2,459
MH
Burstner Privilege T
Exp
over 50 years
I doubt a campsite/aire/off-site spot exists anywhere on the planet that would suit every Funster with its location/price/facilities.

Just because it isn't one person's cup of tea doesn't mean it's rubbish.

A couple of remarks...

The GPS details loaded into my Tomtom with no problems and took me directly there.

The road was perfectly ok for my van...

And if I believed everything I heard on the motorhomers' grapevine I would be put off the lifestyle permanently... experience has shown me 90% of it is nonsense.



JJ :Cool:

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Last edited:
Apr 27, 2008
11,790
13,947
Eastbourne East Sussex
Funster No
2,327
MH
Hymer low profile
Exp
Since 1972
Not surprised they never emailed the poor guy. I emailed them twice last year about aranging a long winter stay. They never bothered replying. No way to run a business. I won't be trying again.

Anyway I heard that the authorities will be closing them down as they built the site without a stitch of planning:RollEyes:

I recall there was a problem last year with the wrong email on the website, so may not have received your emails.

Any truth in the second bit? Anyone know?
 
2

2657

Deleted User
I recall there was a problem last year with the wrong email on the website, so may not have received your emails.

Any truth in the second bit? Anyone know?

There have certainly been issues in the past, static caravans have been removed, allegedly on the orders of the authorities, after retrospective permission for wheeled vehicles was announced on this forum by the owners.

Broken Link Removed

On more than one occasion we have witnessed the site being observed through binoculars and photographs being taken by the GNR.

The owners are members of this forum perhaps they could clarify the situation.
 

weejocky

Funster
Jan 20, 2010
157
420
Yorkshire and France
Funster No
10,034
MH
Hymer A Class
Exp
not long enough
The static caravans had to go, but I've heard recently the council want the wheeled vans off too. Could've been just gossip, but the guy sounded like he was in the know. No mater, I won't be going.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

Chris

LIFE MEMBER
May 5, 2010
21,006
274,542
Funster No
11,412
MH
None
Exp
10 years
Do we really need to speculate on this matter?

Seems to me these campsite owners are getting a kicking for not responding to a few e-mails.

Get real for heavens sake.
 

MikeD

Free Member
Dec 21, 2011
3,936
3,697
London
Funster No
19,230
MH
IH PVC
Exp
Since 2012
The site sounds good to me

Well we hope to get there sometime - sounds just my type of place:thumb::thumb::thumb:

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Mar 26, 2009
8,130
11,168
Yr Wyddgrug
Funster No
6,057
MH
Hymer B678DL
Exp
Since 2009
Well we hope to get there sometime - [HI]sounds just my type of place[/HI]:thumb::thumb::thumb:

Me too! The rates are so reasonable you could book in for a month and bugger off for a few days exploring without budgetary regret. :thumb:
 
2

2657

Deleted User
As others have said the only way to judge a site is by staying on it for a while, some sites grow on you after initial disappointment.

Speculation as to wether the site is to be shut down helps no one, if you are in a motorhome and travelling it would not affect you anyway, just one less site.However if you are leaving a valuable vehicle on site unoccupied you need to feel that it everything is in order.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

chatter

Free Member
Aug 3, 2009
3,689
937
cheshire
Funster No
7,812
MH
5th wheel
Exp
10+
Some posters make me laugh, Its a rural site that is just being created, things are not perfect overnight, we know it has its permissions now because the owners posted as much and no doubt the site is still in the work in progress state at the moment as it takes time and money to make it as they possibly want it and there are bound to be hiccups along the way with one thing or another.
Of email if slow to respond there is always a phone call that could be made the number is on the website. (remember some years ago someone knocking a site cos he hadnt had a reply so posted everywhere about it - turned out that it was due to a terminal illness of one of the owners with the other spending much time at the hospital as possible)
But we know that those that have stayed there have enjoyed their time there and that the owners have bent over backwards to help with problems which they needent of done.
There is no need for comments from those that havent been there 'knocking it'. No doubt constructive comments would be welcome because sometimes it is simple to put right
 

hilldweller

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 5, 2008
605
36,108
Macclesfield
Funster No
5,089
MH
Zilch Mk1
Exp
From Aug 2007
Ii know this is no excuse but I can only apologies

Considering what you are trying to do and the small amount you charge ( sounds too little to me ) you'd expect folk to cut you some slack.

Hang in there and live your dream as long as you are enjoying it, that's what matters.
 
2

2657

Deleted User
There is an of awful lot of talk and opinions about Chicken Run on this forum by people who have not been.The web site makes things sound idyllic but everything that glisters is not gold.

There are many people who have been and enjoyed the experience, I know of others that have not, as I have said before the only way to find out is to go.

We have stayed on the site for extended periods, we are not there now and will not be returning, there are two sides to every story,and I am aware that includes ours.

Hildweller do you know the current charges, they are no longer available on the web site, most of the dissatisfaction that I am aware of relates to a lack of transparency in charging rates.

For a site with only basic facilities ( no showers, toilets, drinking water) & only 8amp electricity the rates even for short stays on aires or small sites can be bettered in the area. For extended periods the rates can be equalled or cheaper on most sites with full facilities all along the Algarve.

The site has been open now for at least two years and the excuse of being in development is wearing a little thin especially as the owners seem reluctant to discuss matters or listen to advice from experienced travellers.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

hilldweller

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 5, 2008
605
36,108
Macclesfield
Funster No
5,089
MH
Zilch Mk1
Exp
From Aug 2007
Hildweller do you know the current charges.

No I don't, in my head I've got €8 a day inc electricity.

Jim, who is no-one's mug, gave it the thumbs up here:
Broken Link Removed

>> We have stayed on the site for extended periods, we are not there
>> now and will not be returning, there are two sides to every story

It would be great if you aired your grievances instead of endless innuendos.
 

stcyr

Free Member
Apr 11, 2011
1,765
1,160
Normandie
Funster No
16,005
MH
A class
Exp
On & off, since 1966 - fulltime since 2005
Hi 'Andley'

We've been planning on visiting you for over a year now - for various reasons we haven't been able to as yet. The thought of staying on an 'all singing all dancing' site is anathema to us - each to his own - and the rustic simplicity, made perfectly clear on your website, is what attracted us in the first place. Pleeease don't develop too much before we get a chance to stay with you!

:thumb:

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

MikeD

Free Member
Dec 21, 2011
3,936
3,697
London
Funster No
19,230
MH
IH PVC
Exp
Since 2012
Well put

Hi 'Andley'

We've been planning on visiting you for over a year now - for various reasons we haven't been able to as yet. The thought of staying on an 'all singing all dancing' site is anathema to us - each to his own - and the rustic simplicity, made perfectly clear on your website, is what attracted us in the first place. Pleeease don't develop too much before we get a chance to stay with you!

:thumb:

Well said and I totally agree:thumb::thumb::thumb::thumb:
 

scotjimland

LIFE MEMBER
Jul 25, 2007
2,079
8,986
Suffolk Coastal District, UK
Funster No
15
MH
Timberland
I think some confusion has arisen over the fact there are two web sites .. (or is it three ? )

1) Broken Link Removed

this one has the tariffs

2) Broken Link Removed

Pitch €7.50 per night, per couple
Leccy €2.50 per day
Wifi €2.50 per day

I think you need to consolidate the two web sites..
 
Last edited:

scotjimland

LIFE MEMBER
Jul 25, 2007
2,079
8,986
Suffolk Coastal District, UK
Funster No
15
MH
Timberland
Wi Fi is €2.50 per week.

indeed.. that's what it says on the website... my typo

Pitch for Motorhome +2 People €7.50 per night for first 31 nights €5.50 per nights thereafter

Caravan +2 People €7.50 per night for first 31 nights €5.50 per nights thereafter

Departures after 1:00pm will be charged at full rate

Car €1.50 per night

Trailer / Motorbike €1.50 per night

Additional Children Aged 5 to 16 €5.00 per night

Additional Children Aged 5 & Under Free per night

Dog €1.00 per night

Satellite Connection €2.50 per week

Wi-Fi €2.50[HI] per week[/HI]

Electricity €2.50 per night

Water / Waste Disposal Free per night



OVERNIGHT ONLY
Motorhome +2 People inc Water tank fill up / Waste disposal €5.00 per night
Please leave by 1:00pm
 
Last edited:

stcyr

Free Member
Apr 11, 2011
1,765
1,160
Normandie
Funster No
16,005
MH
A class
Exp
On & off, since 1966 - fulltime since 2005
Hmm ... been looking at Chickenrun website for over a year now ... still can't see anything confusing ...

:RollEyes:
 
2

2657

Deleted User
Again I can only advocate seeing for yourselves, the prices shown on one section of the andleycamping web site are now correct but also STILL on the same page is this:-

"WHY NOT HAVE YOUR OWN PIECE OF THE ALGARVE

LONG TERM CAMPISMO
SITE A CARAVAN
€547.50 PER YEAR plus €7.50 per night inc €2.50 electriciy
100 METRE SQUARE APPROX PRIVATE PLOT TO DO WITH YOUR OWN TASTE
PLUMBED INTO WATER/ELECTRICITY
DECKING - FLAGGED OR BBQ AREA ACCEPTED
PLANT UP A GARDEN OR VEG PATCH OR BOTH ACCEPTABLE"
(also at the time was "staying longer than 1 month reduced €5.50")

Which is what we thought was very good when we paid upfront for 12 months last April.
Moved our 5'er on site, by which time the rates had increased by €0.50 which was not a problem.

We stayed two weeks and tried to discuss our plans( we had great plans for our plot ) and theirs but it did not happen.We asked for our bill a week before we were due to leave,the night before we were due to leave the 5,er in situ, having taken the hitch out of the back of the pickup etc, we were given a bill for €11.50 a night slightly more than the €8 we were expecting.

We also expected the rate for stays of one month to be reduced to €6 which, after enquiring as to what exactly we would be paying on the morning of departure for the ferry, we discovered was not the case. The norm for every long term stay site on the continent that we have used over 20 years applies the reduction to the first month.Admittedly the wording above is ambiguous and has now been clarified on the above mentioned website.

We were not happy, we made our decisions on paying €5.50 a night for month long stays, this was now €11.50 a night. We made our feelings known to Lesley & Andrew that night by email:-

"Hi Andrew & Lesley,
we greatly enjoyed our stay with you and look forward to returning later in the year and exploring the area a bit more.

We have just arrived at the hotel where we are staying for the night and thought we should check your website to make sure that it was not us that had misread the information relating to long term camping and siting a caravan.


WHY NOT HAVE YOUR OWN PIECE OF THE ALGARVE

LONG TERM CAMPISMO
SITE A CARAVAN
€547.50 PER YEAR plus €8.00 per night inc €2.50 electriciy
100 METRE SQUARE APPROX PRIVATE PLOT TO DO WITH YOUR OWN TASTE
PLUMBED INTO WATER/ELECTRICITY
DECKING - FLAGGED OR BBQ AREA ACCEPTED
PLANT UP A GARDEN OR VEG PATCH OR BOTH ACCEPTABLE
STAYING LONGER THAN 1 MONTH reduced €5.50 per night
Per 2 people
WiFi available €2.50 per week

OOOOoooOOOO

I think you will agree that the information above is totally different from what you told us this morning, this means that the price per night(that we thought) has almost doubled from when we originally enquired in March and no mention of charges for car parking in this section of the website.Our advice would be to amend the site ASAP to avoid misinformation being passed on to others.

I hope you don't think we are being difficult and are not offended by our comments, as we said above we are both looking forward to returning.

Just one other point regarding stays over 30 days, and please don't think we are trying to tell you how to run your business, but in our experience when this discount is offered it is applied to the first 30 days as well. Your system is different and to avoid confusion this could possibly be made clearer.

This is not a moan and we are not ctiticising, just trying to be helpful.

Hope you have a good summer season

Best Regards

Alec & Kath"

Eventually we did get a response apologising for the confusion and promising to amend the website.The information above is still on the website.

We thought about things over the summer and decided that even with the increased prices we still liked the place so we returned in late September to see how things went.

There is more to say that I KNOW and even more that i have been told by others that have been on the site but I do not really want to go into too much detail here.

Admittedly there is now a shower on site which is in a plastic shed with a hole in the floor and a portapotty in the corner.Increased amperage is apparently available at a cost, I have no first hand experience of this but have been told by someone that used this recently that it is unreliable.

Does this sound like the actions of "nasty nasty" people, we have nothing whatsoever to be jealous of.

We have now left and have no plans to return and could not in all honesty recommend this site to anyone but that is probably because as Lesley says we have been afflicted with the green eyed monster and are nasty nasty people.

We have been travelling Europe in our 5'er for 9 months of the year for 5 years and have been camping and caravanning for 30+ years and this has to go down as our worst experience in that time.

I will not be posting further on this subject on this forum but if anyone wants to contact me by PM with criticisms of my posts or for further discussion I will respond.

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 

hilldweller

LIFE MEMBER
Dec 5, 2008
605
36,108
Macclesfield
Funster No
5,089
MH
Zilch Mk1
Exp
From Aug 2007
There is more to say that I KNOW and even more that i have been told by others that have been on the site but I do not really want to go into too much detail here.

Why ?

You post allegations that might affect other FUN people but won't give details. That's not in the spirit of FUN.

If this guy is screwing FUNsters then tell us the details.
 

Carol

LIFE MEMBER
Oct 2, 2007
14,044
111,463
North Wales.
Funster No
519
MH
A class
Exp
18 years s Motorhome (33years caravans)
I have to say I can find nothing wrong in the way which you went around things, and certainly did not come across as nasty

It is a shame when misunderstanding can not be sorted out amicably between supplier and customer it does no one any good, and what could have been turned into a positive becomes a bad experience, and calling a customer nasty does not do anything to help.

The Chicken Run sounds just the kind of place we would love to visit in the future, with the various posts could be a good time to get the web site adjusted with all up to date information, and each can make a informed decision if the site is for them.



 
Last edited:

Munchie

LIFE MEMBER
Jul 28, 2007
8,921
12,581
Camping Les Vigeres
Funster No
26
MH
Font Vendôme
Exp
Since 2004
Why ?

You post allegations that might affect other FUN people but won't give details. That's not in the spirit of FUN.

If this guy is screwing FUNsters then tell us the details.

When i did that with a company inc details I was told I was not allowed to "rule 2" :Angry: I note it seems ok with other companies!!!

Subscribers  do not see these advertisements

 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Latest journal entries

Funsters who are viewing this thread

Back
Top