Private sites can charge whatever they like. While people keep on using them the prices will probably keep increasing.
The fewer campsites there are in an area the higher the prices can go as there is less competition.
A lot set their prices according to the grade they have received from various inspection bodies. These grades are awarded according to the level of facilities etc. available at the time of the inspection.
If sites are graded by national bodies such as Fáilte Ireland & NITB they may have a different list of requirement than the clubs or privately owned bodies.
We then end up with several confusing guides suggesting different levels of facility.
I beleive the only true guide is one which is written by the same person visiting all the sites and having a strict standard. This way visitiors using the guide are accessing the opinion of one person and can set their own standards accordingly. This would be difficult to produce.
One example of this is comparing two sites listed on Irish Caravan and Camping Council site.
White Villa Farm in Killarney who are 3 star
http://www.killarneycaravanpark.com/content/
with Anchor in Castlegregory who are 4 star
http://www.anchorcaravanpark.com/index.htm
In my opinion both are great sites and to be honest White Villa has the edge. Anchor may get the higher grade because they have direct access to the beach but White Villa is inland and nowhere near a beach.
That said, a unit + 2 with EHU and awning works out the same price on both.
Many sites have jumped on the charge extra for everything bandwagon. A bit like the french system where you pay for a unit + 2 and everything else is an extra.
A lot is down to grading and while there is virtually no standard grading system prices will continue to be quite varied.
