Customers at a Co Down resort’s Christmas experience, costing around £115 for a family of four to attend, have expressed their ‘disappointment’ after claiming the event was ‘not worth’ the ticket price and not as advertised.
The Northern Light Experience at the renowned Slieve Donard Hotel was due to run from December 12 – 19 and was billed as ‘an immersive, interactive Christmas story brought to life in four captivating chapters’ where customers are told to expect a ‘breathtaking world of festive wonder’.
Tickets to the experience were priced on platform Eventbrite at £35.37 for adults and £22.38 for children, including booking fees, meaning the cost for a family of four to attend (two adults, two children) works out at roughly £115.
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However, after a number of attendees expressed their disappointment after visiting the experience, tickets are no longer on sale for the event as of Tuesday morning (December 17).
Just one week to go until The Northern Light arrives at Slieve Donard! Don't miss this magical journey for all ages. Book your tickets today - https://brnw.ch/21wPdyN
Posted by Slieve Donard on Thursday 5 December 2024
Users flooded the comment section of the hotel’s Facebook post about the event to share their frustration and disappointment after attending.
“We drove an hour for what was a less than 30 min ‘experience’ with some very underwhelmed young children. Absolutely not worth the ticket price,” one user wrote.
“I thought the experience would be incredible given the price. It should have been free as it wasn’t worth even a few quid let alone £100,” said another.
Sorrel Flack was among those who attended the event on Saturday to celebrate a friend’s 40th birthday.
She thought it would be similar to light experiences such as those at Antrim Castle Gardens.
“It looked, from the description, that it wasn’t just for kids,” she told The Irish News.
“I thought it would be something anyone could go to.”
The description for the event says it is an experience ‘for all ages’ for those who are ‘young or young at heart’ with ‘dazzling light and sound experiences’.
Ms Flack said that after a short ‘Christmas train’ journey on the estate, lasting only a handful of minutes with “nothing going on inside”, guests arrive at the main hotel building where they then walk themselves through three ‘rooms’.
“We went into the first room and it was literally just lights on the wall,” she said.
“We went through to the second room and it was the same. It was just like a projector of a scene on the wall and the pillar in the middle of the room was covered in tin foil.”
She said visitors pass through a simulated lift before entering the final room, where they can write a message on a star which is then projected onto the wall.
“When we walked through those rooms, I was literally thinking that we had just done the start of it,” she said.
“I was looking like, ‘Where’s the rest of it?’
“Other people were just looking round thinking, ‘Where do you go now?’”
Ms Flack said she felt “so bad” for the families who were there, noting the high ticket price and how children looked disinterested.
She said the event was similar to the Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow “because it was so homemade”.
“For them to be charging £35, I think it’s crazy,” she said.
“The lights are better in Lisburn and they’re free.”
“It was literally like what someone could have done in their own house.
“It’s very disappointing,” she added.
Ms Flack said that she requested a refund from the hotel via email after returning home on Saturday.
She received her refund on Tuesday through Eventbrite, but had no contact from the hotel.
Another attendee told The Irish News that Slieve Donard had issued his family a full refund following their complaint.
A spokesperson for the Slieve Donard Hotel said: “We are dedicated to upholding the exceptional standards that define Slieve Donard.
“As always, we value and thoughtfully consider all feedback and use it as an opportunity to continuously enhance our guest experience.”
