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Ticket holders left families heartbroken and children in tears after seeing the immersive experience Jurassic World: Experience Show Bought a discount coupon at the door but was turned away Wowche.
There were harrowing scenes at Battersea Power Station on Monday when an error in the booking system resulted in tickets being severely overbooked at certain times.
According to Neon, around 30 to 40 people were reportedly affected by the glitch. The creators behind the wonders of dinosaurs.
Among them was 11-year-old Jacob Harris, who burst into tears when his Christmas gift outing was suddenly cancelled. His mother Kate Stevens traveled from Canterbury, Kent, to pick up Jacob in Enfield, east London, before heading south-west of the capital for the much-anticipated show.
Jurassic World: The Experience marks Neon’s first event at its newly opened venue in the iconic London landmark. Both the experiential entertainment company and Wowcher have since apologized for those affected and promised to work on solutions. Neon said it was contacting guests to offer alternative time slots or full refunds, while Wowcher confirmed it was contacting customers to process full refunds.
Ms Stevens, a mother-of-three, told her family about the devastating experience. press association. “It was supposed to be a great day for both of us, you know, just the two of us,” she explained. “He was so upset, he was crying and it made me cry. It was horrible – it was Christmas.”
The 39-year-old highlighted the differences at the entrance: “When you go there, they only allow people in who pay full price – if you have a discount ticket, you can’t get in.” She described the chaotic scene, noting, “There was a lady with two autistic children who broke down and she was really miserable.” She added that another tourist had started the journey as early as 5am.
Jacob, who has autism spectrum disorder and ADHD, was particularly affected. Ms Stevens told PA: “My son himself was very depressed and we went a long way to get him to go.” She asked staff about the duration of the issue but did not receive a clear answer.
Recalling the moment she realized their fate, she said: “(My son) was standing next to me and then I could see other people being told and I walked up to someone and I showed him my ticket and I thought: ‘Does this mean us too?’ And he said: ‘Unfortunately, yes.'”
She pulled Jacob away and delivered the news: “I’m really sorry, we can’t go in.” His reaction was immediate and profound. “He burst into tears and then got very frustrated and said, ‘I just want to go home, I just don’t want to be here, I hate my life.'” He became very dramatic and distraught, bless him. It’s quite a build-up, he and his dad live in Enfield and I live in Canterbury, so it should be a great day out for both of us. “
Jacob’s hopes of rescheduling his visit were quickly dashed. “He just said, ‘Ask them if we can go another day…can’t we come back later?’ I’ve heard other parents ask that question and the answer is, no – a flat no.”
Ms Stevens reiterated the widespread distress: “There were a lot of upset kids. They had people queuing up and then when they got to the front of the queue, they told them… because they had a voucher they couldn’t get in because they were oversubscribed.” She bought the voucher in November and Jacob had been eagerly anticipating the show for weeks.
A public relations firm speaking on behalf of Neon confirmed that about 1,800 people visited the exhibition each day during the holidays. They said: “This week, some holdings of Wowcher Ticket holders are unable to enter the Jurassic World Experience due to a booking system error that resulted in over-sales of coupons for certain time periods. To ensure visitor safety, the experience is operating under strict capacity limits and we are unable to accommodate all affected ticket holders at their scheduled arrival time. We have been liaising with visitors to either arrange alternative arrangements or refund tickets. “We understand how disappointing this will be for families and we sincerely apologize to anyone whose visit has been affected and are reviewing our processes to ensure this does not happen again.” “
Wowcher’s statement placed the blame on event organizers: “Due to a system error on Jurassic World’s part, this event was overbooked. They have contacted affected customers directly to apologize and ask them to contact Wowcher. We are contacting affected customers personally and will obviously be offering full refunds.”