Furious Brits who paid as much as £40 per person to attend a British balloon festival have hit out at what many considered a nightmare event that failed to deliver on some of its most basic premises.
The Wales Balloon Festival, a highly anticipated family event in Carmarthen, has been slammed as a “shambles” by disgruntled attendees. The festival took place at Nantyci Showground on the outskirts of town from Friday, June 28 to today Sunday, June 30.
Located just off the A40 dual carriageway, two miles west of Carmarthen town centre, the event promised families an “unforgettable three days” filled with “sky magic” and “breathtaking sights that will leave you in awe”. Organisers had always stated that hot air balloon flights – the main attraction of the event – were dependent on the weather.
Indeed, it was announced on Friday that the balloons would not be taking flight that evening. However, several balloons were lit up for the advertised “night glow show” once the sun began to set on Friday night.
On Saturday, the balloons did take to the skies above Carmarthen, delighting visitors at the showground and local residents who could see them from miles around. However, the night’s glow show was later cancelled due to the weather.
But the Saturday saw massive traffic issues, with jams clogging up nearby areas and reports of two, four, and even five-hour treks to reach the event from nearby locations. The festival’s organisers pinned the blame on a sat-nav blunder, assuring that Sunday’s traffic flow was much smoother.
Online chatter has been rife with comments from hundreds, including those who journeyed from across Wales. While some defended the festival or limited their gripes to the traffic woes, many expressed dissatisfaction with the event itself. Advertised attractions included hot air balloons, monster truck and BMX shows, live wrestling, tribute acts, food stalls, and a family funfair.
Yet, the wrestling segment was axed, leaving many visitors feeling short-changed by the entertainment provided against the entry fee. Online adverts pegged family tickets at £40 plus a £10 parking charge, with on-the-day attendees forking out up to £30 each.
To add to the expense, certain festival features like funfair and monster truck rides, as well as food, drink, and craft stalls, came with additional costs labelled as “optional extras”.
Caren Ahern, who visited the event on Saturday, was left feeling utterly let down. She vented her frustration online, saying: “We came yesterday (Saturday) and it was nothing like advertised. We couldn’t watch the monster trucks as you couldn’t see through the dust, the queuing, the ‘car park/field’….I felt so sorry for mums with prams trying to get to through this ‘car park’, let alone wheelchair users! We didn’t get to see any balloons as we had to leave before we spent any more money on the fairground or the food that was all very expensive.”
Allison Hatton also had a bone to pick, slamming the event by stating: “The day was not as described”. She argued that it was “unfair to take so much entry money just to enter a fairground and food stalls”, and pointed out that there were “only two displays of the monster trucks – the rest of the time you had to pay £12 to have a ride on one”.
The sentiment of dissatisfaction was echoed by others who were peeved about what they perceived as poor communication about when certain attractions would be available. One disgruntled visitor recounted how they departed at around 7pm on Saturday without having seen any hot air balloons, only to spot them in the sky after exiting the venue.
Cara Thomas expressed her disappointment, stating: “So disappointed. A balloon festival with no balloons on show. We spent half an hour on the grounds and decided to go back home. £32 to see fairground rides and food stalls – what a complete let down. I just don’t know how they can justify charging for something that isn’t there; I feel sorry for the poor people waiting until 7pm.”
Heather Spain shared similar sentiments, venting on Saturday evening: “We’re just about to leave. We spent £70 on a family ticket for a balloon festival and there’s not a single balloon to be seen. My little ones won’t make it until 7pm. What a rip-off – just a slightly rubbish fairground.”
Elsewhere, disgruntled customers raised concerns about pre-paid parking arrangements, claiming reserved spots were unavailable and parking tickets weren’t checked upon entry. Another string of complaints came in about cancelled monster truck rides, which left some families thoroughly dissatisfied.
The announced night glow show also didn’t go forth as planned, meaning more discontent among attendees. Calvin Brittain expressed his frustration, having coughed up £50 for a family ticket and £5 per ride within the festival, calling the event “an absolute rip-off”.
Adding to the chorus of disappointment, Gemma Knapp proclaimed on social media that “the whole weekend was a shambles.”
While some attendees had a less than stellar experience, others found the event enjoyable. Caryl Mayes shared her positive experience: “Once in we had a great day. We pitched up with camp chairs and enjoyed the afternoon and evening. The only downfall was the set up. The music near the main tent was too loud and you could barely hear the tribute acts. The fair rides we went on were all reasonably priced and no different to normal fairs in the UK all year round – £3 or £4 per ride. Not expensive at all. Lovely seeing all the balloons take off and the kids thoroughly enjoyed the monster truck show. All in all I thought it was a good day. We also took a large picnic in without any issues. A festival is always what you make of it. Great day spent with family and friends.”
Samantha James echoed this sentiment on the festival’s Facebook page: “We had a fab afternoon – got there when it opened and took sealed drinks and food through, no problem. Take a blanket, set up and enjoy spending the day with your family! ” Helen Bantock added: “Don’t miss it…..it was awesome.”
However, one common complaint among Saturday’s festival-goers was the traffic chaos caused by the sheer volume of people travelling to the site just outside Carmarthen simultaneously. This has once again raised questions about the town’s suitability for hosting such large-scale events, as most attendees travelled west along the M4, then the A48 into Pensarn roundabout, then across Lesneven Bridge, onto the BandQ roundabout and west onto the A40.
Drivers headed towards the event experienced heavy traffic and gridlock on both the main roads and across town due to only two lanes of carriageway being available. This had a substantial impact not just on Carmarthen, but also its surrounding areas.
One disgruntled festival-goer told WalesOnline that he endured four hours in bumper-to-bumper traffic before inching his way to the front of the queue. The man claimed that the “pre-booked parking spaces” at the site were highly insufficient for the crowd size, leaving him and his family frustrated and without any other option but returning home.
He described the experience as utter “chaos”, claiming it was money down the drain as he “spent £300 for nothing”. In his frustration, he even demanded a refund.
Another attendee noted that a normally 10-mile journey from Kidwelly to the festival took more than three daunting hours to make. A ticket-holder who embarked on his journey from Cardigan, which is approximately 25 miles away, left his house at 10am Saturday morning only to finally reach the festival entrance at almost 5pm.
He expressed his feelings about the ordeal as “tired and frustrated”. One woman who brought tickets for her family angrily mentioned, “We’ve come from Llanelli, which is half an hour away, and it’s taken us three hours to get here – ridiculous.”
Festival chiefs blamed the gridlocks on a sat-nav blunder, saying the postcode for Nantyci Showground was “taking visitors to the wrong entrance which is affecting traffic and causing delays”. Promising to make amends, they were apologetic saying they were “not aware of this, especially as it is our first event here”.
They affirmed that traffic bound for the site on Sunday was “under control” due to “changes to our system”. The festival’s organisers have been urged to respond to attendees’ concerns, including queries about potential refunds.
