Lapland New Forest Scam. How to get money back...

Tubbthumping

meggie2006 wrote: »

We have got tickets booked for 20th December and really don't know what to do.

A friend of mine went yesterday, and she was aware of all the problems but thought she would see for herself what the problem was. This is what she told me on another site:

hi xxxxxx

we have just got back from lapland & had a fab day.... dont know what the problem has been, it was a magical day, loads of snow & elfs (more elfs than visitors) loads of sheds (not log cabins, but who cares) with activities for Kids to do, with help form parents, snow coverd trees, wolves, pigs, donkeys, reindeers, geese, rabbits, loads of free gifts for kids, punch & judy, free funfair.. as many goes as you want.... at the end of the day its for the kids.... i would go again, it was fab. the elfs were really friendly & were playing with xxxxx & running around with him. yes the entrance was hard to find & there were no 'log cabins' no hustling christmas market (as we were taking xxxxx to see santa, xmas shopping didnt matter) we believe it was a magical day & enjoyed it hun, we took some packed luch as the food is pricey, also to see our little boys face light when he saw santa, the elves, snow & animals it was worth every penny.......

at the end of the day chritmas is for our children & i think that people have been too harsh....

please go & enjoy your family day, we still went today even though our friend called us last night after going yesterday & told us not to go as it was trash. with all the negativity from her day...2 hours to get in, rain (that washed the snow off trees) 2 hours to see santa... it was the opening weekend with teething problems & some people were expeting the real thing for under £100

please go, xxxxx will love it. xxx

This is a genuine post from a friend of mine - I am more than happy to PM people the site if they don't believe me.

Sorry to be the old cynic, but your friend did go on a school day after 100's of people complained, trading standards were there and the press were there.

I can assure you that the weekend just gone was more then just "teething problems". The place is an extended travelling fun fair (which wasn't fun or fair). There was no Punch and Judy when we were there??!!

We too were going so the children could see Santa first and foremost and then take in everything else the place had to offer. We didn't hang around much after the farce that was queueing for 2 hours to walk into a dreadfully decorated chalet with a snarling bears head stuck up on the wall that made the small boy in front of us cry, to see Santa only to be told that he isn't delivering the present my children have been good for but that you must queue up -again- to go and pick a toy in a shed that isn't even wrapped up.

As for the staff being happy and friendly I can only guess that they were told that they will be getting their money sooner then on the Xmas eve they were told at the weekend???

Your friend is right, Christmas is for the children, this place however is not. Children were cold, bored and crying that they wanted to go home, so if your friend thinks that criticising the place for doing that to our children is being harsh then I guess I am harsh.

This place offered no more then a good garden centre would for less then a tenner each.

By all means go for yourself, I just hope you have a better time then the 3000 or so people did at the weekend.

mels4307

i agree if you are not happy you should get refund but doesnt mean you should attack others

Tubbthumping

mels4307 wrote: »

i agree if you are not happy you should get refund but doesnt mean you should attack others

Do you think I was attacking someone?

danster1984

mels4307 wrote: »

i agree if you are not happy you should get refund but doesnt mean you should attack others

He's not attacking anyone; he's quite rightly picking up on the poster's opinion of Lapland New Forest, which is (mysteriously; see more below) completely at odds with the thousands of complaints spread across other sites/the media in the last 48 hours.

Rather interestingly, having looked at a couple of other forums (Baby Bump, Mumsnet, etc.), there's often one comment in each thread from a "really really happy" individual, who just happened to have registered with the forum five minutes earlier (yes, I know, I just registered as well!), and who's wording is very similar from site to site. I'd treat any positive reviews of Lapland New Forest (not Lapland UK, that's an entirely different and altogether better run affair) with a massive pinch of salt if I were you; they're likely to have come from the organisers/organisers' friends and families themselves.

mels4307

as said b4 went b4 the weekend, my kids had a remote control car, card making set and stuffed toy which they chose. there were others to choose from at that time. just felt that i had happy children at the end but feel that after all the bad things said wouldnt hurt to let people no.

mels4307

i have used this site b4 for reclaiming bank charges just b4 bank charges got stopped and was a happy bunny as had the money from bank charges repaid

MammaBling

You have to feel sorry for Meggie2006 if that's her 'friend'!

Couldn't help but wonder why the friend wrote '...also to see our little boys face light up'. Wouldn't it be more natural if writing to a friend to refer to your son by name - i.e. ' to see little Johnny's face light up'?

Me thinks I smell a rat...

savemoney

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1090931/Tacky-Christmas-Parents-anger-childrens-tears-Lapland-theme-park-turned-muddy-field.html

The web site has been pulled

hezb

mels4307 wrote: »

i have used this site b4 for reclaiming bank charges just b4 bank charges got stopped and was a happy bunny as had the money from bank charges repaid

must be under another name as you have only been registered this month Dec 2008!!!!

I have tickets for 22nd Dec for my son's Birthday as a special treat, £100 is a lot of money to see santa in a shed!!! last year we went to london to see santa and stayed over for less!!!! I expect to get what was sold on the website (which is still down!!! or closed!!) and by all acounts that is not what you get when there .

meggie2006

so I am now being accused of lying - this friend is genuine and I am more than happy to give you the original link to a thread that I started yesterday on a completely different site. This friend is 100% genuine - yes I have deleted my friends boy name from the post, as i have deleted my own and my daughter.

I have nothing to do with Lapland, I am just another parent who has treated her 2 year old to what I hoped would be a magical experience

I feel very hurt about some of the comments.