A CHRISTMAS market in Taunton, Somerset, has come under fire after one mum left a damning review.
Content creator Emily Cutter, 37, took to social media to blast the Somerset Winter Wonderland event for allegedly ripping parents off.
Emily revealed that she paid £18 for her daughter to visit Father Christmas, which she claimed lasted just four minutes.
She claimed: “I paid £18 to get in to see Santa, who’s an absolute fraud.
“He didn’t even ho, ho, ho. We’ve gone through these doors here, and we got four minutes with the old man.”
Emily also claimed they were not allowed to take their own photos while visiting Santa.
READ MORE ON CHRISTMAS EVENTS
Organiser of the Somerset Winter Wonderland event told The Sun: “Entry to Somerset Winter Wonderland is completely free. There is no charge to enter the venue and no obligation for visitors to spend anything once inside.
“Time with Santa is not limited. Families are never asked to leave the grotto, and visitors are actively encouraged to take their own photographs. Professional photos are offered as an optional extra for those who choose to purchase them.
“This experience is a core part of our event, and we have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from families throughout the season.”
But that’s not all, the mum also slammed the price of the rides, with the Helter Skelter ride costing £3 a go.
Emily added: “At Bridgewater Fair you get three slides for £3.”
The mum also claimed that the games like Hook-a-Duck were rigged so that you couldn’t win.
“Three of us played, so odds were one of us would win a number higher than four,” she claimed. “Under those Hook-a-Ducks, there’s no such thing as a five, six and seven.”
The spokesperson for the event told us: “All games, including hook-a-duck, operate fairly and are not rigged. Pricing across the event is clearly advertised in advance, we push to be the best value possible.
“There is a significant cost of delivering a high-quality, large-scale family experience. While some attractions are paid, visitors are under no obligation to take part.”
THIN ICE
Emily also had an issue with the ice skating rink, calling it ‘absolutely grim,’ and saying: ‘The rink itself is tiny, overcrowded, overpriced, and understaffed.’
While Emily had gotten her dates mixed up for her ice skating session, she saw people had to stand in a queue before starting their skating session, resulting in a ten-minute loss on the ice.
She said: “Get all the way to the front of the ice skating queue, and then they send you away, so you have to stand at the queue at the box, which is not stated via email, so everyone missed 10 minutes of their ice skating time.”
The spokesperson said: “The individual did not take part in ice skating, having booked for the incorrect date. A full refund was issued as a gesture of goodwill. As a result, comments relating to overcrowding, rink size, or time lost to queues are not based on a firsthand experience of the ice skating attraction.”
“‘And while I’m here, shout out to the mulled wine, half a cup for £6. I wouldn’t recommend it. Don’t waste your money,” she continued.
Emily encouraged those considering a trip to the Taunton Christmas event to ‘think again’, claiming that there are cheaper, better options available.
Money expert Gemma Bird’s hacks to help make your Christmas more affordable
UK HOUSEHOLDS are expected to spend around £1,626.46 on presents, food and decorations – a reminder of how quickly festive costs can add up. However, there are some hacks you can try to keep costs down…
1. Start with a Christmas budget: It sounds obvious, but many households skip it. Set an overall budget and divide it by category, for example, gifts, food, social gatherings. An easy way to do this is with a spreadsheet or try banking or budgeting apps to split money into pots for each category.
2. Shop early to beat price hikes: Many shoppers now start their festive shopping as early as September to avoid last-minute markups, but the biggest savings are still to come. Black Friday and Cyber Monday are prime opportunities to tick off your gift list with discounts on the lot.
3. Sign up for bank switches or cashback schemes: Free money sounds too good to be true, but it’s even stranger that you can get it from the bank. The big banks can offer up to £200 if you open an account with them. That’s a healthy amount to add to your Christmas fund.
4. Always check for discount codes: Before buying, always search for discount codes online. If your search comes up empty, here’s a hack: sign up to the brand’s newsletter. Many will offer a discount if you sign up. It’s usually around 10%, or an amount off with a minimum spend.
5. Embrace the four-gift rule for kids: To encourage the little ones to appreciate what they get, save money and reduce clutter, parents are embracing the ‘four-gift rule’: Something they want, Something they need, Something to wear, Something to read. Introduce the idea to your children, then allocate a budget for each to keep spending sensible and ensure gifts are truly appreciated.
“Unless you want to remortgage I would steer clear,” she captioned the post.
Emily also claimed she had spent £75 on the ice skating rink but had to go back the next day as they ‘do not do refunds.’
The mum visited again, and when she tried to dispute the refund, she claimed staff were ‘aggressive, very unprofessional, and started on me’.
The spokesperson told us: “We take the safety and well-being of our staff extremely seriously. During a subsequent visit, our team were subjected to repeated verbal abuse, including swearing in front of children. Following this behaviour, the individual was asked to leave the venue in order to protect staff and other guests. This decision followed our standard procedures and was not taken lightly.
“We made reasonable efforts to resolve matters privately, including issuing refunds where appropriate. Despite this, the situation has continued to be pursued publicly, including claims about experiences that did not take place.
“When concerns continue after a resolution has already been offered, it raises serious questions about whether the objective is resolution or public exposure.”
The video has gone viral on Emily’s TikTok account @e.m.i.l.ytok with over 617k views, and many parents took to the comments to share their thoughts.
One person wrote: “England has turned into one big scam.”
Another commented: “Omg it was so awkward took my son here Saturday. Also didn’t get our ‘free’ reindeer food either!”
“Absolutely awful that ice rink. Glad you posted to let everyone know,” penned a third.
The spokesperson added: “Somerset Winter Wonderland exists to create a joyful, family-focused Christmas experience.
“We warmly invite anyone to visit and see for themselves. Entry is free, there is no obligation to spend, and the event continues to be enjoyed by thousands of families.
“While we respect the right to share opinions, we will not allow inaccurate public claims to undermine the hard work of our staff or misrepresent the experience we deliver.”
