Deflated families have criticised a ‘rip-off’ balloon festival after shelling out £20-a-head for the event.
The Balloons and Tunes festival promises to offer ‘high-quality events’ which ‘showcase a vibrant mix of attractions’, including ‘spectacular Hot Air Balloon shows’, but has received mixed reviews.
Founded in 2012 and dubbed ‘the UK’s Freshest Hot Air Balloon & Music festival’, the festival takes place across multiple cities across Britain from June to September and is set to be attended by hundreds of eager festivalgoers.
However, some visitors to the often sold-out festival have been left far from impressed and are even demanding a refund, with one grandmother branding the £20-a-head spectacle a ‘rip-off’ and an ‘insult’ to other balloon shows.
Meanwhile another festivalgoer said that despite being the main event, the balloons were unable to be inflated when they attended due to the ‘warm and sunny’ weather.
Carole Rabbetts, 75, said that her grandchildren had been left deeply ‘upset at the lack of balloons’, with just two balloons inflated during the afternoon in Romsey, Hampshire on July 19.
While other balloons were later inflated, the family had to leave and missed the delayed spectacle, leaving the grandmother feeling she had been shortchanged.
Adding that the sold-out festival was as an ‘insult to the people who do it properly’, she said: ‘It was supposed to be a balloon festival, and when we went there, there were only two balloons.
Some visitors to the often sold-out Balloons and Tunes festival (pictured) have been left far from impressed after paying £20 per person (two balloons at the Romsey event)
Several lit up hot air balloons at the Romsey festival which were displayed after a delay with many festivalgoers having to leave before seeing them
‘And one of them was only inflated about 20 minutes before we left, about 4.30-5pm.
‘You get other festivals where there are hundreds of hot air balloons and it is free to go and see them.’
Ms Rabbetts, who also described the food as ‘absolutely disgusting’ and ‘costing the earth’, further remarked: ‘I don’t think I’ve ever paid to go into a funfair. It was £20 to go into a funfair – that is a rip-off.
‘My son had one of their hot dogs, which cost him the earth, and he said, ‘Mum, this is foul. I’m only eating it because I’m hungry, but in other circumstances, I would have thrown it in the bin!’
Due to her poor experience and what she described as ‘absolutely pathetic’ stunt shows, Ms Rabbetts said that she would not be attending the event next year.
Meanwhile, other disappointed festivalgoers took to Facebook to express their similar outrage at the ‘awful event’.
One commenter described there being a significant queue to get ‘WARM’ drinks’, while also further claiming that two deflated balloons were not used due to the weather.
Another furious Facebook user said that while they had initially been ‘really looking forward’ to the event, the fireworks and balloon rides had since been cancelled due to winds above 10mph, with no refunds on offer.
On July 4, the festival announced that the event, then hosted in Cornwall, had been forced to cancel their fireworks display that the had been advertising for several months prior to the sold-out event.
Other attendees to the Romsey event (pictured) said that the name of the festival had been deceptive, with there a ‘huge feeling of being ripped off’ as a result
Festival-goers at Balloons and Tunes in Romsey, where some slammed the ‘overpriced’ and ‘disgusting’ food and hit out at aspects that were cancelled including fireworks
Despite complaints from punters, Balloons and Tunes UK said in the comments of a Facebook post on the day of the event that it did not have the licence to display the fireworks.
Other attendees to the Romsey event said that the name of the festival had been deceptive, with there a ‘huge feeling of being ripped off’ as a result.
One commenter said: ‘Balloons were half an hour later than advertised, and my daughter was shattered, so we had to leave after five minutes’.
Another also expressed their fury by adding that there were ‘hardly any tunes and no balloons’ and that the event had been ‘so unorganised it was embarrassing’.
As a result of their negative experience, they branded the festival ‘a complete joke’, while one unhappy visitor said they had been ‘left disappointed’ by the ‘overpriced’ event that was a ‘waste of money’.
Previous attendees have also raised complaints about the significant cost of parking and ‘extortionate’ food and drink prices.
Despite the bouts of negative feedback, one local resident from the small town of Romsey described the unique launching of the balloons as ‘a spectacle not seen in the town for some time’.
Last July, the inaugural Northumberland Balloon Festival (pictured) failed to take off with visitors calling it ‘atrocious’, ‘comical’ and a rip-off
Meanwhile, another individual who had attended the Cornwall event wrote: ‘Had a wonderful day. Was gutted the weather meant balloons couldn’t go up but safety first, typical Cornish drizzle all day but has a wonderful family day out! Will be going again.’
Others also expressed sympathy for the festival, adding that ‘unfortunately, they can’t control the weather for the balloons to go up’, but they had been appreciative of the staff ‘making the effort with a fire show at the end of the night’.
Another visitor to the Cornwall event spoke favourably of their experience, stating: ‘Had a great evening, we arrived later on because of the weather forecast but the rain held off most of the evening.
‘The monster truck show was cut short and balloons couldn’t fly, both due to weather, but the music was fantastic and we had great food and danced. We will be back for the balloons next year.’
On their website, Balloons and Tunes state that ‘ballooning is a wholly weather dependent activity’, adding that ‘if the weather is not suitable, they may not be able to inflate properly or safely take off’.
Last July, the inaugural Northumberland Balloon Festival failed to take off with visitors calling it ‘atrocious’, ‘comical’ and a rip-off.
Described as the UK’s largest Hot Air Balloon Festival, it promised up to 25 balloons for Saturday night’s ‘big balloon launch’ and huge tethered balloons for photo opportunities throughout the three-day festival.
However, visitors instead said that they arrived at Tynedale Rugby Club in Corbridge to find just four hot-air balloons in a muddy field and an Elton John tribute act singing Status Quo.
Northumberland Balloon festival last year which was plagued by bad weather meaning many of the hot air balloons were unable to be inflated
One visitor even compared it to ‘Potter’s Pink Palace’ from Phoenix nights.
The festival, organised by Richardson’s Amusements LTD and involving Exclusive Ballooning, was been slammed as a rip-off, with families complaining a lack of communication.
The event was been likened to a ‘funfair with a few balloons tacked on at the end of the day,’ rather than a balloon festival, with hundreds of comments on the event’s Facebook page calling for refunds on the £15 tickets removed.
A post on the Northumberland Balloon Festival Facebook page said: ‘The heavy rain overnight causing wet ground conditions combined with some forecast potential drizzle during flying time this evening means we don’t expect to be flying this evening.
‘However, the teams on site are confident that the shelter on the launch site will allow us to inflate balloons throughout the afternoon. We have a number of SkySafari unique animal balloons on site and all of these are scheduled to make an appearance at some point today.
‘These include Puddles and Splash the famous penguins along with Tall Steve, the world’s tallest penguin. We also have the Wallace and Gromit Moon Rocket here with us which will be out at some point. Finally, if conditions allow, we have a surprise balloon to inflate just in time for the football which is on the big screen.’
MailOnline approached Balloons and Tunes UK for comment.
