An eagerly anticipated Halloween Festival in Cardiff has had very mixed reviews, with some claiming Cardiff Bay’s festivities are comparable to the disastrous Glasgow Willy Wonka experience last year.
The 2025 event is being staged in Cardiff Bay – with a ‘ghost ship’ taking families from Mermaid Quay out to the ‘island’ at Alexandra Head.
Some of those who visited the event on opening day haven’t held back on their thoughts – one woman who attended on Saturday said it was the ‘worst event’ she’s ever been to.
She posted on Facebook: ‘It’s honestly the worst event I’ve ever been to. After paying nearly £90 for the five of us, we waited 45 minutes to get on the ‘pirate boat’, which was actually just a water taxi, to then enter through what looked like a Covid jab queue and get inside to pay for absolutely everything separately.
‘Actors dressed up, not even acknowledging anyone, wandering aimlessly, and no atmosphere. Honestly, the most disappointing event I’ve ever been to! Such a shame as previous years have been fab!’
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One woman was more curt with her words: ‘If anyone’s thinking of going to the Cardiff Halloween Festival, don’t bother! What an absolute load of c***!’
She added that after spending more than £80 for two adults and a child to get in for ‘all’ activities, attendees had to pay extra.
‘Except for a free pumpkin, which was all stacked up and smashed to pieces. I am honestly so, so gutted – there was no Halloween feel to it all,’ she said.
One father who took his children to the event on Saturday morning said he was left “severely disappointed”.
One person said it was ‘giving Willy Wonka Experience’ vibes, referencing the infamous Glasgow event in 2024 that left attendees furious and demanding refunds.
A spokesperson for Cardiff Halloween Festival said: ‘We’re very sorry that some guests did not have the experience we wanted for them during our opening day.
‘Severe weather in the 24 hours before opening meant some areas were still being finalised, and we are contacting those guests directly affected by this today to make things right.
‘While many of our included experiences and live performances were available, some zones were not ready in time. Our team has been working throughout to ensure everything can open and be fully operational for future visitors.’
A similar disaster unfolded in 2024, when an event intended to be a magical day filled with sweets and imagination ended with children crying, police arriving at the venue, and a bizarre character called the ‘Unknown’.
The Willy Wonka experience in Glasgow has marked itself into internet infamy after the event went horrifically wrong.
With children in tears, House of Illuminati, an ‘immersive events company’ that organised Willy’s Chocolate Experience, was forced to cancel the weekend event midway and issued some 800 refunds.
The £35-a-ticket event at the Box Hub Warehouse in Whiteinch promised a ‘chocolate fantasy like never before’, according to House of Illuminati.
Instead, hundreds of families arrived to find a near-empty warehouse where a few plastic mushrooms and gummy bears, a pink bouncy castle and tables and chairs greeted them.
One of the actresses, Kirsty Paterson, ended up inadvertently becoming the face of the disaster after a photo of her dressed as an Oompa-Loompa while standing next to a billowing chemistry set was widely mocked online.
Nicknamed ‘Meth-lab Oompa-Loompa lady,’ Ms Paterson later admitted that not only had she not been paid the £500 she was promised, but that she had not even been briefed on her role before being thrown into the chaos.
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